Additionally, seven out of ten Kenyans (71 percent) say they are not satisfied overall with the direction in which the country is heading with half of them blaming economic issues for their woes.
These findings were released by ‘Twaweza’ in a research brief titled “Grading the Nation: Kenyans’ opinions on government, leadership and corruption.”
The brief is based on data from Sauti za Wananchi, (citizens voice) Africa’s first nationally representative high‐frequency mobile phone survey.
Aside from the cost of living, three out of ten citizens cite corruption as the biggest problem facing the country.
In the past year, one out of five citizens has been asked for a bribe, and 15 percent admit to paying a bribe.
Similarly, when asked how they think Kenya is performing in terms of the quality of different public services, more than half are satisfied with the country’s performance on a range of sectors including education (69 percent), security (61 percent), and electricity access (57 percent).
However, when it comes to the economy, far fewer citizens are pleased with the country’s progress in improving living standards for the poor (18 percent), creating jobs or income opportunities (16 percent), or managing the economy (10 percent).
Between 2016 and 2018, citizens’ satisfaction with all of these areas dropped.
In terms of corruption, more citizens (38 percent) are satisfied with progress in this area, but this is still less than half, noted the report.