Published May 10th, 2006 by Future Atlas
Russia tries to stop shrinking
Russia’s president Putin has announced plans to pay families monthly stipends if they have children, to counter one of the country’s most dire problems, population decline, now running at 700,000 people a year.
As the Washington Post explains,
If it continues, officials say today’s population of around 143 million will be down to 100 million by the middle of the century, translating into a weaker workforce and smaller army.
Alexander D. Dunetz Says
My prediction for Russia is that Siberia saves it.
Russia may become the wealthiest nation per capita by late middle of century.
Global dependence on fossil fuel can focus technological development in either of two ways :
1. Measure and access Russia’s vast undiscovered mineral wealth.
2. Develop and apply alternative electromotive power technologies.
Nov 16th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
Future Atlas Says
PriceWaterhouseCoopers has forecast that Russia could be much wealthier by 2050:
http://www.futureatlas.com/blog/index.php/2006/03/26/world-economies-to-2050-a-wealthier-planet/
But mineral and fuel extraction doesn’t create widespread and long-lasting wealth, and fossil fuels may not provide wealth for too many more decades.
Nov 20th, 2006 at 11:35 pm