FIGURE 3.21 Trends in average rates of natural population increases, 1990–1995 and 2011. The orange and blue columns show that rates of natural increase have declined throughout the region and are projected to continue to do so into the future. Nevertheless, in many countries, natural population increase remains high enough to outstrip efforts to improve standards of living. Note that the rates of natural increase are for just a few selected countries and for the entire region.