KYIV. Feb 7 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The share of Ukrainians who believe that events in Ukraine are developing in the right direction has decreased slightly after a peak in March 2023, according to the results of a survey conducted by the Razumkov Center and presented at the press center of Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday.

"After the start of Russia's full-scale aggression against Ukraine, the share of citizens who believe that events in Ukraine are developing in the right direction has increased significantly (from 20% in December 2021 to 51% in September-October 2022, reaching its highest levels in February-March 2023 (61%). After this, there is a downward trend in this indicator. According to the latest survey, the shares of those who believe that events in Ukraine are developing in the right direction (41%) and those who are of the opinion that they are developing in the wrong direction (38%), are not statistically significantly different (21% are undecided)," states the study report released on Wednesday.

At the same time, about a third of Ukrainians, 33%, believe that Ukraine is able to overcome existing problems and difficulties in the next few years. Another 42% believe that Ukraine will be able to overcome problems in the longer term, and 9% - that Ukraine is not able to overcome existing problems (the rest are undecided). Ukrainians were most optimistic about the prospects for overcoming problems and difficulties at the end of 2022 - beginning of 2023 (for example, in February-March 2023 - 49%, 36% and 3%, respectively). And estimates before the start of a full-scale war (in December 2021, 18%, 54% and 18%, respectively) were much more pessimistic.

Most often, citizens point to a deterioration in the situation (compared to the beginning of 2023) in the following areas: the level of prices and tariffs (86% indicated a deterioration in the situation), the economic situation of the country (68%), the level of stability (64.5%), and confidence of citizens in the future (63.5%), the level of well-being of their family (58%), and the attitude of citizens to the authorities (53%). Also, 61% of respondents point to a worsening situation in the country as a whole.

The relative majority of respondents note a deterioration in the situation in such areas as the attitude of the authorities towards citizens (46%) and wages (43%).

As for compliance with the rule of law by civil servants, approximately equal shares of respondents believe that the situation here has worsened (41.5%) and that it has not changed (39%).

More often than not, citizens believe that the situation has not changed over the past year in the areas of pensions (55%), healthcare (52%) and freedom of speech (51%).

The relative majority of respondents believe that there have been no significant changes in the level of democracy in the country (49%), the situation of ethnic and religious minorities (47.5%), social protection (social payments, benefits, subsidies, etc.) (46%), in the field of respect for the rights and freedoms of citizens (44%), in education (44%), the situation with crime (43%) and in the field of interethnic relations in Ukraine (41%).

Positive changes, according to citizens, relate most to the country's defense capability (51% of respondents indicate its improvement) and the country's international image (50.5%).

The survey was conducted by the sociological service of the Razumkov Center from January 19 to January 25, 2024, as part of the Join In! Community Engagement Program, which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Pact in Ukraine.

The face-to-face survey was conducted in Vinnytsia, Volyn, Dnipropetrovsk, Zhytomyr, Zakarpattia, Zaporozhia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sumy, Ternopil, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytsky, Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi regions and Kyiv (in Zaporozhia, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Kherson regions - only in those territories controlled by the Ukrainian government and in which hostilities are not taking place).

The survey was conducted using a stratified multi-stage sample using random sampling at the first stages of sampling and a quota method for selecting respondents at the final stage (when respondents were selected according to gender and age quotas). The structure of the sample population reproduces the demographic structure of the adult population of the territories where the survey was conducted as of the beginning of 2022 (by age, gender, type of settlement).

Some 2,000 respondents aged 18 years and older were surveyed. The theoretical sampling error does not exceed 2.3%. At the same time, additional systematic deviations in the sample may be due to the consequences of Russian aggression, in particular, the forced evacuation of millions of citizens.