Nigeria To Rise To Fourth Most Populous Country In 2050

Nigeria, currently the seventh most populous country in the world, will rise to the fourth spot by 2050, the Washington-based Population Reference Bureau said.

Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia will replace Russia and Mexico as countries No. 9 and No. 10.

The report sees many African countries rising in the ranks throughout the next three decades because of to high fertility rates and improved life expectancy. The data showed that populations of mostly African countries, would be more than double in 40.

The numbers also showed that China, with 1.3 billion people now, would be leapfrogged by India as the most populous country in the world by 2022.

The bureau's annual Population Data Sheet sees the global population ballooning by 2.5 billion to 9.8 billion by 2050.