ABSTRACT
Governments of countries that have been in stage two for several decades are typically worn down and drained of financial resources by the consequences of rapid population growth, in effect suffering from demographic fatigue. As demographic fatigue sets in and the inability of governments to deal effectively with the consequences of rapid population growth becomes more evident, the resulting social stresses are likely to exacerbate conflicts among differing religious, ethnic, tribal, or geographic groups within societies. The press focused on the long-standing conflict, which was real, but what was not reported was the extraordinary population growth over the last half-century and how it was affecting the hope of Rwandans for a better future. In a world where both grain output and fish catch per person are falling, a strong case can be made on humanitarian grounds for an all-out effort to stabilize world population.
