Nairobi News

Kenya is topping the world in terms of countries whose citizens hope for a better financial status in the next five years, according to a report released recently.

The Edelman Trust Barometer 2022, released on March 8 and titled Cycle of Distrust, indicates that 91 percent of the 1,150 Kenyans surveyed feel things will look up economically by 2026.

That puts the country in the first position ahead of 27 others.

The question asked was: “Thinking about the economic prospects for yourself and your family, how do you think you and your family will be doing in five years’ time?”

The second-highest level of optimism was recorded by Nigerians at 87 percent followed by Colombians at 83 percent. Japan and France were the least optimistic, with 15 percent and 18 percent of respondents, respectively, indicating that they hoped to be doing better in the next five years.

The report is compiled every year by Edelman, a public relations and marketing consultancy firm, and it gauges how much the public trusts various bodies like the government, the media, businesses, non-governmental organizations, among others.

The survey was done in Kenya in November 2021.

It found that Kenyans trust businesses more than they trust their government. Respondents were told thus: “Below is a list of institutions. For each one, please indicate how much you trust that institution to do what is right.”

Non-governmental organizations are the most trusted institution in Kenya, with 73 percent of those interviewed saying they trusted them to do the right thing. Businesses got a 70 percent nod.

However, the government is perceived with suspicion. Only 39 percent of Kenyan respondents said they trust the government to do the right thing.

The media was also rated in that category and 57 percent of Kenyans said they trust media institutions to do the right thing.

Generally, the report revealed that Kenyans are a distrusting lot.

“Distrust has become the default for 66 percent of Kenyans surveyed,” said a press release about the report. “(This means that) two-thirds of the respondents are more likely to disbelieve information offered to them unless shown direct evidence that it was from a trustworthy source.”

It was also a thumbs-down to the communication by the government and its officials because 81 percent of the Kenyans surveyed believed that government leaders are purposely trying to mislead people by spreading false information.

According to Ms Corazon Sefu, the managing director of Edelman Kenya, the government and media need to learn from businesses and NGOs on how to cultivate trust among the public.

“While we have noted that trust in government and the media in Kenya is improving, it is still at a marginal rate for such important institutions,” said Ms Sefu.