It's official. The UAE government is definitely one of the most trusted governments in the world.
For the sixth year in a row, the UAE government has been ranked as the second most trusted, according to Edelman's Trust Barometer report for 2017.
The UAE ties with India, with 75 percent of citizens saying they "trust" their government. China leads globally – just barely ahead of the UAE and India – with 76 percent expressing "trust" in their government.
While trust in the UAE government appears to be holding strong, the report warns that "trust is in crisis around the world." When it comes to business, government, NGOs, and media – the four key institutions examined by the barometer – trust has "declined broadly."
In fact, a press release notes that the study found the "largest-ever drop in trust across the institutions of government" on a global scale.
"The majority of respondents now lack full belief that the overall system is working for them," the report says. It points out that "job-threatening issues such as globalization and automation" are fueling people's fears, and points to these issues as key factors "spurring the rise of populist actions" in many Western countries.
The so-called UK "Brexit" from the European Union and the election of Donald Trump in the U.S. are key examples.
In total, the 2017 annual survey looked at 28 countries, sampling over 33,000 respondents overall. Almost 1,150 aged 18 and over were surveyed for each country. Of these, 500 were classified as "informed public respondents" in the U.S. and China, and 200 were classified this way in all other countries.
Informed public respondents met the following criteria: ages 25-64, college-educated; household income in the top quartile for their age in their country; read or watch business/news media at least several times a week; follow public policy issues in the news at least several times a week.
Edelman is a leading global communications marketing firm that partners with many of the world’s largest and emerging businesses and organizations.