The sky-rocketing cost of living has worried Kenyans the most throughout the year, according to a new survey that also lists unemployment, high taxes and worsening poverty as other concerns that the government should address in the new year.
Compared to December 2022, the number of Kenyans feeling the country is heading in the wrong direction has increased by 6 per cent—from 55 per cent to 61 per cent—a poll released on Friday by Infotrak shows.
And the vast majority—93 percent—of those unhappy with the way the country is being governed cite the runaway cost of living as the primary reason for their pessimism.
This highlights the crisis worsened by high fuel prices that have had a ripple effect on the prices of other commodities like food amid shrinking household incomes due to high taxes.
According to the survey done between December 18 and 19, and which polled 1,500 adult Kenyans from all the 47 counties, three out of five Kenyans are unhappy about the country’s current trajectory, with the apprehension being particularly strong at 64 per cent among women and almost 7 in 10 youth aged 18-25 years, a situation that should worry the Kenya Kwanza government as these constitute the bulk of the population.
The high cost of living, which was among the top agenda items that the talks between President William Ruto’s and opposition leader Raila Odinga’s teams failed to agree on, has consistently topped Kenyans’ concerns in polls done in February, July, September and the latest one.
The bipartisan talks team made recommendations on a new constitutional position for the opposition leader and entrenching that of the Prime Cabinet Secretary as well as electoral reforms.
The opposition side said the government rejected its proposals on cutting taxes, insisting measures to address the rising cost of living were part of their electoral mandate.
Unemployment, high taxes , poverty and rampant corruption are other pressing concerns that Kenyans want the government to address, according to the poll.
For all Kenyans, addressing the cost of living ranks high on their wish list at 56 per cent, followed by the issue of high taxation (36 per cent), cost of fuel (33 per cent), unemployment (27 per cent) and corruption at 13 per cent .
Food security is number six in the wish list of Kenyans at 13 per cent, followed by poverty reduction (11 per cent), cost of doing business (10 per cent) and access to quality and affordable education, and infrastructure closing the top 10 at 10 per cent.
As the curtain comes down on 2023, the majority of Kenyans—83 per cent—described the year as “terrible”.
The government has however more reasons to worry in the new year as the poll indicates that only 30 per cent of Kenyans hope for a brighter future, while 21 per cent fear a further descent.
Another 19 per cent expect 2024 to be a grim echo of 2023, and nearly a third simply shrug, unsure of what the new year holds. Some 84 per cent cast doubt on the improvement of the economy.
“As we step into 2024, the echoes of 2023 resonate. It was a year marked by challenges, etched in disappointment for many. Yet, within this sombre landscape, flickers of hope and pockets of resilience remain. The fight for a better Kenya in 2024 continues, driven by the tenacious spirit of its people and their unwavering dream of a brighter future,” states the poll report
“The spectre of struggling businesses, strained finances, lost jobs and elusive employment chills the hearts of many Kenyans,” it adds.
The poll indicates that people from Nyanza, which is seen as Mr Odinga’s political backyard, bore the brunt of the year's hardships, with 71 per cent calling it “terrible”.
Those from Nairobi and the Coast came in second as the hardest hit in the year with 67 per cent each saying there was nothing to celebrate in 2023.
Western followed closely, with 65 per cent failing to pinpoint any good thing to celebrate in the first full year of the Kenya Kwanza administration.
According to the poll, only a third of respondents from Eastern and Central regions had something to celebrate as they described the year as average.
The poll indicates that in North Eastern 20 per cent of the people described the year as good, while in Rift Valley, which is President Ruto’s backyard, only 11 per cent termed the year as good. In Central, where Deputy President Rigthi Gachagua comes from, only 9 per cent said 2023 was a good year.
Western Kenya, where Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi comes from, had the lowest number of people who described 2023 as an excellent year, at 6 per cent, followed by Nyanza at 7 per cent, Coast and Central are third with 9 per cent each, while Nairobi and Eastern have 10 and 15 per cent, respectively
According to the poll, North Eastern region is leading in optimism that 2024 will a better year than 2023 at 53 per cent, followed by Central at 35 per cent Eastern (34 per cent), Nairobi (31 per cent), Rift Valley (30 per cent), Coast (26 per cent) and Western (24 per cent). Nyanza has the least optimistic people with only 16 per cent believing that the new year will be better than 2023.
Nyanza is also leading among the regions that believe that 2024 will be worse than 2023 at 30 per cent, followed by Coast region at 25 per cent, Eastern (22 per cent), Central (20 per cent), Western (19 per cent), Rift Valley (18 per cent) and Nairobi (17 per cent). North Eastern has the least pessimistic people, with only 12 per cent saying 2024 will be worse than 2023.
Those casting doubts on a better 2024, at 84 per cent, pointed out that the economy will get worse, while 13 per cent said their businesses will suffer. Others, at 12 per cent, said that their finances will get worse while 8 per cent said they believed that they will not get a job in the new year. Another 3 per cent expressed fear that they are likely to be retrenched from their jobs.
For the optimists who believe that 2024 will be a better year, 77 per cent said the economy will improve, 22 per cent that the country will witness development, 13 per cent that there will be peace and 10 per cent that their businesses will grow.
Another 8 per cent expressed hope that their finances will improve, 5 per cent that there will be enough food and 4 per cent have resorted to faith and trust in God that things will be fine.
Rift Valley had the highest number of population sampled with 383 people interviewed, followed by Eastern at 225, Central (201), Nyanza (184), Nairobi (167), Western (144) and Coast (136). North Eastern had the least people as only 60 were sampled for the interview.
