Indonesia has a good opportunity to do something about poverty now that its economy is thriving. In its Global Wealth Report 2012, Credit Suisse ranked Indonesia as one of the countries that would experience the fastest growth in the world between 2012 and 2017. By 2017, the number of US dollar millionaires in Indonesia would double to 207,000, it said. Since 2000, the average wealth level of Indonesians has risen more than fourfold, to US$10,842 per adult. The middle class in Indonesia, which currently numbers about 45 million people, is expected to reach 138 million by 2030. Another study, by Wealth-X in September last year, said wealth in Indonesia was growing at a faster rate than anywhere else in the world. The number of Indonesians with US$30 million or more totalled 785 people, up 4.7% from 2011. The economic gap in Indonesia is not only visible in big cities, but also in suburban towns surrounding Jakarta, such as Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi and Bogor. Lower-income people find it harder to move up to the middle class, especially if they have a lot of children. Even nine years of compulsory schooling can be a stretch for these families given the increasing cost of education. |
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