Assessing the Impact of Rapid Population Growth and Its Associated Consequences on Natural Resources and the Environment in Malawi

Every day new babies are being born globally. The increase in world population has hit 8.0+ billion, which has intensely impacted the global climate and ecosystem.

Every day new babies are being born globally. The increase in world population has hit 8.0+ billion, which has intensely impacted the global climate and ecosystem. The impact of this human population growth has resulted in huge consumption of resources and poor waste management. In Malawi, the increase in population growth continues to be a major cause of environmental degradation, depletion of natural resources, and poor waste management. The high population has increased the rate of infrastructure development and which has increased the scarcity of arable land. The exhaustion of the small piece of farmland had declined soil fertility and improved the threat to food security in the country. The impact of high population growth on natural resources and the environment has also affected the country’s income and revenue generation in such a way that the scarcity of arable and depletion of soil fertility land has resulted in a decline in agricultural production which is the main source of income of the country. The encroachment of the national parks and the game reserves has resulted in the depletion and extinction of the ecosystem which had affected the tourism industry of the country hence the increase in the scarcity of forex in Malawi. Overpopulation mostly in the urban areas of Malawi has been associated with poor waste management. As household consumption of garbage materials increases, collection and management of the waste have been poorly conducted resulting in the pollution of the rivers and the surrounding environment which has increased the rate of waterborne diseases. Currently, Malawi is fighting against cholera, a disease that has spread in some parts of the country due to water pollution and an unhygienic living environment. As it is essential to implement the measures of reducing the impacts of rapid population growth on natural resources and the environment, It is high time the horrors of rapid population growth reach out to the public. There are a number of ways in which rapid population growth can be reduced in Malawi, such as the transformation of rural areas, promotion of better education, women empowerment, and promotion of family planning programs restricting child marriages,  just to mention a few. As the urban areas are highly populated, the transformation of rural areas with infrastructure development and the provision of utilities should be implemented in order to reduce the population growth rate of the urban areas. Better education should be promoted as it helps in implementing social and behavioral change among the youth who indulge in early sexual activities, which increases the rate of teenage pregnancies and early marriages which is also contributing to the rapid growth of the population. There is also a need to educate and empower women so that they can be self-dependent and break out of poverty as many women are involved in sexual activities as one way of sourcing money to cater to their basic needs. As this is increasing the rate of unwanted pregnancies which is adding to the population is rapidly increasing. To reduce the rate of teenage pregnancies and unwanted pregnancies, family planning programs need to be funded and promoted. Modern contraceptives need to be available everywhere even in remote areas so that they can be easily accessible when in need to every one of childbearing age. In the course of promoting family planning programs, there is a need to restrict child marriages and raise awareness of the legal age marriage of 18 years mostly in the rural areas where child marriages are increasing. It is essential to reduce the rate of population growth in Malawi in order to combat its associated challenges on natural resources and the environment.   Image: Lake Malawi  Image Credits: worldatlas.com