Afrobarometer, the Accra-headquartered pan-African research network, is calling on private-sector leaders and investors across Africa to embed public attitude data into their business planning, arguing that what citizens think and feel shapes market outcomes just as powerfully as macroeconomic indicators.
The call was made as Afrobarometer participated in the Africa Asia Middle East Chamber of Commerce (AAMECC) Chief Executive Officer Conclave and Investors Forum 2026 in Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday, March 30. The forum brings together chief executives, investors, policymakers, and diplomats from across continents as a deal-making and policy-influencing platform where cross-border investment opportunities are explored.
Felix Biga, chief operations officer for Afrobarometer, told the gathering that the environments companies operate in are shaped by citizens’ expectations, frustrations, and aspirations. He said that citizen perceptions of economic conditions, trust in institutions, access to services, and day-to-day realities all feed directly into market behaviour, investment climates, and business performance.
The message landed with participants. Peter Mutinda, president of AAMECC, said organisations that lead on the continent will be those that prioritise insights rooted in robust citizen-centred data. Pawel Zarzecki, an export manager at Bart, a health-focused manufacturer, said he starts with data before building connections and country-specific strategies when working with African partners. Eve Mischeki from the Women in Business network said she saw strong alignment between what Afrobarometer measures and the realities women navigating African markets face daily.
At the Nairobi forum, Afrobarometer presented economic and social data tailored for private-sector audiences, covering citizens’ lived experiences and their implications for consumer behaviour and investment planning.
Afrobarometer is a pan-African, non-partisan research network registered as a non-profit corporation with headquarters in Accra, Ghana. It has conducted public attitude surveys on democracy, governance, the economy, and society across approximately 35 African countries since 1999. Its data inform global indices including the Ibrahim Index of African Governance and the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators.
The Nairobi engagement forms part of a broader Afrobarometer push to build structured relationships with the private sector through targeted dialogues aimed at increasing awareness of its datasets and co-developing solutions that respond to both business and societal needs.
