Students of multicultural Coolaroo South Primary School (left to right) Hanan, 7, Aaron, 10, Rumaysa, 7, Jermaine, 11, Cynthia, 6, Bronte, 8 and Muna, 10. But the increase is also due to the birth of one baby almost every two minutes, with 300,000 babies born every year. Have your say: Blog with Susie The fertility rate is now 1.88 babies per woman - up from an all-time low of 1.73 babies per woman in 2001, Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show. But our fertility rate has been well below the population replacement rate since the mid-1970s. With Australia growing by two million people since 2007 alone, the population is forecast to hit almost 40 million by 2050. The Herald Sun can reveal the ABS expects the 23 million mark to be reached late next month, after originally forecasting it to happen in June. The exact forecast date and time will be released by the ABS next Thursday. Social commentator Mark McCrindle said the population was growing by 1028 people a day, so the 23-million mark would be reached about Anzac Day (April 25). "When looking at who the 23 millionth person might be, it is more likely it could be a migrant than even a baby," he said. If it's a migrant, it's most likely to be a male skilled worker from the UK in his 20s or 30s given that people from the UK make up 19 per cent of all skilled visa holders. Or if it is a baby, it is most likely to be a boy, from NSW, perhaps western Sydney, and most likely called Jack. McCrindle Research analysis shows more than half of Australians (52 per cent) are concerned about our rapid population growth, and only one-third think we are growing at the right rate. "Growing commute times, crowded public transport, and extended waiting times for public services raise the issue of population size," Mr McCrindle said. In less than 50 years, our population has doubled - from 11.5 million in 1966. But the pace of growth is accelerating, and Australia is growing faster than the world as a whole. Bjorn Jarvis, an ABS director of demography, expected "everyone to be watching the population clock" when it was due to tick over to 23 million people. "There is lots of interest in the figure, and what it might mean for us as a country," he said.