Abstract
Population, as a factor in the economy, has two dimensions: a qualitative and a quantitative. Viewed quantitatively, it can be both a depressant and a stimulant The former function is easily appreciated when numbers are considered as the divisor in the ratio national product/population, which yields the product per capita. The larger the denominator, the smaller the ratio. Population is a stimulant when its increase is a motive force evoking economic action which would not have materialised otherwise.
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Notes
W. A. Hance, Population, Migration and Urbanisation in Africa (1970) p. 412.
Africa Institute of South Africa, Southern Africa at a Glance (March 1972).
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© 1974 South African Institute of International Affairs
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Sadie, J.L. (1974). The Population Factor in the Economies of Southern Africa. In: Barratt, J., Brand, S., Collier, D.S., Glaser, K. (eds) Accelerated Development in Southern Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-02056-0_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-02056-0_5
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
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