Malthus And Africa

Africa, universe a third human being untaught with much economic oppression, is currently being debated in the General Assembly about whether or non it should rent world control. umteen experts believe that, if not controlled, the rate of the increasing population of Africa will be fork up disastrous effects. Over two hundred years ago, a man by the name of doubting Thomas Robert Malthus wrote an essay on the effects of population and the nutriment supply titled An Essay on the article of belief of Population. This essay dealt with the ontogeny of population and if not restrained, how it would destroy mans subsistence here on universe (Geyer 1).Much of what he wrote applies to not only Africa, but also the entire world today. Currently, the population growth in the Western Nations is approaching zero. This means that each family is having 2. 1 children, enough to replace the current population. For northeasterly America to double, it would take one hundred years, for Eu rope, two hundred. But for Africa to double, it would take only twenty-four years. in that respect be many factors as to why Africa, and many other third world countries, reproduces at such(prenominal) a rate.Lack of contraceptives, traditional values, high infant mortality, and poor education argon a few of these actors (Duffey 2). It is a lot easier for a country to deal with its problems if it has less people, says Brian Hailwel, who studies Malthuss theories (Kolasky 1). Carl Haub who stated, It is almost impossible for a developing country to move from the Third World to the send-off World when their population is rising so rapidly supports Hailwels statement. Malthus believed that the evolution of mankind existed in cycles.Good times occurred when there were high wage and good living conditions, which led to early marriages and rapid population increase. Then come the bad times. Disease, beginning ages, and epidemics lead to population decrease and a restored balance bet ween population and resources. This cycle then rep corrodes (Stundbia 4). He also felt that the Poor Laws, which attempted to support those whose incomes were too low to support themselves, were in the want run more harmful than suspensorful. This just leads to lower wages and families that can not support the children they already have bearing more.Many people seem to imply that war, famine, and plague will help dungeon the worlds population restrained. These disasters argon one of the two prepares on the growth of population that Malthus identifies in An Essay on he Principle of Population. He called these two checks positive checks and preventative checks. Positive checks are famine, disease, and wars epoch preventive checks are celibacy, abortion, and late marriages. Africa participates very little in the second check Malthus identifies collectable to previously stated reasons.When Malthus wrote his essay, he did not take into account the impact technology would have on viands production. Due to the Green Revolution which brought about the tractor, refrigeration, chemical fertilizers, and genetic engineering, there was a dreadful increase in food production. Until the mid-eighties, food production kept up with population growth. Since then, it has been steadily declining. caryopsis production is declining due to soil erosion, waterlogging and salting of irrigated land, air pollution, water shortages, and overuse of land (Berntsen 3).Technological advances remunerative for the loss of farmland. Even though less land can be utilize, more food is being produced. Unfortunately, there are many indications that the world is, at present, producing the maximum amount of food it is capable of. The unite effect of the loss of farmland and the peaking of yield er acre impose limitations. The same problem is in circumstance for the m run through production. Nearly all of the worlds rangelands are in use. Seventy- portion of the worlds one-year meat is r ange fed while the other thirty-percent is grain fed.The only room for growth is in the grain fed, and that is estimated to only grow another forty-two percent (Berntsen 2). Fish are also on the decline as a reliable resource for food. The destruction of spawning grounds and the use of mile-long nylon nets has caused the overharvesting of the ocean. A five- percent increase is optimistic (Berntsen 3). The result of the present being the peak in food production while the population is shut away growing is frightening. If food were to be distributed equally, the food supply would be ten pounds per week.Currently, Americans eat seventeen pounds of food per week. When the world population reaches approximately eleven billion in the year 2050, the food supply will be six to seven pounds per week, which is below the level of food people eat who live in poverty today (Berntsen 1). Malthus believed that three things cause the decline of living conditions the overpopulation of young the nab ility of resources to spare up with the rising human population and the irresponsibility of the lower class (Simison 2). Malthus suggested a regulation on the size of families of the lower class to fight this.Tunisia, which is located in Northern Africa, has introduced birth control with infrequent results. If overpopulation is not checked, it leads to the crowding of people and the fight for food and water. This, in turn, leads to genocide and other means that are normally considered inappropriate as acceptable (Geyer 2). Equilibrium is what Malthus thought population should achieve. This is where the birth rate equals the stopping point rate. When this is reached, wages will stay the same and any disturbances caused will have compensating changes (Stundbia 5).Malthus, who is credited for this idea, did not specify the human population would ever achieve it. He figured that it would be exceeded, a positive check would result, and the cycle would start all over again. Taking Mal thuss theories into account, the only thing that will help Africa economically is for the population to be repressed. In fact, for the next generation or two, the reproduction level should be below the replacement rate. This dramatically decreases the population, therefore increasing the chances it has to grow and develop.If Africas population is not repressed, there will not be enough food to feed the people living there. Even First World countries will be unable to help, because they will need all the food they can produce. A gruesome famine will occur, with thousands dead. Africa will experience a major setback and may maybe never recover. I believe that much of Malthuss theory is correct. Much of the data he used in the seventeen hundreds was incorrect, but his ideas still apply. The cycles he explained have proven to occur. Almost all of the worlds land that can be used is being used to produce the maximum yield.Scientists have predicted the worlds growth to reach eleven billi on by the year 2050 if left unchecked. Many have also agreed that the maximum food supply is being produced. If countries such as Africa, whose population tripled from 1950 to today, do not curb their population growth, there will not be enough food to feed them, much less countries that are considerable better off economically. I also think that if Africa were to be educated and there was less oppression, the result would be lower population growth.The idea of allowing families to have only a certain amount of children is morally wrong. Some people seem to think that Malthuss ideas are extinct and do not apply to the world today. They consider him and what he thought to be dead. But, as Pablo Neruda once said, Everything that is buried is not dead (Geyer 1). He is still alive because his theories can still be applied to today. The consequences of not considering Malthuss theory as a real threat are too great. For life to exist as we know it, population must be repressed. If not, ma ns subsistence will be extinct.