World Bank: Indonesia's Middle Class Shows Fastest Growth

The World Bank categorizes Indonesian society based on expenditure into five groups: poor, vulnerable, near-middle class, middle class, and upper class.

According to the World Bank's report titled "Aspiring Indonesia—Expanding the Middle Class," released in September 2019, Indonesia maintained an average growth rate of 5.6% over the 50 years leading up to 2014. This strong economic growth enabled Indonesia to substantially reduce extreme poverty, leading to its achievement of middle-income country status.

"Of those classified as poor in 1993, 80% were no longer poor by 2014—a significant advancement," as stated in the World Bank release.

The middle class has grown faster than other groups, reaching 52 million economically secure Indonesians (one in five Indonesians).

Indonesia's middle class has been a major driver of economic growth, with consumption in this group growing by 12% annually since 2002. It now accounts for nearly half of Indonesian household consumption.

Expanding the middle class is crucial for unlocking Indonesia's development potential and propelling it towards high-income country status.

The following is a classification of Indonesian social classes according to Bank Indonesia (2016):

* Poor: Expenditure below the national poverty line, or less than Rp354,000 per month (US$2.2 per day).
* Vulnerable: Expenditure of Rp354,000–Rp532,000 per person per month (US$2.2–US$3.3 per person per day).
* Near-Middle Class: Expenditure of Rp532,000–Rp1,200,000 per person per month (US$3.3–US$7.75 per person per day).
* Middle Class: Expenditure of Rp1,200,000–Rp6,000,000 per person per month (US$7.75–US$38 per person per day).
* Upper Class: Expenditure above Rp6,000,000 per person per month (>US$38 per person per day).