Core 1: Populations in transition

Population Explain population trends and patterns in births (Crude Birth Rate), natural
change increase and mortality (Crude Death Rate, infant and child mortality
rates), fertility and life expectancy in contrasting regions of the world.
Analyse population pyramids. Explain population momentum and its
impact on population projections.
Responses to high Explain dependency and ageing ratios. Examine the impacts of youthful
and low fertility and ageing populations. Evaluate examples of a pro-natalist policy and an
anti-natalist policy.
Movement Discuss the causes of migrations, both forced and voluntary. Evaluate
responses internal (national) and international migrations in terms of their
migration geographic (socio-economic, political and environmental) impacts at their
origins and destinations.
Gender and Examine gender inequalities in culture, status, education, birth ratios,
change health, employment, empowerment, life expectancy, family size,
migration, legal rights and land tenure.

Trend: The general course or prevailing tendency changes over time.

Pattern: A combination of qualities, acts, tendencies, etc., forming a consistent or
characteristic arrangement, e.g. differences by country, age, gender.
Diffusion: the spread of ideas/disease/technology over time and space.
Carrying capacity: the largest population that the resources of a given environment can
support.

FERTILITY
Fertility rate: The number of live births per 1000 women aged 15-49 years per year.
Total fertility Rate: The average number of children a woman is expected to have in her
lifetime. The total fertility rate normally falls as a country develops.
Replacement level fertility: The total fertility rate needed for a country to replace and
maintain its population. The replacement rate is about 2.12.
Crude Birth Rate: The number of births per 1,000 of population within a country per year.
FACTORS CAUSING HIGH FACTORS CAUSING LOW BIRTH RATES
BIRTH RATES

Primary based economy Availability and affordability of contraception

where children are needed
to work on land. Education about contraception and family planning

Women maintained in Improvements in healthcare reduced infant mortality (less

traditional role of rearing
children and taking care of
house.
Lack of education about
contraception and family
planning
need to have more children to make up for infant deaths)
Female emancipation (females are free to get an education
and work)
High cost per child expensive pre-natal & antenatal care for
women, educational costs.

The need for children to Anti-natalist policy (like China)

care for elderly residents
 Status symbol of having a
large family or the need to
obtain a male heir
Pro-natalist policies
Religious or legal practices
(no abortion or
discouragement of using
contraception)
Marriage at a young age
Delayed marriage, decline in arranged marriages.
Better care for old dependents (less need for children to care
for their parents in old age).
Mechanisation of primary sector and shift to secondary and
tertiary sectors.
Abortion more acceptable (changing religious views).
Increase in materialism.
Stress levels associated with kids. Importance in peoples
lives diminishing. Peoples accomplishment/happiness not
based on having a family.
Fertility levels are dropping worldwide, due to chemical
pollution, eating habits.
Ageing populations in MDCs.

MORTALITY
Infant mortality: The number of deaths of infants under 1 year old per 1000 live births per
year.
Child Mortality: The number of deaths of children under 5 years old per 1000 live births per
year.
Life expectancy: The average age someone is expected to live when they are born. Japan
has the highest life expectancy in the world.
Explanation of Some Factors Affecting Death Rates and Life Expectancy:
Age: The very young and the very old are most vulnerable to disease, malnourishment
and natural disasters and therefore more likely to have a higher incidence of death.
Sex: In nearly every country, women live longer than men (usually 5-10 years longer).
This is not fully understood, but it is believed to be a combination of biological and lifestyle
reasons. Women tend to suffer cardiovascular disease later in life and men tend to cause
more damage to themselves through drinking and smoking.
Residence: The location/country that you are born in plays a massive role in your life
expectancy. If you are born into a developed, literate and peaceful country e.g. Japan, your
life expectancy is going to be high. However, if you are born into a poor, drought and
famine-ridden country that is at war e.g. Somalia then your life expectancy is going to be
low.
Occupation: Some jobs are more physically or mentally demanding than others and can
therefore affect peoples health. A job that keeps people active may prolong health, but if
it is active and dangerous like mining, it might shorten life. Some jobs like teaching are
said to be stressful and may reduce life expectancy.
Nourishment: If you have a shortage of food (undernourished) you are more vulnerable
to disease. If whole countries suffer from famine a country's death rate may dramatically
increase - again it will normally be the old and young affected first. Undernourishment is
not the only problem; malnourishment can also increase death rates. This is when people
are eating a bad diet that may contain too much salt and/or fat, e.g. obesity epidemic in
Europe & North America.
Accommodation: The quality of your house can play a big factor in your life expectancy.
If you live in an informal settlement you are more vulnerable to disease, natural disasters
and sometimes crime. However, if you live in a modern structure you will probably enjoy

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 running water, electricity mains and protection from the weather, therefore helping you
remain healthy.
Literacy: Your ability to read and write can have a massive influence on your health and
life expectancy. Not only does it give you better job prospects, but also allows you to know
how to care for yourself i.e. what to eat and what to do if you are ill.
Crude Death Rate: The number of death per 1,000 of population within a country per year.

FACTORS CAUSING HIGH DEATH FACTORS CAUSING LOW DEATH RATES

RATES
War Improved medical care, immunisation programmes
Natural disasters like earthquakes, e.g. small pox
volcanoes, droughts and floods Improved housing, transport & infrastructure.
Disease Economies of scale for production of medical supplies
Poor medical care lowered cost.
Shortage of clean water and poor More countries developing more quickly (BRICs).
hygiene Clean and reliable water supply
Unhealthy lifestyle Improved diet (higher calorific intake and healthier
diet)
Improved sanitation, hygiene, exercise

Demographic Transition Model: The demographic transition model (DTM) describes the
transition of birth & death rates from high to low levels that occur as a country develops.
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STAGE 1: The poorest societies that are usually nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes. They have little
or no modern medical care and are often in conflict with other tribes. They have no family
planning. High birth and death rates means there is no real population growth.
STAGE 2: Probably more sedentary living where there are improvements in the provision of food
and water, basic medical care may also develop. Birth rates remain high, but because of the
lowering death rates the population starts to grow.
STAGE 3: As education improves and mechanisation takes place then birth rates begin to fall.
However, because birth rates are higher than death rates then the population still grows.
STAGE 4: Birth rates and death rates are now both low. Because they are both low, population
remains stable.
STAGE 5: Recently added to the DTM, here birth rates fall below death rates so the population
begins to decline. This can happen because of the emancipation of females, cost of childcare,
delayed marriage etc. Countries like Japan are in stage 5.

Population pyramid: Population pyramids show the structure of a population in terms of sex
and age. By analysing population pyramids you can see trends in birth rates, death rates and
life expectancy.

Population structure: The composition of the population. Although you could divide
population be religion, ethnicity, etc. it is usually just done by age and sex. A population
pyramid divides the population by these categories.
Sex ratio: the number of males per 100 females in a population.
Population momentum: The continued growth of a population after fertility rate is equal or
actually below the replacement rate. This is happens if there is a large concentration of
people in the reproductive age range.
Population projection: A prediction of future population changes based on current trends of
mortality, fertility and migration. The UN make population projections for a number of
reasons, including:
To be able to better allocate and distribute resources
To be able to target family planning and medical care more effectively
To be to predict population crises e.g. famine, refugee problems
To advise government and NGOs (Non-governmental organisations (Charities))
Dependency ratio: the ratio between dependents (old and young) and economically active.
The dependency ratio is calculated using the following formula.

Where dependent population = (% under 15) + (% over 65) and population of working age =
% between 15 and 65.
A country's dependency ratio may increase for a number of reasons including:
Increasing life expectancy
Falling death rates
Rising birth rates
Immigration of dependents

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 Emigration of economically active (young childbearing population)

Ageing population: A rise in the median age of the population usually associated with an
increase in the proportion of old dependents.
Causes of an Problems of an Ageing Solutions to Advantages of
Ageing Population Population an Ageing Ageing
Population Population
High life expectancy Shortage of economically Pro-natalist Elderly people
caused by: active policies have a lot of
Good medical care Reduced taxation income Increased experience and
Good diet and for the government immigration of can be valuable
improved water Cost of providing economically in the workplace
supply healthcare and care active Less money
Good sanitation and homes (elderly tend to get Increased spent on
hygiene sick more frequently) retirement age schooling and
Low birth rates caused Reduced spending on Private pensions natal medical
by: education, policing, Private care
Emancipation of transport network, etc. healthcare Lower crime
women Cost of paying for Increased taxes rates and less
pensions of economically money needed
Cost of children
Service decline (schools, active to be spent on
Emigration of policing
sports centres, etc. not
economically active
used by older residents)
Case study: Japan
- The islands of Okinawa off Japans south coast have the
highest life expectancy and the greatest percentage of
centenarians in the world.
- Japan has the highest proportion of old dependents (about
23%) and the lowest proportion of young dependents
(about 13%) in the world. It has a total fertility rate of only
1.25. This is well below the replacement rate of 2.1.
- 1 in 5 Japanese are over 60.
- Nearly 2 million Japanese over 80 years.
- UN predictions: by 2045 there will be 3 elderly to 4
economically active.
- Younger workers are a premium competition to recruit
them
- Expanding immigration politically unacceptable legal
immigration practically impossible.
- Social changes ageing as themes in films & books.
- Japan has a long tradition of positive attitudes towards the elderly, family taking care of
elderly parents. However, the number of old people living in care facilities is steadily rising,
increased pressure on countries economy.
- Solutions: Pension reforms, later retirements, higher contribution from employers.
Youthful population:
Causes of a Young Problems of a Solutions to a Young Advantages of
Population Young Population Young Population
Population
High birth rates Cost of Anti-natalist policy (see below Lower death rates
caused by: childcare and - China) so less money
Lack of family education Increased immigration of spent on care
planning Increased economically active homes/hospitals
No education dependency Privatised education (remove Educated and IT
about ratio cost from government) literate population
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 contraception Increased cost Privatised healthcare (remove (many elderly
High infant of child cost from government) people are
mortality benefits paid Removal of child benefits unfamiliar with
Primary based by the Reduced birth rates (family new technology)
economy government planning, contraception, etc.) Abundance of
No care for old Shortage of Reduced infant mortality rates future workers
dependents from workers (in the (people then normally have Strong military in
government short-term) less babies) the future
Immigration of Cost of Greater care of old Large future
young healthcare dependents (less children market (young
dependents (midwives, needed to care for elderly) people are often
Tradition and health visitors, Immigration restrictions interested in
status of large etc.) (quotas) consumer goods)
families Spending
diverted from
defence,
transport, etc.

Case study: Gambia, West Africa

- High infant & maternal mortality.
- 45% young dependents, 3% elderly. Dependency ratio
92.3%.
High BR caused by:
- 95% Muslim population religious leaders against
contraception
- Cultural tradition women have little influence on
family size.
- Children are economic asset 1 in 3 children aged 10-
14 are working.
Problems:
- Poverty linked to high population growth
o Struggle to provide basic housing
o Overcrowding
o Lack of sanitation
o Unemployment & underemployment rates high,
wages low.
- Government has insufficient $$ for education & health
o Schools operate two-shift system (not enough schools)
o Teachers working 12 hours a day
o Poor facilities, sanitation. Short supply of schoolbooks.
- Trees chopped down for firewood desertification forest educators in rural areas to
improve situation.
Solutions:
- Family planning campaign accepted by religious leaders, subsidised by WHO.
- NGO Futures deliver contraception & family planning advice
- Change in male attitudes to family size & contraception.

Pro-natalist policy: A policy that tries to increase birth rates and total fertility rate. You
cannot force people to have children, so you have to offer incentives e.g. free education.
Countries may introduce a pro-natalist policy because:
They have an ageing population (increased dependency ratio)
They have a shortage of economically active (low births rates and total fertility rates)
Incentives may include:
Money
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 Extended maternity and paternity leave and pay
Free or subsidised childcare
Free of subsidised education and healthcare

Case Study: Singapore

- Problem: people are concentrating on their education
and careers and getting married later and therefore
have less time to have children.
- Singapore government is hosting speed dating nights,
singles holidays, etc. to try and match make and
encourage earlier marriage.
- However, even with financial incentives, having a child
is not something to make money from. In the UK is has
been estimated that the cost of rearing of one child is
200,000 pounds. Aim of pro-natalist policies is to
encourage couples that want children by making it more
affordable.
- Singapore is a developed country in SE Asia with a
population of about 5 million people. Underpopulated
and attempting to increase population growth.
- One of the lowest total fertility rates in the world, standing at 1.1, which is well below the
replacement rate of 2.1.
- 36% of the Singapore population is made up of foreign nationals and in some sectors like
industry, 80% of the workers are foreign.
- To overcome worker shortages, the Singapore government has encouraged immigration,
but it is also trying to increase the population through raising birth rates.
- It has increased maternity leave by 50% to 12 weeks and it will cover the cost of
maternity leave (the cost to the parents employers) for the first four babies.
- The Singapore government is also increasing child benefits paid to families. The
government will pay money into a special bank account of up to nearly $1000 for six years.
- The Singapore government has also sponsored dating organisations to encourage people
to get married earlier and start having children.
- If Singapore's policies are not successful it will become increasingly dependent on foreign
workers, gradually see an increase in the dependency ratio and ultimately economic decline.

Anti- natalist policy: A policy that tries to reduce birth rates. This can be done through
better education on family planning and better provision of contraception or a more rigid
forced policy like China's.
A country may introduce an anti-natalist policy if it is:
Overpopulated (the population is higher than the resources available)
Has a young population (high birth rates and total fertility rate)

Case Study: China's One Child Policy

(anti-natalist policy)
- Largest population in the world, 1.3 billion.
20% of world population.
- 3rd largest country in the world, but only
about 10% of its area is good for arable
farming. Much of the west is covered in
mountains and much of the north is desert.
- History: WWII, China occupied by the
Japanese. Communist government
encouraged population growth to create a
large army (Cultural Revolution 1960s).

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 Great Leap Forward, industrial revolution 1959-1961. Population growth rate outstripped
availability of resources; 1960s 20 million people died of famine.
- In 1964, government promoted birth control, but due to population momentum, BR stood at 45
between 1966 and 1971. Campaign: Late, Sparse, Few. 1979: One-Child Policy.
- Demographers estimate Chinas optimum population was 700 million, aim to meet this figure
by 2080.
- Punishments for those who did not follow policy: fines, loss of jobs, removal of education and
health rights for children and for women caught to be pregnant with a second child forced
abortion and sterilisation.
- Promoting the use of contraception and encouraging people to get married later.
- Exceptions: families in rural areas were often allowed two children if first was female (needed
to work on the land) and ethnic minority groups were also allowed two children.

Successes:
- The total fertility rate has fallen from nearly 6 to about 1.7
- Population growth rate has fallen from a peak of 2.61% in the late 1960's to about 0.65%
today
- Birth rates have fallen from highs of 45 to about 13 today.
- The availability of contraception has increased
- Up to 400 million births have been prevented since 1979
- China's population should peak in the first half of the 2030's (however, it might be as much as
1.45 billion)
Failures:
- There have been criticisms about human rights, not only over freedom of choice, but forced
abortions and sterilisations.
- Female infanticide has taken place, where the boys have been favoured.
- There is now a sex imbalance in China (117:100).
- Many children have been abandoned for adoption.
- There is an ageing population and an increased dependency ratio
- There has been shortage of workers in some areas.
- The so called 'little emperors' syndrome where only children are spoilt
- The policy has been open to corruption. Many people have paid bribes to have extra children.
- The population is still 1.3 billion and growing.

Migration
Forced migration: When people have to migrate, normally because their life is in danger
e.g. war or natural disaster.
Refugees: Someone who has been forced to leave their home and their country. People can
be forced to become refugees for many reasons including:
War
Natural disasters (floods, earthquakes, volcanoes)
Famine and drought
Political unrest e.g. Syria, Egypt and Libya
Persecution (ethnic, religious)
Crime and extortion
Asylum Seeker: A person who, from fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, social
group, or political opinion, has crossed an international frontier into a country in which he or
she hopes to be granted refugee status.
Remittances: Money sent home from family members or friends living an earning money in
a different location, normally a foreign country.

Causes of Forced Migration Causes of Voluntary Migration

Natural disasters like flooding, earthquakes Retirement

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 or volcanoes
Outbreaks of disease Work
War Medical care (medical care is often cheaper
Political persecution
Drought and famine More relaxed lifestyle in foreign country
ADVANTAGES
SOURCE A reduction in unemployment as
COUNTRY more jobs become available
(LOSING) Remittances are sent home from
migrants living abroad
Migrants may return home with new
skills
Increased political ties with migrants
host country
Reduced pressure on education and
healthcare system
Reduction in births rates and total
fertility rate as many migrants are in
the reproductive age range
HOST Brain gain - Receiving educated and
COUNTRY skilled workers.
(RECEIVING) As well as trained migrants there will
be as source of cheap migrants (low
paid) to fill manual jobs.
There will be increased cultural
diversity as migrants arrive with their
own culture of food, dance, language,
etc.
Growth of local market with increase
of population
If migrants are legal, then an
increase in tax revenues for the
government
Case study: Transmigration in Indonesia
(Forced migration)
Most of Indonesias 200 million people live on
Java, Bali, Lombok and Madura, which make up
the densely-populated core area. Java has 60%
of the countrys population in 7% of its area and
it is here that the capital, Jakarta, is found. The
four main islands all have fertile, volcanic soils
that are ideal for intensive, subsistence, and rice
cultivation.
Transmigration i.e. the forced movement of
people by the government from the densely
populated core to the outlying islands, was first
started one hundred years ago, in colonial
Education (to attend a school or university)
in LEDCs)
(many people move from UK to Australia for
this reason)
DISADVANTAGES
Brain drain - losing your most
educated and skilled workers.
A shortage of workers, especially
during periods of harvest
An increase in the dependency ratio
as economically active migrate
Separation of families. This may
include children losing one or both of
their parents
Creates dependency on remittances
There may be an increase in racial
tensions between newly arrived
migrants and local population
The increased population will cause
greater pollution and overcrowding
There may be a rise in
unemployment when migrants accept
lower paid positions, making more of
the local population unemployed.
There will be an increase pressure on
services. This may include schools
and hospitals, but also electricity and
water supply.
Growth of black market and informal
economy if migrants are illegally
present
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times, by the Dutch authorities and has continued throughout the century. Its main aims have
been:
to encourage a more balanced distribution of population within the country.
to reduce population pressure in the core by moving people to the peripheral islands.
to improve living standards for the migrants
Between 1900 and the countrys independence in 1949 over half a million people were
moved. Despite various governments since then setting quite high targets only a further two
million people have been moved.
The scheme offers:
free transport to the new area.
free land allocation of two hectares.
free housing in the new area.
free equipment, fertilisers etc. and enough food to keep the family going until the first harvest.
There have been several issues associated with transmigration in recent years:
It is very costly and over 200 million has been loaned by the World Bank so far to help with
the scheme. Many people feel that its limited success does not justify this spending. Its impact
on Indonesias population problems has been minimal. In the 1980s, Javas population
increased by 18% in spite of out-movements. In 1995 the countrys population was growing by
3.2 million per year! This is more than the entire number of people who had moved out from
the core in the whole of the transmigration movement. Also, up to 20% of the migrants have
since returned home because of problems in the new areas.
Many people are alarmed at the effects on the environment. Over 120 million hectares of
Tropical Rainforest have been felled to create land for the new settlers. Soil erosion and
soil exhaustion also occurred once the delicate balance of the Tropical Rainforest ecosystem
has been disturbed.
There have been conflicts between the immigrants and the local residents because:
(i) Traditional farmers are worried that the incomers will take over their area and destroy their
way of life. They also complain that the new settlers are given more financial help than they
receive.
(ii) Local shifting cultivators have had to move as the newcomers are using their land.
However, transmigration has brought some advantages.
Improved infrastructure on the peripheral islands, e.g. better roads, more schools and health
facilities, although in many areas they are still not adequate for the numbers of people who
actually live there.
People from the core who had no land or jobs now have a future in their new homes.
Some spontaneous migration to the outer islands has been stimulated. In the future,
transmigration policy will probably focus on providing rural infrastructure to attract people and
encourage migration and less on large scale organised schemes. It may be better for the country
to try to solve the problems linked with its rapid population growth by more family planning
programmes, intensifying agricultural production, developing the countrys plentiful oil and gas
reserves and industries, rather than by organised transmigration.

Voluntary migration:
Case study Central America (including Mexico) to US Migration
The US and Mexico share a land border of roughly 2000km. Because of a series of push and pull
factors, migrants from Mexico and Central America (El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala) try
and make the journey across the border. It is estimated that over 1 million migrants each year
attempt to cross. Many make it, but others are also caught, in 1995 about 850,000 were caught
and deported.

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 PUSH FACTORS FROM MEXICO PULL FACTORS TO US

Poor medical facilities 1,800 people per
doctor
Low paid jobs - (GNP = $3,750)
Adult literacy rates 55% - poor education
prospects
Life expectancy 72 years
40% Unemployed
42,000 violent drugs deaths since 2006
Impacts on US (positive and negative)
Excellent medical facilities - 400 per doctor
Well paid jobs - GNP = $24,750)
Adult literacy rates 99% - good education
prospects
Life expectancy 76 years
Lower crime rates
Many jobs available for low paid workers such
as Mexicans

Illegal migration costs the USA millions of dollars for border patrols and prisons
Mexicans are seen as a drain on the USA economy
Migrant workers keep wages low which affects Americans
They cause problems in cities due cultural and racial issues
Mexican migrants benefit the US economy by working for low wages
Mexican culture has enriched the US border states with food, language and music
The incidents of tuberculosis has been increasing greatly due to the increased migration
Impacts on Mexico (positive and negative)

The Mexican countryside has a shortage of economically active people

Many men emigrate leaving a majority of women who have trouble finding marriage
partners
Young people tend to migrate leaving the old and the very young
Legal and illegal immigrants together send some $6 billion a year back to Mexico
Certain villages such as Santa Ines have lost 2/3 of its inhabitants

Lee's migration model: a simple model that shows how people migrate because of a
combination of push and pull factors. The model also suggests that there are factors that
encourage people to stay in their location and possibly factors in their desired destination that
discourages them from moving there.
Factors discouraging people from leaving host country:
friends and family, security of native culture, a job, a house.
Factors discouraging people moving to host country:
language problems, illegal status, no job, worries over housing
Pull Factors: Something that attracts you to a new location.
Prospect of a better job
Lower crime rates and peace
Prospect of better education for them or their children
Availability of food and water
Greater political freedoms
Greater gender equality
Intervening obstacles: Problems or difficulties that you might experience before you migrate
or while you are migrating.
No passport or visa
Shortage of money
Fear of being a victim of crime while migrating e.g. Central Americans travelling through
Mexico.
Arrest for illegal entry into countries
Some migrants may also return home very quickly because of factors including:
Unable to find a job, missing friends and families, deportation, unable to save money, unable to
adapt to local culture.

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Gravity Model/Distance Decay Effect (interaction refers to the amount of migration)
The essential feature of the gravity model is its
suggestion that migrants tend to move over
short distances, with the number of migrants
decreasing as the distance over which the
migration takes place increases. This idea is
known as the distance decay effect. The
number of people moving between place A
and place B is equal to the population of A
multiplied by the population of B divided by
the square of the distance between them.
Friction of distance acts as a break.

Stepwise Migration Model

This is a behavioural model developed from
E.G. Ravensteins laws (1885) that population movements occur in
stages. According to this idea, major settlements, such as capital cities, tend to attract migrants
from smaller cities, which in turn attract migrants from smaller towns and villages. Migration
occurs therefore in steps.

Zelinsky Model of Mobility Transition claims that the type of migration that occurs within a
country depends on how developed it is or what type of society it is. A connection is drawn from
migration to the stages of within the Demographic Transition Model (DTM).

Zelinsky Phases

Phase 1: Premodern traditional society

- Before the onset of the urbanisation, little migration. Natural increase rates are about zero.

Phase 2: Early transitional society

- Modernisation massive movement from countryside to cities

- rapid rate of natural increase

Phase 3:Late transitional society

- Critical rung of mobility transition. Urban-rural migration > rural-urban.

- Rural-to-urban migration continues but at waning absolute or relative rates.

- Complex migratory and circulatory movements within the urban network, from city to city or
within a single metropolitan region.

- Increased, non-economic migration and circulation begins to emerge.

Phase 4: Advanced society

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- Movement from countryside to city continues but is further reduced in absolute and relative
terms

- Vigorous movement of migrants from city to city and within individual urban agglomerations,
especially within a highly elaborated lattice of major and minor metropolises.

- Slight to moderate rate of natural increase or none at all.

Internal migration
Case Study: Rural-Urban Migration in China
The urban population is China is swelling by 15 to 20 million people each year the biggest
peacetime migration of people in the world. Migrants move to exchange a life of subsistence
agriculture for better-paid jobs in the cities such as construction or factory work.
For decades China has restricted migration through the household registration system known as
hukou. This system ties Chinese to their place of birth to receive education, medical care and
other services. Many migrants end up trapped in a halfway existence where it is
administratively difficult for them to settle down in a city but economically impossible
to remain in their village. Chinas floating population (rural people working outside their
home village) totals around 132 million people. The governments position has been that
maintaining a huge temporary migrant population is better than overwhelming cities with a
permanent influx of people. Many cities have relaxed their hukou rules making it easier for rural
people to move in and settle down.

ADVANTAGES
Cities New workers that can fill low paid
(e.g. jobs like factory and construction
Beijing) work
The government has better control
over the population if they live in
urban areas. They may join the
formal economy and pay taxes
It is easier for the government to
provide services like schools and
hospital
Migrants may become better
educated and reduce birth rates and
population growth.
Rural Reduces unemployment rate
areas Reduces overcrowding in schools
(e.g. and hospitals
Hainan Remittances may be sent back to
Province families
) Reduced pressure on limited
electricity and water supply
DISADVANTAGES
Increased congestion
Causes urban sprawl as informal
housing is built
Increased pollution, especially water
and air because of traffic and waste
Pressure on schools and hospitals
Higher unemployment
Pressure on electricity and water
supply
Possible crime and certainly growth in
informal economy as people don't have
jobs
Increases dependency ratio, because
young and old are often left behind.
There may be a shortage of workers,
especially during the harvest season.
Families may become separated as
young adults migrate.

Gender inequalities:

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Education

- MDG 2 & 3: Universal primary education and the promotion of gender equality, hope to be
achieved by 2015.
- Little difference between levels of female education in Americas, Europe, Oceania; but parts
of South Asia, Middle East & Central Africa women still receive significantly poorer education
than men.
- 75% of the world's illiterate population are females (UNIFEM).
Why is Female Education Important? What Problems can a lack of Education
Cause?
Emancipation - gives females greater Dependence on husbands or fathers -
freedom to get an education and therefore a therefore maintaining male dominance
job. Illiteracy (makes many simple task like
Greater independence - females can care written instructions and even voting very
for themselves and therefore don't have to hard)
rely on their husbands/father's money and High birth rates and fertility rates as women
rules. are kept in traditional role and don't
If females have jobs they can then understand the importance of family
contribute to the economy (make planning.
products, pay taxes, etc.) Lack of confidence - females will feel that
Reduced fertility rates and birth rates they can't express opinions and remain in
(females will probably delay marriage and the same traditional female role of cook,
child birth and know how to use cleaner and reproducer.
contraception). It will be harder for find females to find well-
Confidence. Females will feel equal and be paid employment. Any work will probably be
treated more equally giving them more self poorly paid e.g. domestic work.
confidence and empowering them Female health will remain poor as they do
Equality. If females have the same not know how to care for themselves,
educated they will be treated more fairly by administer medicine, know the importance
families and communities. They should see of hygiene, sanitation, etc.
an improvement in diet, health, etc.

Health

- FGM: Female genital mutilation (female circumcision) includes any procedure that alters,
harms or removes any part of the female genitalia. It has no medical benefit but an estimated
100-140 million women are living with its consequences.
- Carried out on young girls (between infancy and the age of 15) within communities with no
medical care - there are usually no painkillers and equipment is normally unsterilized and may
include pieces of glass or razor blades.
- Complications include: severe pain, shock, haemorrhage (bleeding), tetanus or sepsis
(bacterial infection), urine retention, open sores in the genital region and injury to nearby
genital tissue.
- Long-term consequences include:
o recurrent bladder and urinary tract infections
o cysts
o infertility
o an increased risk of childbirth complications and newborn deaths
o need for later surgeries.
- FGM is more of a cultural practice rather than a religious one - ensures that brides-to-be are
virgins and will maintain marital fidelity. Believed to ensure cleanliness and modesty.
- Infringement on females human rights. Organisations such as WHO campaigning to stop the
practice. 2008 WHO passed a resolution on the elimination of FGM.
- WHO efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation focus on:

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 advocacy: developing publications and advocacy tools for international, regional and local
efforts to end FGM within a generation;
research: generating knowledge about the causes and consequences of the practice, how
to eliminate it, and how to care for those who have experienced FGM;
guidance for health systems: developing training materials and guidelines for health
professionals to help them treat and counsel women who have undergone procedures.

Migration

- Traditionally, majority of migrants male. However in recent years, females almost equal males
in terms of numbers, and exceeded them in some regions.
- Traditionally few female migrants because:
Role of women: stay at home and look after children. Marry and have children young.
One member of family male migrate and send remittances home.
Women have had poorer education, not known about opportunities presented by
migration, not qualified enough to get a job.
Many migrant jobs have been manual and deemed unsuitable for females.
Many societies have deemed it inappropriate for females to travel alone.
- More women becoming emancipated, growth in tertiary jobs that are potentially more suitable
for female migrants.
- A few areas in the world where male migrants still significantly outnumber females, namely
Africa biggest education divide between F/M, traditional beliefs about female roles.

Work

- Glass ceiling: An imaginary pay scale or promotion that women find hard to go pass
because of a bias towards male employees.
- Positive discrimination: When certain groups are favoured for employment and promotion
when two people have the same skills or qualifications. Positive discrimination is sometimes
employed when groups have been unfairly discriminated against in the past e.g. black people
in South Africa during the Apartheid.
- Workplace quotas: When employers are expected to have a representative mix of workers
e.g. half men, half women, some disabled people, some able-bodied people, etc.
- Stereotypes: Still a pay divide between men & women in most countries around the world.
Shortage of women in senior managerial positions. Due to:
Females leaving work to have a baby before achieving top positions
Females being slightly behind men in terms of entering universities and the workplace (in
many countries women have only recently been emancipated in order to do this).
- Many countries introduced race & sex discrimination laws to end these practices.

Culture and Status

- Dowries: Property or money that a brides (sometimes grooms) family has to pay to the
groom or the grooms family.
- Bride burning: The killing of women because the brides family cannot make dowry
payments or a method of a husband killing a wife he no longer wants.
- Honour killing: The killing of someone (nearly always a female) to protect the honour of a
family or community. Females are often killed because they have been accused of having a
relationship with a man or even because they have been raped. Honour killings are illegal, but
happen in the thousands and are often not investigated by the police.
- Arranged marriage or forced marriage: When a spouse is chosen for a female. These
arrangements are often marriages of convenience to create family ties. Sometimes women
are forced into marriage to pay a family debt or to offload an unwanted daughter. Women are
sometimes abducted and taken to another country for this to happen.

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- Marriage customs: dowry paid by brides family to groom. Bride leaves home to live with
husbands family, takes husbands last name families favour sons over daughters female
infanticide in China.
- In many societies, domestic violence is accepted, not treated seriously by police.

Legal Rights and Tenure

- Inheritance: Property passed onto someone in the time of someones death. Property and
possessions are usually passed on within families. In Bangladesh, women still only inherit half
as much as their brothers. Protests erupted after government proposed changes to law
making male & female inheritance equal.
- Tenure: Tenure relates to the ownership of something. When talking about tenure people
often refund to property or land. On death of husband, women often lose the right to land
they once owned with their husband. The UN trying to protect womens ownership rights.
- Titles: UK male heirs are favoured over females in their succession to the throne.

Gender and Life Expectancy

- Worldwide, men have higher mortality greater disability, lower life expectancy than women.
However, female health at disadvantage, stemming from biological differences between sex &
gender: women are subject to risks related to pregnancy and child bearing; the distinct social
and cultural roles played by women and men.
- Gender bias most apparent in developing countries with cultural preference for sons (e.g.
China, India). Women disadvantaged from birth receive less nutritious food, less medical
care leading to lifelong health problems. Cycle of poor health, as undernourished pregnant
women are more likely to have low birth-weight and undernourished children.

Gender and Empowerment

- Lack of gender balance in decision-making positions in government. Women
underrepresented in national parliament average 17% of seats occupied by women. 17% of
female ministers. 7 of 150 Heads of State in the world are women. 11 of 192 Heads of
Government.
- Private sector: number of women on boards of directors lower than men. Glass ceiling
hindered womens access to leadership positions. 13 of 500 corporations in the world have a
female chief executive officer.

Gender and Birth Ratios / family size

- 57 million more men than women in todays world.
- Difference greatest amongst younger year groups, diminishes with age due to longer life
expectancy of women.
- Difference greatest in China (117:100) and India, where abortion of female foetuses and
female infanticide occurs.

Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM)

Measure of the extent to which females and males participate in the decision making process of
the country. GEM includes 3 components:
Political participation (seats held by women in national parliament)
Economic participation (% of women amongst legislators, senior officials and managers as
well as in the professional and technical fields.
Power over economic resources (income earned by females compared to men)
Top countries are mainly Nordic countries (e.g. Norway, Sweden) and mainly MEDCs. Some
MEDCs however are exceptions (e.g. Japan and South Korea) which have low GEM scores. Lower
countries are mainly LEDCs and often Muslim (e.g. Niger, Sierra Leone). However, some LEDCs
are much higher, e.g. Tanzania higher than Japan.

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