Age Composition

Direct answer: A. Age structure shows how a population is divided into age groups, such as children, working-age people and older people. This matters for growth because a large young or reproductive-age population may lead to many births in the future, even if the current birth rate is changing. Age structure also helps planners understand future needs for schools, jobs, health care and support for older people. A is correct because it connects the age composition of today with possible births and population size tomorrow. B is wrong because age structure describes people, not rainfall. C is wrong because the number of people in different age groups can influence the potential number of parents and therefore future births. D is wrong because age composition does not physically reduce the area of a region. Memory cue: age structure is a population’s age profile and helps predict future demographic direction.

Direct answer: Option A is correct. The total population growth rate does not tell us everything about service needs; the age composition is also important. If the elderly population increases, more people may need regular medical care, medicines, assistance with daily activities, social protection and sometimes pension-related support. Slow overall growth does not remove these age-specific needs. Option A correctly combines healthcare and social support. Option B is not the best answer because primary-school demand is mainly linked to the number of young children, which is not stated to be increasing. Option C is unrelated to the special needs created by an ageing population. Option D concerns a particular economic activity and cannot be inferred from population age structure. Memory cue: young populations raise school demand, while ageing populations raise health and support demand.

The correct answer is A: if the share of children is increasing. Zero actual growth means that the total population has not increased overall, but it does not mean that every age group has remained unchanged. Age composition may shift. For example, adults may move out while the number or share of children rises, leaving the total population nearly unchanged but increasing the need for classrooms, teachers, textbooks, nutrition services and transport. Good planning therefore examines both total population and age groups. B is wrong because no children would remove the need for ordinary school planning. C is wrong because education demand does not automatically end. D makes planning more difficult but is not the demographic condition described. Memory cue: same total does not mean same age structure.

The correct answer is A: the workforce may shrink and dependency may rise. Young people commonly form an important part of the working-age population. If they move out while the elderly share increases, fewer workers may remain to support production, services and households. At the same time, the number of people needing support in relation to workers may rise; this is an increase in the dependency burden. B is wrong because out-migration can reduce or slow population growth, and “always” is too absolute. C is wrong because young adults leaving does not guarantee a rise in the number of children. D is wrong because in-migration does not automatically follow out-migration; it depends on separate economic and social factors. Memory cue: youth out-migration plus ageing means fewer workers and more dependants.