Whereas the high cost of living remains the main concern to majority of Kenyans, the latest survey shows that the number of citizens who hold this view has dropped by 23 per cent since February 2023.
An Infotrak survey released on Thursday shows that 49 per cent of Kenyans consider the cost of living as the major concern issue compared to 30 per cent of those who cite unemployment.
However, a keen look at the trend of those who have held this opinion since February 2023 shows that the number is diminishing.
In February 2023, an overwhelming 72 per cent of Kenyans cited high cost of living as the key issue of concern to them.
The number dropped by seven percentage points in the survey conducted in September 2023 to stand at 65 per cent and dropped even further to 49 per cent in the survey conducted in May 2024.
This scenario is conflicting considering 63 per cent of Kenyans said they feel the country is headed in the wrong direction.
A considerable 45 per cent of respondents who held this opinion said this is because of the high cost of living.
But even then, the 45 per cent is half the number who held the same opinion in August/September 2023 where an overwhelming 89 per cent said high cost of living was the most pressing issue to them.
The number stood at 79 per cent in February 2023.
On the other hand, unemployment, the second most pressing issue among Kenyans has remained relatively unchanged over the same period.
It stood at 30 per cent in February 2023, rose slightly to 37 per cent in August/September 2023 before going back to 30 per cent in the May 2024 survey.
Over the same period, the quality of education was the third most pressing concern to Kenyans in February 2023 at 25 per cent.
It dropped to 17 per cent in the August/September study and dropped further to the eighth position in the May 2024 survey to stand at 13 per cent.
In the latest survey, Kenyans consider Transport, Infrastructure and Roads as the third most pressing concern at 22 per cent.
Infotrak interviewed a total of 1,700 respondents aged 18 and above during the survey conducted from May 23 to 29, 2024 through computer assisted telephone interviews.
The survey covered all the 47 counties and eight regions with a 92 per cent response rate.
It had +/-2.53 per cent margin of error and 95 per cent degree of confidence.