Why the Rich World Is Going to Need AI and Africa
Fewer births are remaking the world we live in, and the west isn’t in the mood to examine the alternatives.
No country for young men.
Photographer: Chris J. Ratcliffe/BloombergTo get John Authers' newsletter delivered directly to your inbox, sign up here.
Falling fertility is a problem across the developed world. Unlike many other risks, demographic changes can be predicted with some certainty; sliding birth rates translate directly into smaller populations ahead. That is a good thing in many ways. Two hundred years ago, the Malthusian fear was of population growth so rapid that it outstripped natural resources. But there are other ways in which it’s a serious problem, which could also create opportunities for those who offer solutions. And so the McKinsey Global Institute offers a new report on “confronting the consequences of a new demographic reality.” As it sounds, it’s not cheerful reading, but it shouldn’t be avoided.