Survey: Indians' trust in government continues to remain high
In a welcome news for the Modi-led NDA government, India continues to be among the top three nations where trust in government remains high. However, as per the Global Trust meter released by communications marketing firm Edelman in Davos, the trust slipped a little compared to 2017. China and Indonesia are placed ahead of us. Why did India's position slip? Here's all about it.
What is the Edelman Trust Barometer?
Edelman Trust Barometer, produced since 18 years, considers people's trust in business, government, NGOs and media. An online survey was conducted in 28 countries. There were about 1,150 respondents per country, all aged above 18. This year, 20 of 28 countries lie in "distruster" territory.
How did India fare on the trust barometer?
Overall, India's trust rating across government, media, NGOs and business fell 13 percentage points, marking a sharp decrease. But, it remained in the 60-100 percentage band, indicating popular "trust." However, people's trust in media has suffered the most; it was the lowest at 61, dropping five points since 2017. At 74 points, trust in business was the highest.
What does this imply?
Despite Modi government's constant assertions regarding the importance of financial reforms, Indians' trust in the government may have dipped due to the effects of tough reforms like demonetization and Goods and Services tax (GST). Also, sadly, as a business destination, India was placed in the least trusted category with Mexico, Brazil and China. India certainly needs to strengthen its contracts and arbitration mechanism.
Meanwhile, what about other countries?
Meanwhile, after Donald Trump presidency's first year, only a third of Americans trust their government to make the right decision, with public's trust declining by 14-points since 2017. China's government is most trusted. This could be because of its trade and security gain in Asia-Pacific due to "US withdrawal." World-wide, people's faith in social media has eroded, but trust in "mainstream" journalism is steadfast.
