The world’s population explosion is a much talked-about topic in development circles, and so it should be. After having taken millennia to pass the 2,000 million mark, it will take barely 100 years to increase from that figure to over 9,000 million by the middle of the 21st century.
The most densely populated countries have majority Muslim populations, so Muslims will constitute an increasing percentage of the world’s population in years to come. Coupled with this is the fact that Muslim communities worldwide are among the poorest. Therefore tackling population and poverty, urgent goals for world leaders in coming decades, will place increasing focus on the world of Islam.
Muslim poverty
Bangladesh provides a window into Muslim poverty. Writing in 1997, the prominent Christian scholar Ron Sider points out that in Bangladesh 65% of all children are malnourished, 87% of the people live in the countryside, and 86% of that rural population lives below the poverty level. This image of disadvantage is reflected in refugee figures, where Muslims are disproportionately represented, comprising 70-80% of the world’s 25 million refugees, according to UNHCR figures.
