CARE Survey Finds Americans Back Funding to Reduce Global Poverty

CARE
Wednesday, 27 March 2002

CARE today released a survey of public opinion on the United States' role in the fight against global poverty. Findings show that Americans see a connection between global poverty and national security, strongly support President George W. Bush's promised increase in foreign aid spending, and believe humanitarian organizations and governments of industrialized nations each have a role in helping people in poor countries pull themselves out of poverty.

The international humanitarian organization CARE commissioned the survey following President Bush's recent promise to increase international aid funds by $10 billion over three years through a new Millennium Fund. The survey also follows last week's international conference on global poverty in Monterrey, Mexico, where world leaders tackled the challenge of reducing by half the number of people living in extreme poverty in the world by the year 2015, a United Nations goal.

"Our survey confirms our belief that Americans want to be more engaged in helping solve the problems generated by poverty and lack of opportunity around the world, because it's the right thing to do, and because our world would be safer," said Peter Bell, CARE's president. "They soundly support President Bush's promise to increase funding for development assistance, and they think the United States should devote a larger proportion of the federal budget to foreign aid," Bell said.

Respondents said they would be more likely to support increased U.S. funding for international aid if they saw examples of successes (81 percent), and are similarly more likely to increase personal giving (68 percent). Evenly divided between Democrats, Republicans and Independents, the respondents supported a range of tactics for decreasing poverty: improving basic education and health care, promoting more productive agricultural strategies, improving infrastructure, enhancing the role of women, and preventing AIDS.

"These data are important for CARE because we seek to create hope, tolerance, and social justice by identifying and confronting root causes of poverty," Bell explained.

Following are highlights from the poll conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates from March 22 to 24. Separate surveys were conducted on March 25 and 26 in Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston. The margin of sampling error for the poll is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Highlights

1. For effective ways to assist people in poor countries, respondents rank improving basic education highest (91 percent), followed closely by health care (88 percent), and more productive agricultural strategies (86 percent). (Q2)

2. Respondents see the link between helping people in poor countries and our own national security. (Q 5, 9 and 10 b)

3. Eighty-one percent of the respondents say they would be more likely to support increasing foreign assistance if they saw examples of success; and 68 percent would be more likely to increase their own giving to help fight global poverty. (Q11a and 11b)

4. A strong majority, 72 percent, considers helping poor people around the world to be the responsibility both of governments and private charities. (Q12a)Respondents agree with President Bush's Millennium funding proposal to link foreign aid to good governance, trade practices and respect for human rights. (Q9)

5. A majority, 57 percent, believes charitable organizations should NOT limit assistance to people in countries whose governments are supportive of the United States. (Q13)

6. Survey respondents were split almost evenly between Democrats, Republicans and Independent, with nearly 60 percent having attended or graduated from college. Thirty-nine percent categorized themselves as "moderate," 31 percent conservative and 23 percent liberal.

For more information, or to contact CARE, see their website at: www.care.org