Results of a survey on security conducted by Gallup International have been released in advance of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The “Voice of the People Survey” is based on almost 43,000 interviews from 51 countries. The survey is claimed to represent the views of more than 1.1 billion global citizens.
The interviewing was done in late November and December 2003 — prior to the capture of Saddam Hussein and before Libya pledged to give up weapons of mass destruction. The survey questions concerned different aspects of prosperity and security. Results from the survey consistently showed that individuals feel they have little or no personal effect on the economic, political and social factors that affect daily life.
Twice as many people globally rated international security as “poor” (41 percent) compared to the proportion who consider it “good” (20 percent). In Middle Eastern countries, to the question, “Is this country safer or less safe than 10 years ago?” 31 percent answered, “less safe,” and 48 percent said, “safer.” When people in Middle Eastern countries were asked, “Is this country more or less prosperous than 10 years ago?” 39 percent answered “less” and 42 percent replied “more.” To download the full report including the questionnaire and findings, click to www.weforum.org/securitysurvey.
