In Brief
In 2010, a dominant share of the world’s nearly seven billion people — 4.2 billion, or 60.4 per cent — lived in Asia. Of those, 1.7 billion lived in South Asia, a number that is projected to increase to 2.4 billion by 2050.
This increase will partially reflect demographic transition within the South Asian region. This has been the result of at least two key trends — declining fertility rates and improved life expectancy.