Perceptions on Current Issues Faced by the Public Advocata | April 2019
Executive Summary
The poll was conducted to understand people’s perceptions of the current electricity crisis and other issues faced by the public.
Face-to-face interviews were conducted door-to-door, with responses recorded using tablets or mobile devices. A total of 855 interviews were conducted between the 3rd and 4th of April, covering 18 districts across 8 provinces.
Headline Findings
Measure
Result
Base
Losses of state-owned enterprises justified by services provided
Yes: 19% | No: 81%
851
Pay more for food to protect local industry
Yes: 43% | No: 57%
853
Pay more for construction material to protect local industry
Yes: 24% | No: 76%
848
Poll Methodology and Coverage
The poll used a door-to-door, face-to-face interview methodology. Respondents were interviewed within the selected districts and responses were recorded electronically.
Item
Details
Fieldwork dates
3–4 April
Interviews
855
Geographic coverage
18 districts in 8 provinces
Interview mode
Face-to-face, door-to-door
Response capture
Tablet / mobile
Provincial Sample Achieved
Province
Population
Sample achieved
Western
5.8 million (29%)
205 (24%)
Southern
2.4 million (12%)
89 (11%)
Central
2.6 million (13%)
134 (15%)
North Central
1.3 million (6%)
81 (9%)
North Western
2.3 million (12%)
87 (10%)
Uva
1.7 million (6%)
—
Sabaragamuwa
1.9 million (9%)
87 (10%)
Northern
1.1 million (5%)
76 (9%)
Eastern
1.5 million (8%)
96 (11%)
Total
20.3 million (100%)
855
Districts Covered
District
Sample achieved
Share
Colombo
83
10%
Gampaha
39
5%
Kalutara
83
10%
Galle
42
5%
Matara
47
5%
Kandy
46
5%
Matale
44
5%
Nuwara Eliya
44
5%
Kurunegala
44
5%
Putlam
43
5%
Anuradhapura
40
5%
Polonnaruwa
41
5%
Ratnapura
15
2%
Kegalle
72
8%
Ampara
54
6%
Batticaloa
42
5%
Vauniya
29
3%
Total
855
100%
Sample Profile
The source presents the demographic profile of the 855 respondents as follows.
Profile
Category
Share
Gender
Male
51%
Female
49%
Age
18–25 years
17%
26–35 years
33%
36–50 years
28%
More than 50
22%
Education
Graduate / Professional
13%
GCE A/L Level
30%
GCE O/L Level
47%
Grade 6–9
4%
Up to Grade 5
6%
Socio-economic class
SEC A
16%
SEC B
29%
SEC C
36%
SEC D
15%
SEC E
5%
Monthly household income
Less than Rs. 30,000
27%
Rs. 30,001–70,000
62%
Above Rs. 70,001
11%
Base: All Respondents (855).
Finding 1 — State-Owned Enterprises
Question: Do you think the losses sustained by state-owned enterprises are justified given the services they provide?
Overall response: 19% said Yes, while 81% said No (base: 851 respondents).
Demographic group
Yes
No
Base
Male
17%
83%
427
Female
20%
80%
416
18–25 years
18%
82%
144
26–35 years
15%
84%
273
36–50 years
17%
82%
234
More than 50
23%
76%
159
SEC A
18%
82%
135
SEC B
22%
77%
244
SEC C
14%
86%
302
SEC D
21%
79%
125
SEC E
20%
80%
44
Response by Province
Province
Yes
No
Base
Western
12%
88%
204
Southern
6%
94%
88
Central
39%
61%
133
North Western
21%
79%
87
North Central
19%
81%
81
Sabaragamuwa
18%
82%
86
Eastern
18%
82%
96
Northern
22%
78%
76
Income group: Less than Rs. 30K — 17% Yes / 83% No (base 232); Rs. 30K–70K — 20% / 80% (base 524); Above Rs. 70K — 19% / 81% (base 80).
Finding 2 — Food Prices and Protection of Local Industry
Question: Would you pay more for your food, if it means that the local industry is protected?
Overall response: 43% said Yes, while 57% said No (base: 853 respondents).
Demographic group
Yes
No
Base
Male
38%
72%
427
Female
48%
52%
418
18–25 years
36%
64%
144
26–35 years
42%
58%
273
36–50 years
47%
53%
232
More than 50
46%
54%
159
SEC A
51%
49%
135
SEC B
43%
57%
245
SEC C
38%
61%
303
SEC D
43%
57%
125
SEC E
45%
55%
44
Response by Province
Province
Yes
No
Base
Western
48%
52%
205
Southern
22%
78%
89
Central
43%
57%
133
North Western
24%
76%
87
North Central
64%
36%
81
Sabaragamuwa
61%
39%
87
Eastern
41%
59%
96
Northern
33%
67%
76
Income group: Less than Rs. 30K — 32% Yes / 68% No (base 232); Rs. 30K–70K — 48% / 52% (base 526); Above Rs. 70K — 45% / 55% (base 80).
Finding 3 — Construction Material Prices and Protection of Local Industry
Question: Would you pay more for construction material, if it means that the local industry is protected?
Overall response: 24% said Yes, while 76% said No (base: 848 respondents).
Demographic group
Yes
No
Base
Male
22%
78%
428
Female
26%
74%
414
18–25 years
18%
82%
144
26–35 years
24%
78%
272
36–50 years
27%
72%
231
More than 50
27%
73%
158
SEC A
25%
75%
136
SEC B
25%
75%
243
SEC C
21%
79%
301
SEC D
27%
73%
123
SEC E
34%
66%
44
Response by Province
Province
Yes
No
Base
Western
18%
82%
205
Southern
15%
85%
88
Central
27%
73%
133
North Western
7%
93%
85
North Central
45%
55%
81
Sabaragamuwa
49%
51%
86
Eastern
16%
84%
94
Northern
21%
79%
76
Income group: Less than Rs. 30K — 23% Yes / 77% No (base 233); Rs. 30K–70K — 25% / 75% (base 520); Above Rs. 70K — 21% / 79% (base 81).
Cross-Cutting Observations
The strongest overall response is opposition to the losses sustained by state-owned enterprises being justified by the services provided: 81% answered No.
Respondents were more willing to accept higher food prices to protect local industry than higher construction-material prices: 43% versus 24% answered Yes.
For all three questions, the overall No response was larger than the Yes response.
For the food question, support for paying more was higher among females (48%) than males (38%).
For the construction-material question, the highest provincial Yes responses were reported in Sabaragamuwa (49%) and North Central (45%), while North Western was lowest at 7%.
For the state-owned-enterprise question, Central recorded the highest Yes response at 39%, while Southern recorded the lowest at 6%.
Notes on the Data
The figures presented above reproduce the information available in the supplied source material. Bases vary slightly between questions (851, 853 and 848), so the question-specific base should be used when interpreting each result.
Percentages may not always sum to exactly 100% because of rounding or presentation conventions. No additional weighting, statistical testing, margin-of-error calculation, or inference has been added because those details are not provided in the source material.
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