By: Kemo Kanyi
The recent Afrobarometer survey has revealed increased corruption at the Office of the President and National Assembly. The two institutions recorded the highest increase in corruption according to respondents’ data collected by the surveyors.
The Afrobarometer is a pan-African, independent, non-partisan research network that measures public attitudes on economic, political, and social matters in Africa. It conducts and publishes research on public attitude surveys for over 35 African countries.
The data draws comparisons from respondents about corruption in the Gambia between 2018 and 2024 across several public institutions.
According to the Afrobarometer, the respondents were asked: How many of the following people do you think are involved in corruption, or haven’t you heard enough about them to say?
The survey reports that 19% of respondents across the country say Office of the President is the most corrupt. This has increased to 49% in 2024. For the Members of Parliament, 15% of respondents say National Assembly is the most corrupt, but this has also increased to 46% in 2024 survey.
The data indicated that the corruption in the police has also increased as responded from 38% to 43% from 2018 to 2024, respectively. The respondents have also lost confidence in the local government councillors which stood at 19% in 2018, but increased to 39%.
Afrobarometer added that the corruption survey for business executives registered a significant increase in corruption, with respondents’ data recording 31% and 39% in 2018 and 2024, respectively. The reports indicated an increase in corruption among civil servants from 23% to 39% for the period under review.
The corruption indicator for religious leaders has dropped from 11% to 10% for the consideration period, the only indicator reflecting positivity out of the institutions surveyed.
