Sri Lanka Records Global Exception as Confidence in UN Rises, Pew Survey Finds
September 13, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka has emerged as the only country among 37 surveyed where public confidence in the United Nations has increased significantly, according to the latest global attitudes study by the Pew Research Center.
The survey found that 66 per cent of Sri Lankan adults now hold a favourable view of the UN, marking an eight-percentage-point rise from the 58 per cent recorded when the organisation was assessed in Sri Lanka in 2024.
The improvement places Sri Lanka at odds with the wider international picture. Pew reported that opinions of the UN had either remained broadly stable or deteriorated in most of the countries included in the latest study, with 10 nations registering statistically significant declines.
Nigeria recorded one of the most notable reversals, with favourable sentiment falling from 80 per cent in 2025 to 63 per cent this year. The Philippines also experienced a substantial drop, declining by 16 percentage points compared with its previous survey conducted in 2024.
Across the 37 countries, the median level of support for the UN stood at 55 per cent, while 37 per cent of respondents expressed an unfavourable opinion.
Sri Lanka’s results also point to a clear age-related difference in attitudes. Younger respondents were considerably more inclined to view the international organisation positively, with an 18-point gap separating the youngest and oldest groups surveyed.
Pew observed that this generational pattern is not unique to Sri Lanka, with younger adults in several countries tending to express greater confidence in the UN than their older counterparts.
Views of the organisation differed sharply from one region to another. In much of the Asia-Pacific region covered by the study, positive assessments outnumbered negative ones. Israel, by contrast, recorded the most critical response, with 79 per cent of those surveyed holding an unfavourable view of the UN.
The findings come from Pew Research Center’s Spring 2026 Global Attitudes Survey and were published as the international community gathered for the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly, which began on 8 September.
Sri Lanka’s eight-point rise therefore represents a notable departure from the broader direction of global public opinion, suggesting that perceptions of the UN among Sri Lankans have strengthened even as confidence in the organisation has weakened or stagnated elsewhere.
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