Optimism among Afghans slightly surges

KABUL (Pajhwok): Amid a slight surge in optimism, more than 36 percent of Afghans say the country is heading in the right direction.

In 2019, 36.1 percent of Afghan voiced optimism about the state of affairs in their country -- 6.1 percent up from 32.8 percent last year.

The Asia Foundation’s latest survey, released on Tuesday, said 26.3 percent of the optimistic respondents pointed to “peace/end of war.”

The number shows a significant increase from 16.4 percent last year, according to the survey.

But insecurity and economic uncertainty remain a concern for most Afghans, with 84.4% saying they would vote for a president who could boost the economy.

Simultaneously, 65.2% say they would vote for a president who accepts a peace agreement with the Taliban.

The survey is based on face-to-face interviews with a national sample of 17,812 Afghan citizens across all 34 provinces.

The Afghans were asked what they might be willing to sacrifice to reach a peace deal, including the constitution, elections, freedom of speech and the presence of foreign forces.

On the other hand, 58.2% of those surveyed indicate the country is moving in the wrong direction -- down from 61.3% in 2018.

During fieldwork for the Survey, 80.9% of Afghans were aware of the upcoming presidential elections; more than half (58.6%) say that they voted in the parliamentary election.

Respondents who did not vote cite reasons of insecurity (30.2%), fraud (20.1%), “it’s not beneficial” (18.7%), and injustice (16.0%).

Awareness is higher among men (85.7%) than women (76.1%) and more men (66.9%) say they voted than did women (50.3%).

Most Afghans say they would not vote for a president who accepted a peace agreement with the Taliban that harmed women’s education (65.6%), women’s ability to work (65.0%), or if the central government lost territory (65.8%).

Support for women’s educational opportunities and approval for women’s education has continued to climb this year to 86.6%, up from 84.0% in 2018.

A record high number of Afghans support women working outside their homes, with 76.0% saying they agree, up from 70.3% in 2018.

Afghans cite lack of educational opportunities as the biggest problem facing women (43.2%), followed by lack of rights (34.1%), lack of employment (24.1%), and violence (18.1%).

Attitudes on influencing local government decisions and support for democracy

Satisfaction with democracy has increased to 65.1% (a steady rise from 57.2% in 2015). Respondents reporting satisfaction with democracy are more likely to say their household financial situation has improved (76.1%) than those who say their financial situation has become worse (55.2%).

David D. Arnold, president of The Asia Foundation, says: “Given Afghanistan’s political divisions, structural governance challenges, and economic insecurity, the importance of reliable data on the views of Afghan citizens cannot be overstated.

“Our goal is to provide timely data and analysis in support of Afghan government and citizens’ efforts to build a stable, prosperous society.”

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