World population 'up by 40% in 2050'

The world’s population will increase by 40% to 9.1 billion in 2050, but virtually all the growth will be in the developing world, especially in the 50 poorest countries, the United Nations Population Division said.

The division’s revision of earlier estimates said the population in less developed countries was expected to swell from 5.3 billion today to 7.8 billion in 2050. By contrast, the population of richer developed countries will remain mostly unchanged, at 1.2 billion.