The transition to Stage 2 is still a comparatively recent
phenomenon in human history. Not until the Industrial Revolution did the first
countries make the transition from Stage 1 to Stage 2. Still, there are a sum
of countries that continue in Stage 2 of the Demographic Transition for a range
of social and economic reasons, including much of Sub-Saharan Africa,
Guatemala, Nauru, Palestine, Yemen and Afghanistan.
Countries making the transition to Stage 3 all have some
relative steadiness – economic, social or political. It has been discussed
whether or not these factors influence birth and death rates or if birth and
death rates influence a country’s development. Regardless, stable population
growth provides important advantages for a country, offering opportunities to
strengthen its economy as a noticeable number of its citizens will be in their
working years. As such, Stage 3 is often watched as a marker of significant
development. Examples of Stage 3 countries are Colombia, Botswana, India,
Jamaica, Kenya, South Africa, Mexico, and the United Arab Emirates, just to
name a few.
