Comparison of the natural increase rate in the Russian Federation, Republic of Kazakhstan, Republic of Belarus, Kyrgyz Republic, and Republic of Estonia for the period from 1990 to 2024

Since 1991, the governments of 15 countries, formerly integrated into a unified cultural, economic, social, and legal framework within the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, have sequentially decided to secede from the union and build sovereign nation-states with independent foreign and domestic policies.
The dataset has been compiled with the aim of studying the demographic policies of post-Soviet countries, including the Russian Federation, Republic of Kazakhstan, Republic of Belarus, Kyrgyz Republic, and Republic of Estonia.
For consistency in comparison, demographic statistics were obtained from a single source: the non-profit, non-governmental resource “Database.earth,” which bases its data on the report titled “2024 Revision of World Population Prospects” prepared by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations.The files include two tables (with corresponding charts):
1. The natural increase rate in the studied countries over the period from 1990 to 2024.
2. Urban-rural population ratio in the studied countries as of 2024.
The natural increase rate is a standardized indicator that allows comparisons between different states regardless of their size or level of economic development.
Private trends for individual states.
1. The Russian Federation. After a stable period of positive growth in the late 1980s, the country faced a deep crisis in the first half of the 1990s (-5.7% in 1995). By the beginning of the 21st century, dynamics stabilized, but the overall trend remains negative. Attempts to restore fertility led to temporary improvement in 2015 (+0.3%).
2. Republic of Kazakhstan. The country maintained a positive growth dynamic almost throughout the observation period. The highest peak of growth falls on the early 2010s (13.6% in 2010, 15.2% in 2015), demonstrating high rates of population reproduction. However, by the end of the observed period (2024), there is also a gradual slowdown in growth noted.
3. Republic of Belarus. The situation in Belarus is characterized by alternating positive and negative phases. The beginning of the 1990s was marked by a significant drop, followed by a weak recovery period. Nevertheless, the general tendency is towards maintaining low levels of growth, transitioning into an insignificant minus by the 2020s.
4. Kyrgyz Republic. The only country showing sustained positive values of growth over the entire study period. Although some reduction in positive figures has been observed, nevertheless, it maintains relatively high rates of natural increase (approximately +15-18%).
5. Estonian Republic. This country stands out with the strongest volatility among the reviewed states. Except for one year (2010), natural growth remained consistently negative. The significant fall was observed in the mid-1990s and continued through the first decades of the 21st century.

自1991年起，原隶属于苏维埃社会主义共和国联盟（Union of Soviet Socialist Republics）这一统一文化、经济、社会与法律框架的15个成员国，先后宣布脱离联盟，建立拥有独立内外政策的主权民族国家。
本数据集旨在研究后苏联国家的人口政策，涵盖俄罗斯联邦、哈萨克斯坦共和国、白俄罗斯共和国、吉尔吉斯共和国与爱沙尼亚共和国。
为保障比较研究的一致性，所有人口统计数据均来自单一非盈利非政府资源「Database.earth」，该平台的数据基于联合国经济和社会事务部（Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations）编制的《2024年世界人口展望修订版》（2024 Revision of World Population Prospects）报告。
本数据集包含两张数据表（附对应图表）：
1. 1990年至2024年期间，研究样本国的自然增长率（natural increase rate）；
2. 2024年研究样本国的城乡人口比（urban-rural population ratio）。
自然增长率是一项标准化指标，可不受国家规模与经济发展水平限制，实现跨国比较。
各样本国的单独增长趋势如下：
1. 俄罗斯联邦：该国在20世纪80年代末经历了一段稳定的正增长期后，于1990年代上半叶陷入严重危机（1995年自然增长率为-5.7%）。进入21世纪初，人口增长态势趋于平稳，但整体仍呈负增长趋势。为恢复生育率所采取的尝试曾在2015年带来短暂改善（+0.3%）。
2. 哈萨克斯坦共和国：在几乎整个观测期内，该国均维持正增长态势。增长峰值出现在2010年代初（2010年为13.6%，2015年为15.2%），展现出较高的人口再生产速率。但到观测期末期（2024年），增长也出现了逐步放缓的迹象。
3. 白俄罗斯共和国：该国的人口增长呈现正负交替的阶段特征。1990年代初出现大幅下滑，随后进入弱复苏阶段。不过整体仍维持低增长水平，到2020年代已转为微弱负增长。
4. 吉尔吉斯共和国：是本次研究中唯一在整个观测期内持续保持正增长的国家。尽管正增长数值有所回落，但仍维持着相对较高的自然增长率（约+15%-18%）。
5. 爱沙尼亚共和国：该国是所有受访国家中波动最为剧烈的样本。除2010年外，自然增长始终呈负向状态。1990年代中期出现大幅下滑，并持续至21世纪前数十年。