Question

Italy and Niger have opposite population demographics: Italy has an aging population with a high life expectancy, and Niger has a very young population with a low life expectancy.
a. True
b. False

Answer 1

The statement is true.

In Italy, according to the latest ISTAT (Italian National Institute of Statistics) surveys as of 1 January 2017, young people up to 14 years old are almost 100,000 less than in 2016 and represent 13.5% of the total. People over 65 years of age are increasing by 160,000 and now represent 22.6% of the population. Demographically speaking Italy is still one of the countries with the lowest birth rate in the world; in 2016 the average number of births per woman is estimated at 1.34, down compared to 1.46 in 2010, which represented the highest value since 1984. In 2016, life expectancy for men was up to 80.1 years and for women it was of 84.7 years. So we can see an aging population (almost a quarter of the population belongs to the older adults group) with a high life expectancy, just like the statement said.

About Niger, according to the statistical information of the CIA World Factbook, the population of Niger estimated to 2010 is 15 306 252 inhabitants, of which 49.6% are in the range 0 to 14 years, 48.1% between 15 and 64 years and 2.3% with more than 65 years. Life expectancy is 44 years and the average of children per woman is 7.37, the second highest rate in the world, which is causing a population increase never seen in the history of this poor country. In the same way, its birth rate is the highest in the world, with 51.6 births per 1000 inhabitants, although the mortality rate is also high, ranking eighteen worldwide with 14.83 deaths per thousand inhabitants. Infant mortality is one of the highest in the world, with 116.66 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants, and its life expectancy is one of the lowest. So in this case the statement is also correct.

Answer 2

This is true - Italy has a aging population which is expected to life long - as is the case with most post-industrial societies, while Niger on the other hand expects its people to live not as long and at the same time has a younger population.