Public Confidence Level Higher for Local Government: A Survey of the Nepali People in 2022
Program Year: 2023
On January 23, 2023, The Asia Foundation and Kathmandu University School of Arts (KUSoA) launched A Survey of the Nepali People (SNP) in 2022. The nationally and provincially representative perception survey aims to gauge people’s views on critical contemporary, social, development, and governance issues. KUSoA led the study in collaboration with Interdisciplinary Analysts (IDA) with support from the Australian Government, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Foundation partnership on Subnational Governance in Nepal, and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). Australian Ambassador to Nepal Felicity Volk, Dean Ekku M. Pun of KUSoA, Charge de Affairs Silvana Hogg of SDC, and Kathmandu University Registrar Achyut Wagle launched the report at an event organized in Kathmandu.
At the launch, KUSoA Associate Professor Uddhab Pyakurel presented the significant findings of the survey, and IDA Executive Director Sudhindra Sharma explained the survey’s methodology. Along with a national brief, the Foundation and KUSoA will publish seven provincial briefs this year.
The 2022 survey findings show an improvement in public confidence in their local government. More than half of respondents (54.4%) reported that the local body restructuring had improved the service delivery capacity of their local government. Likewise, 57.2% of the respondents expressed satisfaction with local government service delivery. The respondents also identified local governments as the most responsive government authority in Covid-19 crisis management.
At the event, Ambassador Volk highlighted the significance of data and knowledge in planning and decision-making. She added, “Strong data and evidence support good policy making and appropriate interventions. We cannot serve our people if we don’t know what they are experiencing and their perceptions of the government and other services at their disposal.”
Similarly, Silvana Hogg mentioned that the value of the public perception survey such as SNP lies in the potential to understand the gaps and to make informed course corrections in time. She also added, “Switzerland sees this Survey of Nepali People as an important policy tool, which is also used in our own reporting to assess the outcomes and impact of our development cooperation.”
Achyut Wagle noted the need to generate data and evidence through several entities to support effective decision-making at all levels. Further, he urged like-minded institutions to undertake research and analysis by comparing (SNP) data with other government-generated data to make it more valuable.
President David Arnold of The Asia Foundation and members of the board of trustees, government secretaries, parliamentarians, academicians, and civil society organizations attended the event.
Read the complete publication of A Survey of Nepali People 2022.
The Latest Across Asia
Program Snapshot
April 18, 2024
News
April 17, 2024
2024 Lotus Leadership Awards
Thursday, April 25, 2024, New York City
The Lotus Leadership Awards recognize contributions towards gender equality in Asia and the Pacific