Four in five Pakistanis believe country heading in wrong direction: survey

ISLAMABAD: According to a latest survey conducted by Ipsos, four in five (77 percent) Pakistanis continue to worry that the country is heading in the wrong direction for the last one year.

In the fourth quarter of 2019, 79 percent respondents had declared that the country was heading in wrong direction.

The survey participated by over a thousand respondents from all parts of the country shows that seven in 10 Pakistanis are dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country today, while three in four Pakistanis describe the current economic situation, as bad -- slight betterment (5 percent) since same period last year.

Increase in inflation is the most worrying issue for every one in three Pakistanis (34 percent), followed by unemployment (22 percent). Concerns regarding increasing poverty got more than doubled since last one year.

The survey shows that 70 percent most worrying issues for Pakistanis relate to their financial miseries. Poor financial situation is prominent across all provinces. Corruption in top five worries in Sindh and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Indiscriminate implementation of law and Justice has been seen bigger issue than coronavirus in Balochistan.

The survey shows that only 1 in 10 Pakistanis rated current local economy as strong, twice as much, better than last year. Looking ahead six months from now, three in five Pakistanis foresee our economy getting even more weaker.

The survey findings show that almost one in three Pakistanis consider their personal financial situation as weak. Half of Pakistanis expect this to be even weaker in next six months. Albeit still small in proportion, positive sentiments got better than last year.

Over four in five Pakistanis continue to feel less confident about their job security. One out of two Pakistanis reported experiencing themselves or witnessing people known to them personally, who lost their jobs in last year, because of economic conditions. Jobs’ situation seems worsened since last year.

According to the survey, 14 percent Pakistanis fear they will lose their job in next six months. No improvement has been noted in the grim investment environment. In comparison to one year ago, nine out of 10 Pakistanis are feeling less comfortable while purchasing general household items as well as major ones like cars, homes etc.

In comparison to one year ago, more than eight out of 10 Pakistanis continue to feel less confident about their ability to save and invest in the future. Pakistan’s Global Consumer Confidence Index (GCCI) in fourth quarter of 2020 is 30.2, well below global average of 42.1.

However, except for China, Pakistan national index has lost the least since fourth quarter of 2019, in comparison to major emerging countries like Brazil, Russia, India, South Africa and Turkey.