| Summary: | The current rate of world population growth is one of today's major problems and constitutes a threat to the future of all mankind. Over three and a half billion people live on our small, in places overcrowded planet, and if the present rate of growth continues this figure will double within the next thirty to forty years. This phenomenon has been described as the "population explosion". Why does it constitute a threat? Growth in itself is not necessarily bad; it has been the basis for much human progress in the past. What concerns us is that a large proportion of this growth is concentrated in certain areas of the world and can be linked to the appalling conditions of deprivation endured by millions of men, women and children in these areas. Though the impact of the population explosion is presently restricted to only certain segments of mankind, there is every indication that future consequences may affect all of us. My main focus will be amongst the African population in South Africa. The principal purpose of my thesis is to offer an organised approach to a complex and very controversial subject on the fertility of Africans in South Africa based on research conducted within the Eastern and Western Cape regions. The thesis is divided into five parts. Part A discusses the aims and objectives of the study. It also discusses the methodology of the research and background on area study, and examines the South African population growth. Part B, details theories of population growth. It also reviews literature on the determinants of population growth. In Part C, the research results are tabled and tested for statistical significance. In Part D, the results are compared and discussed with other similar literature findings. Part E, draws conclusions from the findings and recommends possible strategies for action against African population growth in South Africa.
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