World Population Day is all about raising awareness of controlling the population and serves to highlight the growing problems that come with a growing global population. World Population Day was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989. It was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987, the approximate date on which the world’s population reached six billion people. According to the United Nations, world population reached 7 Billion on October 31, 2011.

2023 Theme: Unleashing the power of gender equality: Uplifting the voices of women and girls to unlock our world’s infinite possibilities

Women and girls make up 49.7% of the global population, yet women and girls are often ignored in discussions on demographics, with their rights violated in population policies.

This pervasive injustice keeps women and girls out of school, the workforce and leadership positions; limits their agency and ability to make decisions about their health and sexual and reproductive lives; and heightens their vulnerability to violence, harmful practices and preventable maternal death, with a woman dying every two minutes due to pregnancy or childbirth.

We must advance gender equality to create a more just, resilient and sustainable world. The creativity, ingenuity, resources and power of women and girls are fundamental to addressing demographic and other challenges that threaten our future, including climate change and conflict.

When women and girls are empowered by societies to exert autonomy over their lives and bodies, they and their families thrive, as the UNFPA 2023 State of World Population report illustrates.

UNFPA brings its data, experience and stories to support women and girls around the world, and World Population Day gives us an opportunity to highlight the need to advance gender equality to help realize the dreams of all 8 billion of us on our planet.

The Library collections contain print and online resources on the topic of population and demographics. Resources can be found by searching in the Library’s search tool, Discover. Print books on these subjects can be found in the Reading Room, shelf mark ZY09 and EHD. A selection of books from this section are on display in the Library’s Reading Room.