Pew: Egyptians Pessimistic on Economy
About 76 percent of Egyptians say economic conditions are bad, and 42 percent expect them to worsen in the coming year, according to a new poll by the Pew Research Global Attitudes Project. Egyptians are split over whether or not the country is better off after President Hosni Mubarak’s departure.
About 76 percent of Egyptians say economic conditions are bad, and 42 percent expect them to worsen in the coming year, according to a new poll by the Pew Research Global Attitudes Project. Egyptians are split over whether or not the country is better off after President Hosni Mubarak’s departure. Only 30 percent of polled Egyptians think their country is headed in the right direction, down from 53 percent in 2012 and 65 percent in 2011. The following are excerpts, with a link to the full report at the end.
Only 23% describe the current economic situation in Egypt as good, while 76% say it is bad. Looking at this question over time, national economic ratings declined steeply from 2007 to 2010, and then rebounded somewhat in 2011 after the toppling of Mubarak. However, views have turned more negative over the past two years and are now very similar to the 2010 low point.
Optimism about the economy has decreased even more sharply. In last year’s poll, half of Egyptians thought the national economy would improve over the next 12 months. Now, just 29% are optimistic; roughly four-in-ten (42%) think things will get worse.
People are no more positive about their personal economic circumstances. About one-in-five Egyptians (21%) describe their personal economic situation as good, while 79% say it is bad. This is essentially unchanged from last year, when 23% said their personal economic situation was good and 76% said it was bad.
Personal economic ratings are closely linked to education – 65% of college-educated Egyptians describe their situation as good, compared with just 13% of those with a secondary education and 8% of those with primary education or less.
Few believe their personal finances will improve in the next 12 months – only 21% hold this view. Roughly half (48%) think their circumstances will worsen, and 28% believe they will stay the same.
Over the long term, there is also more pessimism than optimism. A 42% plurality predict that when children in Egypt grow up, they will be financially worse off than their parents. Just 22% think they will be better off, while 29% volunteer that children will be at about the same financial level as their parents.
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