World Population Day

Each year on 11 July, countries around the world commemorate World Population Day. This day was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989. It was a result of the interest generated by the marking of The Day of Five Billion on the 11 July 1987. On this day the earth's population reached the five billion mark.  Each year a different a theme is chosen to rally around. The theme for 2010 'Everyone Counts', highlights the importance of data for development. Currently the earth's population stands at more than 6 billion and this puts an increasing amount of strain on the environment and society. Overwhelmingly the greatest population growth is among poor and underdeveloped countries. References: World Population Day (Online), available at: http://www.un.org [Accessed 28 July 2010] World Population Day (Online), available at: http://www.sawac.co.za [Accessed 28 July 2010] World Population Day: 11 July (Online), available at: http://www.unfpa.org [Accessed 28 July 2010] World Population Day 2010 (Online), available at: http://www.unfpa.org [Accessed 28 July 2010]