• News
    • Latest news
    • News search
    • Health
    • Finance
    • Food
    • Career news
    • Content series
    • Try Devex Pro
  • Jobs
    • Job search
    • Post a job
    • Employer search
    • CV Writing
    • Upcoming career events
    • Try Career Account
  • Funding
    • Funding search
    • Funding news
  • Talent
    • Candidate search
    • Devex Talent Solutions
  • Events
    • Upcoming and past events
    • Partner on an event
  • Post a job
  • About
      • About us
      • Membership
      • Newsletters
      • Advertising partnerships
      • Devex Talent Solutions
      • Contact us
Join DevexSign in
Join DevexSign in

News

  • Latest news
  • News search
  • Health
  • Finance
  • Food
  • Career news
  • Content series
  • Try Devex Pro

Jobs

  • Job search
  • Post a job
  • Employer search
  • CV Writing
  • Upcoming career events
  • Try Career Account

Funding

  • Funding search
  • Funding news

Talent

  • Candidate search
  • Devex Talent Solutions

Events

  • Upcoming and past events
  • Partner on an event
Post a job

About

  • About us
  • Membership
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising partnerships
  • Devex Talent Solutions
  • Contact us
  • My Devex
  • Update my profile % complete
  • Account & privacy settings
  • My saved jobs
  • Manage newsletters
  • Support
  • Sign out
Latest newsNews searchHealthFinanceFoodCareer newsContent seriesTry Devex Pro
    • News
    • Transparency and accountability

    In an era of declining trust, how can NGOs buck the trend?

    Trust in global institutions is at an all-time low. The results of the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer paint a bleak picture of a broken global system and a population with little hope for things to improve. NGOs are caught in the negativity. Devex investigates what's behind the trends and how NGOs can win back trust.

    By Lisa Cornish // 16 February 2017

    Trust in global institutions is at an all-time low. The results of the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual online survey of trust, paint a picture of a broken global system and a population with little hope for things to improve. NGOs are caught in the web of distrust — a long way from the first survey in 2001 when NGOs were considered a rising influence.

    The survey of 32,200 people in 28 countries, representing diversity in gender, age, education and income, found that there has been a decline in trust in the past year for our four main institutions: business, government, media and NGOs. At the bottom of the trust pile is government. Only 41 percent of survey respondents had trust in government. The most trustworthy are NGOs, although they are also on the decline. Only 53 percent of respondents showed trust in in NGOs, a large decline from a peak of 66 percent trust in 2014.

    Of the 28 countries included in the 2017 survey, more than two-thirds show distrust toward all institutions. Russia suffers the lowest level of trust — just 34 percent trusting institutions. Poland and Japan follow with a mere 35 percent expressing trust.

    This article is free to read - just register or sign in

    Access news, newsletters, events and more.

    Join usSign in
    • Ireland
    • India
    • Australia
    Printing articles to share with others is a breach of our terms and conditions and copyright policy. Please use the sharing options on the left side of the article. Devex Pro members may share up to 10 articles per month using the Pro share tool ( ).

    About the author

    • Lisa Cornish

      Lisa Cornishlisa_cornish

      Lisa Cornish is a former Devex Senior Reporter based in Canberra, where she focuses on the Australian aid community. Lisa has worked with News Corp Australia as a data journalist and has been published throughout Australia in the Daily Telegraph in Melbourne, Herald Sun in Melbourne, Courier-Mail in Brisbane, and online through news.com.au. Lisa additionally consults with Australian government providing data analytics, reporting and visualization services.

    Search for articles

    Most Read

    • 1
      How low-emissions livestock are transforming dairy farming in Africa
    • 2
      Opinion: Mobile credit, savings, and insurance can drive financial health
    • 3
      Opinion: India’s bold leadership in turning the tide for TB
    • 4
      WHO names new directors in ongoing restructure
    • 5
      State Department employees in anxious limbo over massive staff cuts
    • News
    • Jobs
    • Funding
    • Talent
    • Events

    Devex is the media platform for the global development community.

    A social enterprise, we connect and inform over 1.3 million development, health, humanitarian, and sustainability professionals through news, business intelligence, and funding & career opportunities so you can do more good for more people. We invite you to join us.

    • About us
    • Membership
    • Newsletters
    • Advertising partnerships
    • Devex Talent Solutions
    • Post a job
    • Careers at Devex
    • Contact us
    © Copyright 2000 - 2025 Devex|User Agreement|Privacy Statement
    We use cookies to help improve your user experience. By using our site, you agree to the terms of our Privacy Policy.