(Bloomberg) -- Africa will lead the world in population growth until the end of the century, according to a United Nations report, as the continent that's on course to house the world's largest free-trade zone becomes an increasingly important economic power. The fastest growth will come in sub-Saharan Africa, while the biggest declines worldwide will occur in some of the former communist states of southeast Europe. Hit by declining fertility rates and rising median ages, the populations of Albania, Serbia and Bulgaria will drop by at least 50%, hurting the economic prospects of countries seeking to catch up with their west-European peers.
To contact the reporters on this story: Radoslav Tomek in Bratislava at rtomek@bloomberg.net;Gordana Filipovic in Belgrade at gfilipovic@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrea Dudik at adudik@bloomberg.net, Michael Winfrey, Flavia Krause-Jackson
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