The population of the world is expected to hit 7 billion by the end of October – creating numerous challenges regarding gender equality, environmental protection and poverty – attendees at a press conference in Hanoi heard today on World Population Day.
At the conference, the United Nations and the Vietnamese Ministry of Health launched the campaign "Seven billion actions" carrying the motto "Seven billion people counting on each other."
The campaign urges national leaders, members of the public and corporations to take a more pro-active role in tackling the issues created by the world\'s soaring population.
Mandeep Janeja, officer-in-charge of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said Vietnam must tackle issues of gender equality and improve people\'s living standards in the face of a growing population. She said however that Vietnam, which has a growing working-age population, had a "demographic bonus" that it should capitalise on.
She predicted that the working-age population in Vietnam would continue to grow until 2041.
The United Nations and the Ministry of Health are currently working on projects to highlight the problems of the world\'s climbing population, a report of which will be made available in October.
