IRI Survey: 70% Bangladeshis approve of Hasina’s performance

ZOOMBANGLA DESK: A new opinion poll and focus group study in Bangladesh has revealed strong support for Sheikh Hasina, but growing concern among the respondents about the direction the country is headed to.

Most Bangladeshis approve of the prime minister and the government’s performance on a range of issues, but the opposition is gaining strength, according to the survey by the American non-profit organization International Republican Institute or IRI.

It said 70 percent of Bangladeshis surveyed approve of Hasina’s performance, but approval of the opposition has risen from 36 percent in September 2019 to 63 percent in this poll.

IRI survey shows support for Hasina, dissatisfaction with Bangladesh’s direction

Ahead of the next general election, which is scheduled to be held by January 2024, the opposition’s calls for a caretaker government are also breaking through, with 44 percent of the people surveyed saying they want the arrangement to be restored.

But a majority of 55 percent also believe the opposition should join the election regardless of election administration.

For the first time since 2014, IRI’s survey showed that a majority of Bangladeshis believe the country is headed in the wrong direction.

Only 44 percent of the participants said Bangladesh is headed in the right direction, down from 76 percent in September 2019.

Rising prices are the primary reason for this rise in pessimism.

IRI survey shows support for Hasina, dissatisfaction with Bangladesh’s direction

Bangladeshis are interested in voting in the next national election if electoral transparency and fairness are improved, the study showed.

Of the respondents, 92 percent said they were likely to vote in the next national election, and 57 percent answered “very likely”.

Those who do not intend to vote cited election fraud and voter registration issues as key barriers to voting, the IRI survey showed.