Population Dynamics in Muslim Countries

Alfonso Sousa-Poza holds a Professorship in Economics at the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart (Germany), and is a Director at the Institute for Health Care & Public Management. He is also a lecturer in economics at the University of St. Gallen (Switzerland), Secretary of the foundation of the World Demographic & Ageing Forum (Switzerland), and a Research Fellow of the Institute for the Study of Labour (Germany). Alfonso Sousa-Poza studied computer science at the University of Cape Town, and economics at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland, from which he obtained his PhD in Economics in 1999. From 1996 until 2007 he was employed at the Research Institute for Labour Economics and Labour Law at the University of St. Gallen, and served as Executive Director of the WDA Forum between 2005 and 2009. His primarily empirical research interests are in the fields of time allocation, wage determination, retirement, migration, working time, subjective wellbeing, and health outcomes. He is a regular consultant to governments and international organisations on issues related to demographic change, including the European Commission and the OECD. Hans Groth, MBA is Senior Director of Healthcare Policy & Market Access for the Oncology Business Unit from Pfizer Europe and Member of the Executive Board for Pfizer Switzerland. He has been working with Pfizer for twenty-four years and has comprehensive experience in over 30 healthcare markets including Western Europe, Eastern Europe, the USA and Canada. His responsibilities have included medical affairs, clinical research, regulatory, marketing & sales as well as international public affairs including negotiating pricing and access conditions with government authorities as well as healthcare payers. In 2003, he was appointed "Pfizer Global Health Fellow" by UNAIDS to conduct case studies in Central Asia and Siberia in order to quantify the threat potential of HIV/AIDS/TB in that region. For his subsequent commitment towards supporting public health infrastructure projects in Southeast Siberia and Kirgizstan, he received in 2008 the "Pfizer Global Health Fellow Award". For the past ten years, Hans Groth has been studying the interaction between global demographic change, economic development, wealth and societal stability. The focus of his research has built upon theories of economic development & productivity and employing the value of health as a sustainable tool to unlock new ways to tackle the imminent challenges of demographic change. His numerous publications as books, position papers and newspaper articles can be downloaded from www.demographic-challenge.com Since 2009, Hans Groth has worked as a guest lecturer at the University of St. Gallen/Switzerland with the topic "Megatrend: Global Demographic Change". He is also Chairman of the Board of the Demographic & Ageing Forum (WDA) at the University of St. Gallen and elected member of the "Global Agenda Council on Global Population Growth" for the World Economic Forum (WEF).

"Population Dynamics in Muslim Countries is a timely book that discusses a unique topic written by a group of distinguished scholars. The essays in this book are full of eye opening statistics and analysis on the 1.2 billion Muslims living in 47 states across the 6 continents. This book is indispensable to stu dents, scholars and policy makers with keen interested in Islam. As such this book provides the urgently needed guidance to engage and not enrage. It al lows us to change minds in the face of evidence." Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, Professor of Political Science, United Emirates University, Dubai "There is a growing fear in some circles that population growth in Muslin nations might pose a danger to the rest of the world. This book shows that this fear is based mostly on ignorance. It clearly illustrates that demographic development in the muslim world is extremely diverse and full of surprises." Reiner Klingholz, Director, Berlin Institute for Population and Development, Germany "Demographic developments play an important part in the internal policy agenda as well as in foreign affairs. This book provides excellent background for a better understanding of the importance of population dynamics in politics." Felix Gutzwiller, Professor, University of Zurich; Senate Member, Parliament of Switzerland "Drawing a critical relationship between the role of Muslim clerics and demographic change in Islamic countries, this book is indispensable reading for anyone who seeks to understand the importance of the Islamic world in the global village" Klaus Schwab, Founder and Chairman, World Economic Forum (WEF), Geneva "While the Arab and Muslim world is witnessing phenomenal and rapid changes in it's socio-political structures, in-depth examination and analysis of it demographic trends are of high importance. This book on demographic development in Muslim countries is an added value to the readers' understanding of these young societies' behavior towards major indicators that affect quality of life, justice and access to services. This book is indeed a great addition to the research efforts on this part if the world". Maha Khatib, Former Minister and Senator, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan "The uprisings taking place throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa since early 2011 which are reshaping the political and social landscape of the entire region have one root cause: population growth. Germany and Europe have a fundamental interest in successful socio-economic and democratic reforms to form the basis of lasting stability in what is an extremely important region in our southern neighbourhood. This book is a must read to all those interested in one of the most consequential developments unfolding before our eyes." Heinrich Kreft, Ambassador, Special Representative for Dialogue among Civilizations, German Foreign Ministry, Germany

• Introduction and Overview.- Topics and Issues.- Country and Regional Studies.- Policy Implications.- Statistical Annex.- Biographical Sketches.