About 76.8 per cent of young people in Bangladesh have expressed intention to vote in the forthcoming national election, according to a survey conducted by the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling.
The SANEM youth survey, in collaboration with ActionAid Bangladesh, included 2,000 respondents aged 15 to 35 from across Bangladesh.
The survey titled 鈥榊outh in Transition: Navigating Jobs, Education, and Changing Political Scenario Post July Movement鈥� released on Monday, however, found that the youths鈥� confidence in the fairness of the election varied, with only 11.9 per cent saying they were fully optimistic, 27.9 per cent very optimistic, and 40.9 per cent expressing moderate optimism.
When asked to predict vote shares in the forthcoming election, youth respondents estimated that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party would receive 38.8 per cent of the votes.
The Jamaat-e-Islami was expected to get 21.5 per cent, the National Citizen Party was predicted to get 15.8 per cent and the Awami League 鈥� if allowed to participate in the election 鈥� would get 15 per cent.
The Jatiya Party was forecasted to receive 3.8 per cent and other Islamist parties 4.6 per cent.
The BNP was predicted to perform slightly better in urban areas compared with rural ones.
Although the intention to participate in the electoral process appeared strong, direct involvement in politics by youths remained low.
A vast majority of young people 鈥� 82.7 per cent of youth respondents 鈥� have no interest in participating in politics or engaging in political activities, according to the survey.
The findings pointed to widespread political disengagement among the country鈥檚 youth, driven largely by concerns over violence, corruption and lack of trust in political institutions.
The survey found that that only a small fraction, 3.2 per cent, expressed strong interest, while 8.3 per cent reported being somewhat interested in joining politics.
The sample of the survey was evenly balanced between rural and urban areas and between genders.
Education levels varied, with 40 per cent below the Secondary School Certificate level and 60 per cent at or above SSC.
The survey also ensured at least 10 per cent representation from non-Muslim communities, providing a diverse and representative overview of youth perspectives.
The survey showed that about 39 per cent of respondents followed national politics occasionally, while approximately 16 per cent followed somewhat closely and 7.4 per cent very closely.
About one-fifth were reported to be completely unaware of current political developments.
Although interest in traditional party politics appeared limited, the survey suggested a degree of optimism among young people regarding youth-led political movements.
Nearly half of the respondents expressed hope that such parties could bring about positive change.
However, only 4.1 per cent felt that these parties currently represented their needs effectively, while the majority either remained neutral or felt their concerns were not adequately addressed.
Looking ahead, 56.4 per cent of youth believed that Bangladesh鈥檚 political landscape could gradually improve through meaningful reforms.
The survey indicated a clear divide in youth opinion regarding religion-based politics. While 51.77 per cent of respondents did not view it as conducive to national development, 48.23 per cent expressed support for it.
The survey also reflected widespread dissatisfaction with the performance of the interim government that assumed office on August 8, 2024, after the ouster of the authoritarian Awami League regime in a mass uprising.
Efforts in job creation were rated as a failure by 39.7 per cent of respondents, followed by concerns over economic stability by 39.2 per cent, law and order by 34.7 per cent and the handling of corruption in the healthcare sector by 37.5 per cent.
