The latest Afrobarometer survey in the Gambia showed the Majority of Gambians’ support for key elements of an access to information bill that will allow journalists, civil society organizations, and ordinary citizens to obtain many types of information held by the government.
“More than six in 10 Gambians (61%) say the public should have access to government information. Only 31% believe that information held by public authorities is only for use by government officials and should not have to be shared with the public.
“Economically well-off citizens (74%), urban residents (69%), and youth (64%) are most likely to insist that the government should have to share information with the public.
“In the past, many citizens have expressed little confidence that they could obtain government information. In a 2018 survey, fewer than four in 10 said they were “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to be able to find out about local development plans and budgets (38%) and school budgets (38%). Larger proportions thought they could obtain information about who owns a piece of land (46%), and how to register a new business (62%),” the key findings of the pan-African survey firm read.
Afrobarometer surveys Afrobarometer is a pan-African, nonpartisan survey research network that provides reliable data on Africans’ experiences and evaluations of democracy, governance, and quality of life. Seven rounds of surveys were completed in up to 38 countries between 1999 and 2018. Round 8 surveys (2019/2021) cover 34 countries. It conducts face-to-face interviews in the language of the respondent’s choice with nationally representative samples. The team in the Gambia, led by the Center for Policy, Research and Strategic Studies (CepRass), interviewed 1,200 adult Gambians between 30 January and 23 February 2021. A sample of this size yields country-level results with a margin of error of +/-3 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. A previous Afrobarometer survey was conducted in the Gambia in 2018.
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