By: Edward Zeng

Overpopulation is a common problem in many third-world countries—and there are several potential solutions.

The more people there are, the more resources they need, and poor countries may not be able to sustain their people. The United States has more resources per person than Mexico, so many Mexicans are illegally immigrating into the United States. Overpopulation can also cause areas to have higher population densities, which may turn that area into a slum and cause pandemics.

Overpopulation happens when an entire population gives birth to a large number of children. Usually, these populations are in poverty. Poor families sometimes give birth to more children for child labor or for the children to support them when they become older. Women in developing countries are also married at an earlier age, after which are pressured to become pregnant as soon as possible. Is there a solution to this?

In China, from 1980 to 2016, the one-child policy was implemented. The policy restricted most families to having one child. However, this policy can’t be regulated in a poor country, where people don’t go to hospitals to give birth and could give birth to multiple children without the government knowing. One commonly suggested solution is to provide better education for an entire population. Another solution is to provide birth control and contraception.

As effective as the solutions may be, they are still very expensive, and some corrupt governments will not even consider putting these solutions in place, as they do not even believe poverty exists.

Overpopulation, like many other worldwide problems, cannot just be solved overnight. This problem is an effect of poverty, corruption, and wealth disparity, which all need to be tackled before overpopulation.