Vice President Dr. Mohamed Waheed has today released UNFPA’s report “State of World Population 2011: People and Possibilities in a World of 7 Billion”, to mark the milestone of reaching 7 billion in the world population.
At a ceremony held at the United Nations building in Male’, the Vice President noted that the growth of the world population is parallel to the increase in number of challenges we face, such as economic, social and environmental challenges.
In his speech, Vice President Dr. Waheed said that empowering women and girls would accelerate developmental progress of the country, bringing attention to the many cases of mistreatment of women, and encouraging women to lead in the workforce.
Going over the “State of World Population” report, the Vice President spoke on the role of younger generation in transforming the world politically and economically. He also noted the importance of planning for the improvement of living standards in cities, as a higher number of the world population is estimated to migrate to cities from rural areas.
Further, Vice President Dr. Waheed highlighted the need to narrow the gaps between rich and poor in the society, in reducing extreme poverty in the world.
The world population is projected to reach the milestone of 7 billion on 31 October 2011.
