An overwhelming 92 per cent of Rwandans would still vote for President Paul Kagame if he runs for re-election, a survey published yesterday by a reputable global market research company has indicated.

The finding is contained in a report of the survey about citizens’ perceptions in Rwanda, which was conducted by Ipsos, a global market research company, in partnership with a Ugandan think-tank, Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE).

The survey’s findings, which were presented in Kigali yesterday, indicated citizens’ perceptions about social, political and economic conditions.

The survey, conducted from July 30 to August 20, involved a sample of 2,036 respondents from all districts.

"Virtually all (92 per cent) respondents irrespective of location and demographic characteristics were in support of President Kagame standing for re-election,” the survey found.

According to the Managing Director of Ipsos in Uganda, Virginia Nkwanzi Isingoma, Rwandans have confidence in President Kagame’s ability to deal with different issues geared towards development of the country.

"They say he is a good leader who brought Rwandans from afar,” Isingoma said.

Many of those who would elect him say he promoted peace and unity, income and development, democracy, gender balance, and free education.

The study concluded that the positive perception about the President is attributed to the current economic performance of the country and his commitment to fighting poverty, promotion of peace and stability, and fighting corruption.

Referendum and term limits

While Rwandans will today and tomorrow vote in a referendum to approve or dismiss a revised Constitution that gives President Kagame a chance to bid for another term in office in 2017, the Ipsos survey has indicated that about 75 per cent of the population does not support presidential term limits.

Overall, the survey has presented a positive citizens’ perception about Rwanda, with the majority of the people saying they feel optimistic about the future economic conditions of the country and their individual lives in the next one year.

Regarding corruption, payment of bribes is perceived to be at a very low level (about 8 per cent), with Kigali and Southern Province reporting higher likelihood of bribery.

Most public institutions are perceived not to be corrupt, but among the few cases of corruption, Police recorded the highest incidence.

The level of satisfaction on public service delivery is high for many institutions, except electricity which scored the lowest level at 54 per cent.

On media freedom and freedom of speech, the survey says, generally, Rwandans feel the media has freedom to report or publish issues relating to the country and majority (86 per cent) of the people feel free to express themselves with higher proportions reported in the urban than the rural areas.

On democracy, Rwanda is highly perceived to be a full democracy (at 82 per cent of respondents), with this perception being high across rural and urban areas as well as age ranges.

The study indicated that the most common and pressing problem in the country is unemployment, with 66 per cent of the respondents saying "finding jobs is the most common problem in Rwanda.”

It was followed by the cost of living (43 per cent of respondents) and food shortage (37 per cent of respondents).

editorial@newtimes.co.rw