US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama walk off Air
Force One with their daughters Malia (left) and Sasha, followed by
Marian Robinson (2nd right) during an arrival ceremony at Waterkloof Air
Base in Centurion, near Pretoria on Friday.
PHOTO | AFP
By The Citizen Reporters
In Summary
The Washington-based research group Gallup says
Tanzanians are the least approving of US leadership among residents of
the three nations that Obama is touring for his first major official
state visit to Africa.
Dar es Salaam. Visiting US President Barack
Obama will tomorrow face Tanzanians whose rating of American leadership
has significantly dropped, according to a new study.
The Washington-based research group Gallup says
Tanzanians are the least approving of US leadership among residents of
the three nations that Obama is touring for his first major official
state visit to Africa.
Their approval dropped to 70 per cent in 2012 from
a high of 89 per cent in 2009, the year Obama was sworn into office for
his first term as the first African-American US President. But the
study findings released on Friday show Tanzanians’ current approval
level of the US is still higher than it was during the George Bush
administration that Mr Obama succeeded.
The rating for the younger Bush was 62 per cent in 2007, and as low as 47 per cent in 2004. According to Dr Ayub Rioba of the School of Journalism and Mass communication, University of Dar es Salaam, there might be a number of reasons for the drop but the main one could be disappointment.“Tanzanians and Africans at large saw the victory of Obama as one of the long-awaited solutions to their problems,” he said.
“To their surprise, Africa received little attention in his first term in office. He is an American president and was and still is directed by his country’s foreign policy.”
The rating for the younger Bush was 62 per cent in 2007, and as low as 47 per cent in 2004. According to Dr Ayub Rioba of the School of Journalism and Mass communication, University of Dar es Salaam, there might be a number of reasons for the drop but the main one could be disappointment.“Tanzanians and Africans at large saw the victory of Obama as one of the long-awaited solutions to their problems,” he said.
“To their surprise, Africa received little attention in his first term in office. He is an American president and was and still is directed by his country’s foreign policy.”
The chairperson of opposition Civic United Front
(CUF) and renowned economist Prof Ibrahim Lipumba agrees that
disappointment played a crucial part in the poor approval rates.
“Africans see Obama as one of their own and for him to provide little
for Africa was a major blow to Africans,” he said. “They forget it is
all about foreign policy requirements and priorities.”
Prof Lipumba believes the 19 per cent drop is a
small margin compared to what the Obama administration has done for
Africa. He adds: “Bush did more good things than Obama for Africa and
Tanzania but he still has poor rates compared to Obama. Africans still
love Obama, regardless of the little help they have received so far.”
The survey involved face-to-face interviews with
1,000 adults aged 15 and older and was conducted in Senegal in March
2012 and in Tanzania in June 2012 and with 2,000 adults aged 15 and
older in South Africa in March 2012 and November 2012. Gallup surveyed
1,000 respondents in each country in prior years. It had a +2 to +6
percentage point margin of error.
Approval in all the three countries--Senegal,
South Africa and Tanzania--dropped from the highs seen in 2009-2010,
meaning the US leader will likely face less enthused people in his visit
than he would have years back when his victory galvanized the African
continent, who easily identified with his roots.
In Senegal, Obama’s first stop, approval of US
leadership was still substantially high at 80 per cent in 2012, down
from 2009, when it stood at 87 per cent. About three-fourths of South
Africans or 76 per cent approved of US leadership in 2012, much lower
than the high of 92 per cent seen in 2010 to represent the highest drop
among the three countries in Obama’s itinerary.
Gallup says the trend in approval ratings in
Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania is in line with what the
organisation finds throughout the sub-Sahara region. It noted that the
median US leadership approval rating among populations in the region
fell to 70 per cent in 2012, from 74 per cent in 2011, and from a high
of 85 per cent in 2009.
“It is now about where it was in 2008, and a bit
better than the 62 per cent median approval in 2007,” says Gallup. Among
all global regions, though, approval of US leadership remains among the
highest in Africa.
“Whether it stays that way, though, may rely
heavily on whether President Obama makes a strong and lasting impression
during his trip--and follows it up with more engagement with the region
on the issues its leaders and residents care most about,” it said.
Meanwhile, preparations were ready ahead of the highly anticipated visit by the Obamas, who arrive tomorrow.
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