What is the World Bank doing to address population growth?
JM: The classic approach to population issues that has often been driven by family planning is giving way to a more subtle understanding of population growth and its social and economic consequences as brought about by the experience in East Asia. Remember that the “Asian miracle” is attributable to a large extent (40 percent) to rapid declines in fertility and dramatic changes in the age structures. The Bank is currently adapting to this “new demography,” which looks at age structures, dependency ratios, human capital investments and the demographic dividend. More economists are coming back to the demographic dimensions of development. Freestanding population projects are gradually replaced by new instruments that address population issues multi-sectorally. The challenge will be to inform these new approaches with the right demographic data and assessments. More and more African governments are looking for advice in the area of population. Our task is to help them effectively in what