Minister of State and of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and

Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste

 Dili, December 23rd, 2016

Government considers 2016 National Survey of Timor-Leste Public Opinion

The Government has analyzed the results of nationwide a poll conducted in November by the International Republican Institute’s Centre for Insights in Survey Research. The National Survey of Timor-Leste Public Opinion, released this week, indicates that survey respondents are optimistic, committed to the democratic process and have a generally positive view about the Government.

According to the IRI the poll reflected a “general attitude of goodwill” towards the Government with a combined 74% of respondents saying that thought that the Government was doing a ‘very good’ [29%] or ‘good’ [45%] job. A high proportion recognized improvements in healthcare [79%], education  [78%] and Electricity [71%] over the last year and 31% felt that their family’s financial situation had improved over the same time frame with 56% saying it had stayed the same.

Responding to the question “Based on your prior knowledge, do you approve of how the government is spending the petroleum fund money?” 52% responded that they strongly approved, 16% that they somewhat approved, 17% that they somewhat disapprove and 8% that they strongly disapprove. The support amongst the sample group for the ZEESM Project in Oe-Cusse Ambeno was 91% and for the south coast Tasi Mane project 89%.

It was encouraging for the Government to note that 98% of the sample group said that it is very likely that they will vote in the upcoming Presidential and Parliamentary elections, indicating a strong commitment to participate in the democratic process.

Properly conducted opinion surveys can be a helpful tool providing insights into the perceptions of our citizens. This is the third IRI survey conducted in Timor-Leste and used a sample of 1,200 respondents aged 17 and older, representative of voting age adults nationally. Data was collected using in-person, in-home interviews in all of Timor-Leste’s 12 municipalities and the Special Zone of Oé-Cusse Ambeno.

Government Spokesperson, Minister of State Agio Pereira thanked the International Republican Institute for again conducting their independent survey in Timor-Leste and noted “the commitment to democracy and positive outlook reflected in this poll is encouraging as we work to address challenges and together build our nation.”ENDS