What is the population pyramid? What is its significance and what information can it give? Look at the population pyramid in the figure and answer these questions:
(a) What can you say about the birth rates of the country? Give evidence.
(b) What does the shape at the top of the pyramid indicate?
(c) Which country out of these is most likely to have such a pyramid? A developing country, a developed country, or an underdeveloped country?
A population pyramid is a pictorial way to describe the population composition. An age-sex pyramid gives information about the distribution of different age groups of people based on gender. The shape of the age-sex pyramid of a country is indicative of a lot of information about the country. The size towards the bottom may be used to estimate the birth rate, while the size towards the top to estimate the death rate.
A population pyramid in which the base is broad and the top part is narrow means that although a large amount of births take place, not all grow up to be adults and old; it means many die before reaching these ages. This indicates a large death rate and Kenya shows such a pyramid. This means a high population growth rate.
In countries like India, the death rate is decreasing, so the pyramid is broad in the younger age groups, and the size of the pyramid decreases steadily.
(a) The given population pyramid has a base narrower than some of its upperparts. This means that the birth rate of the country is not too much.
(b) As we go to the top, the shape indicates that more people reach old age. This shows a lower death rate as well.
(c) This is most likely to be the age-sex pyramid of a developed country. The population growth rate seems to be controlled. Moreover, the youth form a major part of the population, so the development levels must be high.