More optimism is evident in the respondents’ assessment of movement the country’s and their own economic condition in the next 12 months – 49% reckoned the country’s economic condition would be better in a year’s time than in the present [Q4A], and 48% thought that would be true regarding their own conditions [Q4B]. These percentages, however, were both substantially down compared with 2009. Then, 65% had thought the country’s economic conditions would be better 12 months on, and 63% thought their own living conditions would be better. The original IG optimism had clearly come face to face with much harsher realities than initially expected. The question on access to food, water, medicines and cooking fuel [Q6] reveals that conditions were trying – 23% say they had gone without food ‘many times’ or ‘always’; with the equivalent deprivations on water 23%; modern medical treatment 32%; traditional medical treatment 3%; and cooking oil 29%. In contrast to these relatively ‘modest’ deprivations, 73% report that in the preceding year they had gone without a cash income ‘many times’ or ‘always’. A comparison of the 2009 and 2010 Freedom House surveys shows consistent evidence of improvement in terms of six factors (Table 8). Table 8: Deprivation in the past year on living essentials Type of deprivation Frequency on September 2009 and SMA: (%) Overall trend on 3-level ‘SMA’ Several times (S) Combined index Many time (M) Always (A) Not enough food to eat – S 17 85 declining from 85 to 50% M 43 A 25 Not enough clean water for S 17 49 home use – M 20 declining from 49 to 43% A 12 Lack of modern medicines / S 20 80 medical treatment –declining M 32 from 80 to 65% A 28 Lack of traditional medicines / S - medical treatment – not M measured in 2009 A Not enough fuel to cook food S 18 55 – declining from 55 to 48% M 22 A 15 Lack of a cash income – S 10 94 declining from 94 to 91% M 33 A 51 December 2010 (%) Combined 27 20 3 20 18 5 31 27 7 6 3 0.3 19 22 7 19 39 33 50 43 65 9 48 91 Question: ‘Over the past year, how often, if ever, have you, or anyone in your family, gone without …?’ [Q6] Note: The percentages over represent those the levels of deprivation (the percentages of ‘never’ and ‘once or twice’ are not listed (but are indicated by the percentage remainders) 27