More than six in ten (63%) adult Zimbabweans think that the country is heading in the wrong direction, according to the most recent Afrobarometer survey (November 2014). This pessimistic outlook is shared across demographic groups of gender, age, place of residence (POR) and province though the depth of opinion differs. For example, while nearly three quarters of urban dwellers (73%) expressed pessimism, less than six in ten of their rural dwellers (58%) share this view and more males (67%) than females (60%) say the country is going the wrong way.
The data is being released at a time the Zimbabwean economy is increasingly weakening, and when the government is struggling with an unaffordable wage bill for civil servants (Financial Gazette, 29 January 2015; Newsday, 12 March 2015). There are even fears of the return to the local currency and government operations grinding to a halt (Financial Gazette, 29 January 2015).