Earth - "The world's population will hit 7 billion early in 2012 and top 9 billion in 2050, with the vast majority of the increase coming in the developing countries of Asia and Africa, according to a UN estimate. UN Population Division Director Hania Zlotnik said that 'there have been no big changes' from the previous estimate in 2006...." [Associated Press/Factiva]

Xinhua adds that "...the 2008 Revision of the official UN population estimates and projections, released on Wednesday, said that developing countries will add 2.3 billion inhabitants with 1.1 billion people aged over 60 and 1.2 billion of working age....

In contrast, the population of the more developed regions is expected to change minimally, passing from 1.23 billion to 1.28 billion, and would have declined to 1.15 billion were it not for the projected net migration from developing to developed countries...." [Xinhua/Factiva]

AFP reports that from "...2005-2010, net migration in eight countries or areas more than doubled the contribution of natural increase (births minus deaths) to population growth: Belgium, Macau, Czech Republic, Luxembourg, Qatar, Singapore, Slovenia and Spain....

During the 2010-2050 period... major countries of net emigration are expected to be Mexico (334,000 annually), China (309,000), India (253,000), the Philippines (175,000) and Pakistan (161,000)...." [Agence France Presse/Factiva]