Other sources report that global human population is increasing at the rate of eighty million people every year: approximately six and a half million a month; one and a half million each week; more than two hundred thousand each day. According to a report published by World Watch Institute, there are already some signs of faltering growth trends in countries that were expected to have the greatest population increases in the near future. Population in thirty-two industrialized countries has stabilized because of declining birthrates.
A few countries, including Russia, Italy, the United States, and Japan, have declining populations. In some developing countries where population growth will probably be slower in a few years, more people are dying. India, Pakistan, and Nigeria, for instance, are beginning to experience difficulty in feeding, housing, and educating increasing numbers of children while having to confront the challenges of falling water tables, deforestation, and soil erosion caused in part by rapid population growth in recent decades. Some observers of global trends are of the opinion that human population growth will slow down because developing countries will begin to encourage smaller families or unrestrained birth rates will result in the spread of famine and disease. The major threats to human security on the planet are conflicts within nations because of socioeconomic deprivation and differences, and ethnic and religious intolerance.
