In a few short years, the proliferation of mobile phone networks has transformed communications in sub-Saharan Africa. It has also allowed Africans to skip the landline stage of development and jump right to the digital age.
People in emerging and developing countries around the world are on balance unhappy with the way their political systems are working.
In recent years, high-profile protest movements have erupted in several emerging and developing countries, roiling, and sometimes overturning, the political status quo in Tunisia, Egypt, Turkey, Ukraine, Brazil, Thailand and other nations. Millions have demonstrated, and activists have pioneered new forms of online engagement.
Pope Francis, leader of the world’s nearly 1.1 billion Catholics, enjoys broad support across much of the world: a median of 60% across 43 nations have a favorable view of him. Only 11% see the pope unfavorably, and 28% give no rating.
Crime and corruption, common scourges of modern societies, top the list of problems cited by publics in emerging and developing nations.
People in emerging economies are considerably more satisfied with their lives today than they were in 2007.
Publics across the globe see the threat of religious and ethnic violence as a growing threat to the world’s future, with concern especially strong in the Middle East.
With parliamentary elections approaching later this month, Tunisian support for democracy has declined steeply since the early days of the Arab Spring. Just 48% of Tunisians now say democracy is preferable to other kinds of government, down from 63% in a 2012 poll conducted only months after a popular uprising removed longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali from office.
As they continue to struggle with the effects of the Great Recession, most people in advanced economies are pessimistic about the financial prospects of the next generation. In contrast, emerging and developing nations are more optimistic that the next generation will have a higher standard of living.
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