- A majority of citizens express satisfaction with the government’s efforts to prevent or resolve conflicts (72%), address educational needs (69%), reduce crime (64%), and improve basic health services (53%) (Figure 1). o But fewer than one in four respondents approve of its performance on narrowing gaps between rich and poor (14%), creating jobs (22%), providing a reliable supply of electricity (24%), and improving living standards of the poor (24%).
- Approval ratings on a number of indicators of government economic performance have declined compared to 2022, including improving living standards of the poor, creating jobs, and narrowing the gap between rich and poor (Figure 2). o However, perceptions of the government’s efforts to tackle inflation have improved over the last three years.
- Almost three-fourths (73%) of citizens say “most” or “all” police officials are corrupt, while about half see widespread corruption among business executives (51%), MPs (49%), and tax officials (49%) (Figure 3).
- Only three in 10 Sierra Leoneans (30%) believe that people can report corruption without fear of retaliation, a decline of 4 percentage points compared to 2022 (Figure 4). Seven in 10 (69%) say people risk retaliation or other negative consequences if they report incidents of corruption to the authorities.
A majority of Sierra Leoneans say their government is performing well on key public services such as security, education, and health care, but give poor marks on job creation, improving living standards of the poor, and tackling financial inequality, the latest Afrobarometer survey shows.
Survey findings reveal mixed assessments of the government’s overall economic performance. Though perceptions of efforts to manage inflation have improved in recent years, approval has declined on key indicators such as job creation and poverty reduction since 2022.
Fewer than half of citizens think the government is doing a good job of fighting corruption. Nearly three-fourths of Sierra Leoneans say “most” or “all” police officials are corrupt. Half say the same about business executives, members of Parliament (MPs), and tax officials. Citizens also feel unsafe reporting corruption. Only three in 10 believe they can report corrupt acts without fear of retaliation, while a majority say doing so risks negative consequences.