World population may reach 10 billion by 2050

The current world population of 7.7 billion is expected to reach 10 billion in 2050 and 11.2 billion in 2100, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The UNFPA figures, compiled by Anadolu Agency, showed that world population, which is currently growing by nearly 84 million per year, was only 300 million 2,000 years ago.

The population was 600 million in 1600, 1 billion in 1804, 1.5 billion in 1900 and 7 billion in 2011. The fastest growth occurred after 1950.

According to the figures, it is expected that 2.2 billion people -- 1.3 billion from Africa and 750 million from Asia -- will be added to the population mass between 2017-2050.

The only region expected to face a decline during this period is Europe.

According to estimates, between 2017-2050, the population of 51 countries and regions, mostly in Europe, is expected to decline.

Also, only nine countries will have half of the world's population in 2050. These countries are India, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, the U.S., Uganda and Indonesia.

By 2050, in the UN medium variant projection, India will have 1.7 billion people, China 1.3 billion, Nigeria 399 million, the U.S. 389 million, Indonesia 322 million, Pakistan 310 million, Brazil 238 million, Democratic Republic of the Congo 195 million, the Russian Federation 129 million, Japan 107 million, and Turkey over 93 million.

Turkey's population is currently 80.8 million. The country also hosts 4.4 million foreigners.

On the other hand, UNFPA estimates that by 2050, 22 percent of the world population will be over 60 years of age and will surpass the youth.