Gates Letter

In his annual letter, Bill Gates ties to dispel myths about foreign aid. The big one, I think, is the misconception that if we succeed in decreasing infant mortality in the poorest countries, the population will balloon. The truth, he says, is that when parents are confident that their children will survive, they tend to have fewer children. This leads to population growth slowing as health improves, with the United Nations' prediction that world population will eventually stabilize.