- More than eight in 10 Emaswati (84%) say the country is going in “the wrong direction,” twice as many as in 2018 (42%) (Figure 1).
- More than eight in 10 Emaswati (84%) say the country is going in “the wrong direction,” twice as many as in 2018 (42%) (Figure 1).
- Growing numbers of citizens report going without a cash income (78% in 2022), medical care (78%), enough food (66%), enough cooking fuel (61%), and enough clean water (55%) at least once during the year preceding the survey. All these proportions have been increasing since 2015 (Figure 3).
- Public approval ratings have plummeted for the government’s performance on managing the economy (12%), improving the living standards of the poor (10%), creating jobs (6%), narrowing gaps between rich and poor (5%), and keeping prices stable (4%) (Figure 4).
- However, among citizens who sought selected public services during the previous year, majorities say they found it easy to get help from public schools (79%), public health facilities (64%), and the police (63%). But almost two-thirds (63%) say it was difficult to obtain a government identity document such as a birth certificate, driver’s license, passport, voter’s card, or permit (Figure 5).
A majority of Emaswati describe the country’s economic condition as bad and say Eswatini is headed in the wrong direction, a new Afrobarometer survey indicates.
Increasing numbers of citizens are suffering shortages of basic life necessities such as cash income, medical care, food, and water.
Overwhelming majorities say the government is performing poorly on key economic issues, although most citizens who accessed key public services during the past year say they encountered a few difficulties.
As national elections, approach after the current government’s five-year term was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest in June 2021, the new administration will have to deal with a stagnating economy and citizens whose livelihoods hang in the balance.
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