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Theories

Population Pyramids

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How the population is structured is also of importance to economists. The structure of the population can be considered in terms of:

• the proportion of different age groups
• the proportion of males and females

This information is often illustrated using a population pyramid.

The x-axis shows the population in millions whilst the y-axis shows different age ranges. The higher up the y-axis the older the population. The left half of the pyramid shows age distribution of the male population and the right half the female distribution. It is useful to examine the changes in these pyramids over time as they give clues to how the population is changing and how these changes may impact on the economy.

The key points to note about the population pyramid of Zambia are that the wide base of the pyramid indicates a large proportion of the population is young. This is an indicator of a high birth rate. The narrow top indicates a small proportion of the population is old implying a high death rate.

Impact on the economy
Ageing or youthful populations may have implications for the following:

• labour availability and unemployment?
• economic growth?
• the size and nature of markets
• dependency ratios
• welfare services such as pensions, old peoples homes
• educational provision i.e. primary , secondary and tertiary education
• housing market

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Related Glossary Items:
Crude Birth Rate
Death Rate
Natural Rate of Population Growth
Population Pyramid

Related Issues:
HIV and AIDS in Zambia

Related Theories:
Models of Demographic Transition
The Dependency Ratio