October 20, 2009 - According to a public opinion poll carried out in September 2009, 44% of those polled agree that Slovakia’s contribution to the official development assistance budget should increase. Only 29% of respondents consider it too much. The proposed state budget for the years 2010 – 2012 sees the amount designated for Slovak-implemented bilateral assistance projects decrease by 60% in comparison with the 2009 budget. In real terms this is a drop from 7,5 mil. € to 3,2 mil. €. To put it in context, the proposed ODA budget is lower than when Slovakia was yet to join the EU, the euro zone or when contribution towards development assistance was voluntary.
This public opinion poll on the topic of development assistance was carried out by Focus agency, within the project Development Assistance Concerns Us, implemented by the Pontis Foundation. The poll was carried out between 2nd and 8th September 2009 on a representative sample of 1039 individuals from the Slovak population. All those polled were above the age of 18 yrs.
“The aim of the survey was to find out how the public perceive development assistance from Slovakia; whether they accept giving aid even in these times of economic crises; what the preferred means and recipients of such assistance are; and also what the public opinion is concerning the amount and effectiveness of the aid,” stated Lenka Surotchak, Director of the Pontis Foundation.
“In comparison with the previous poll of 2005, we noticed a surprising increase in the occurrences of the “I don’t know” answer – in some cases two or three times more. Development assistance is an instrument for the international engagement of Slovakia as a modern and responsible European country. It is important that the Slovak public are informed about its aims and results,” continues Lenka Surotchak.
In the last six months, just one fifth (20%) of those polled had heard something about the country’s development assistance program. These respondents declared that it was aid to developing countries in Africa, Afghanistan, etc. about which they had most frequently heard. The most common source of information about development assistance for the respondents was television (80%).
Seven out of ten of those polled (70%) think that Slovakia should offer its help to people in developing countries, which is 13% less than in 2005. The respondents seemed aware of the fact that it is a moral responsibility for developed countries to help developing countries and that this assistance is needed (84%). 60% of those polled agree with the notion that negative consequences of the global economic crisis will affect mainly poorer countries and that is a reason as to why it is necessary to increase development assistance. On the other hand, those surveyed express certain scepticism concerning the question whether Slovakia can afford this aid, if the financial resources really arrive to the places where they are needed the most and also, to what extent these resources are distributed in a transparent manner. In comparison to 2005, the opinion that “Corruption in developing countries is the main reason why aid does not arrive to those who need it most” increased by 17 proportional points (73% agree in 2009 in comparison with 56% in 2005).
Among the most important motivations for carrying out development assistance is above all the general desire “ to help people in need” and then specifically “to help children”. The Slovak inhabitants polled think that their country can help developing countries mostly in improving heath care and education systems. Concerning the most efficient way in which Slovakia could distribute their assistance to developing countries, the biggest percentage of respondents still prefer “transferring financial resources to the big international organisations like UNICEF, Red Cross, etc.” (72%). This represented a decrease of 16 proportional points in comparison to the 2005 poll. Respondents believe the second most efficient way is to provide small grants to Slovak non-governmental organisations to implement concrete projects within developing countries (53%). The least efficient way, according to those surveyed, is to provide finances to Slovak companies and private businessmen for development projects (37%).
According to respondents, recipients of development assistance should above all be the African countries. This was the opinion of 78% of respondents, which is similar to the 2005 figure of 77%. Support for assistance to be granted to other regions diminished. In the case of Asia the figure fell to 46% and for Afghanistan, the number decreased to 43%. Similar opinions are held regarding support for Slovakia’s neighbouring regions: support for assisting the Western Balkans dropped and now stands at 36%, whilst those who felt that the former soviet republics of the Eastern Europe should be helped fell to 31%.
As is mentioned above, the doubts of those polled concern primarily the usefulness of the assistance which Slovakia offers to developing countries. Approximately half of the respondents (49%) think that this assistance is not used well, which represents an increase of 9 proportional points compared to 2005. This uneasiness also affects the perception regarding the amount of money that Slovakia offers developing countries. Only 14% of respondents think that the amount of money should be higher. 39% consider it sufficient whilst 29% believe the amount is too much. On the other hand, 44% of respondents stated that they agree this contribution should increase, with 34% of those surveyed agreeing with a contribution of 10 cents monthly per inhabitant.
Individual donations and contributions to public collections for developing countries were made by 28% of respondents, which represents a decrease in 3 proportional points compared to 2005. Those responding contributed most often via the form of financial aid (public collections, transferring s part of their salary, etc.) rather than volunteering or other means.
The project was supported by the Slovak Agency for International Development Assistance (SAMRS) from SlovakAid resources.
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