By Francis H. Murray
Majority of Sierra Leoneans want their country to finance its own development even if it means they have to pay more in taxes, a latest Afrobarometer survey has shown.
“A majority (61%) of Sierra Leoneans want the country to finance its development from its own resources, even if it means they have to pay more taxes (including 40% who “agree very strongly” with this approach). Only about a quarter (24%) prefer the use of loans from foreign countries and institutions to develop the country,” the survey noted.
The report published on Monday 15th February 2021, shows that the majority of citizens are not against the country receiving external loans or development assistance, but that such assistance should be tied to strict requirements about how the resources are used in promoting democracy and human rights.
Afrobarometer is a pan-African, nonpartisan survey research network that provides data on African experiences and evaluations of democracy, governance, and quality of life.
The survey further indicates that even with the government's establishment of the Local Content Agency to promote local businesses and entrepreneurship, citizens remain divided on whether to safeguard domestic producers from foreign competition.
It also shows that most citizens want foreign owned retail shops that will ensure a wide choice of low-cost consumer goods.
The report adds that only about 4 in 10 citizens amounting to 38% say foreign donors or lenders should allow the government to make its own decisions on how to use the resources, with a slight majority of 52% wanting donors/lenders to enforce strict requirements on how resources are spent.
The researchers further noted that nearly 6 in 10 respondents amounting to 57% say that donors should make sure the government promotes democracy and human rights, while only one-third 33% want the government to be free to make its own decisions on democracy and human rights.
The report notes that 51% of Sierra Leoneans say that in order to develop, the country must rely on trade with the rest of the world, including by opening its borders to foreign imports but with almost the same proportion of 45% wanting the country to rely on local production in order to protect local producers from foreign competition.
“Seven in 10 Sierra Leoneans (71%) say the government should continue to permit foreigners to set up shops in the country to ensure a wide choice of low-cost consumer goods,” the report adds.
The report also shows that 7 in 10 Sierra Leoneans (71%) say the government should continue to permit foreigners to set up shops in the country to ensure a wide choice of low-cost consumer goods.
The Afro-Barometer provides data on Africans' experiences and evaluations of democracy, governance and quality of life. The team in Sierra Leone is led by a local Think tank, the Institute for Governance Reform.
The report is released in series. The survey according to the report was done in March 2020 with a targeted population of 1,200 across the country.
The researchers say that seven rounds of surveys were completed in up to 38 countries between 1999 and 2018, with round 8 of surveys in 2019/2021 planned in at least 35 countries.
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