80% of Ghanaians have favorable view of America

80% of Ghanaians have a favorable view of America, the third highest in the world. Ivory Coast is the highest with 88% favorable followed by Kenya, Ghana and United States itself.

In a 47-nation survey conducted by Pew Research Center, majorities in 25 of the 47 countries surveyed express positive views of the U.S.

In most countries, American was viewed positively by some three-quarters of adults, according to the survey. Only Tanzania, with 46 percent of respondents expressing positive opinions about America; South Africa with 61 percent; and Uganda with 64 percent bucked the trend.

On a continent where feeding the kids is too often a daily struggle, the "American dream" of advancing through hard work resonates. The United States also lacks the colonial baggage of other Western nations, while its hip-hop, rap and rhythm and blues provide much of the soundtrack of African life.

Also, gripping poverty leaves fewer Africans with the time or energy to apply to debate on global issues, like the American-led wars in Iraq or Afghanistan. Many Africans decry corrupt leadership and security forces at home that ignore principles of human rights.

Since 2002, however, the image of the United States has declined in most parts of the world. Favorable ratings of America are lower in 26 of 33 countries for which trends are available.

The U.S. image remains abysmal in most Muslim countries in the Middle East and Asia, and continues to decline among the publics of many of America's oldest allies. Favorable views of the U.S. are in single digits in Turkey (9%) and have declined to 15% in Pakistan. Currently, just 30% of Germans have a positive view of the U.S. – down from 42% as recently as two years ago – and favorable ratings inch ever lower in Great Britain and Canada.

For all of the bad news, however, the global survey of 47 nations, conducted throughout the world, reveals a more complex picture of opinions of the United States.

First, the U.S. image remains positive in Africa. In several African countries, such as Ghana and Kenya, it is overwhelmingly positive. In addition, majorities in two of America's most important Asian trading partners – India and Japan – continue to express favorable opinions of the United States. And the U.S. image has improved dramatically in South Korea since 2003 (from 46% to 58% favorable).

While opinion of the U.S. has slipped in Latin America over the past five years, majorities in such countries as Mexico, Peru and even Venezuela still say they have a positive opinion of their large neighbor to the north. Similarly, "new Europe" likes America better than "old Europe," although the U.S. image is not nearly as strong in Eastern Europe as it was five years ago.

And while negative views of the U.S. continue to prevail in much of the Muslim world, anger is not as universal today as it was in the spring of 2003 after the start of the war in Iraq. At that time, just 1% of Jordanians – and less than 1% in the Palestinian territories – gave a favorable rating to the United States, compared with 20% and 13%, respectively, today. And while still far from positive, America's image has recovered substantially in Lebanon as well.

However, opinions of the American people have declined over the past five years in 23 of 33 countries where trends are available. In Indonesia and Turkey, where favorable views of the U.S. have declined markedly over the past five years, opinions of Americans have fallen sharply as well. In Indonesia, positive opinions of Americans have fallen from 65% in 2002 to 42%; in Turkey, favorable opinions have declined 19 points.

While opinions of Americans have fallen in most Western European countries, they remain generally positive. In every Western European country surveyed, far more people express positive opinions of Americans than they do of the U.S.; in Germany, for instance, 63% say they have a positive opinion of Americans compared with just 30% who rate the U.S. positively.

In fact, in many countries, the American people get better ratings than does the U.S. generally. Latin America is a consistent exception to this rule. In this region, Americans get about the same ratings as their country; either both are mostly favorable, as in Venezuela and Peru, or both are quite low, as in Argentina.