JakartaGlobe-March 6
In its pursuit of becoming a high-income country by 2045, the government sets a target to elevate the middle-class population to 80 percent, up from the current 20 percent. “We must increase the middle class to 80 percent of the population. This is a characteristic of developed nations and will help us escape the middle-income trap. Currently, 80 percent are lower class, but by 2045 (Indonesia’s centennial), we aim to reverse this,” said Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, Deputy of Economic Affairs at the National Development Agency (Bappenas), during a recent focus group discussion in Jakarta on Wednesday. Widyasanti highlighted that the middle class forms the backbone of the economy, contributing significantly to economic acceleration. With the nation currently in a demographic bonus period, where the productive population exceeds the non-productive, she stressed the importance of ensuring quality employment opportunities. To achieve this, Widyasanti urged a focus on elevating middle class incomes, taking advantage of the current economic stability and turning it into a stepping stone for future acceleration. According to World Bank Data, the middle class in Indonesia has been growing faster than other groups; there are now at least 52 million economically secure Indonesians or one Indonesian in every five. The Indonesian middle class has been a major driver of economic growth as the group’s consumption has grown by 12 percent annually since 2002 and now represents close to half of all household consumption in Indonesia. Over the past 20 years, the majority of the poor and vulnerable have climbed out of poverty and into the aspiring middle class, where there are approximately 115 million people who belong in this category. Read more at: https://jakartaglobe.id/business/indonesia-aiming-for-80-percent-middle-class-population-in-2045-bappenas
