Coordinating Minister For Human Development And Culture Explains The Government's Reaction To Respond To The Decrease In The Number Of Indonesian Middle Classes

A number of employees walked on Jl Jenderal Sudirman, Jakarta in April 2020 (Between-Akbar NG)

Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK) Muhadjir Effendy said the government continues to seek solutions related to the number of lower middle classes.

According to the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture, the phenomenon of lowering the number of middle class is accompanied by increasing populations entering the middle class category.

But at the same time there was a decrease in the level of extreme poverty which indicated an increase in the economic class of the community, so he said most were piled up in the category towards the middle class.

To support improving welfare and making the middle class community increase again, he ensures that the government continues to find solutions. One of them is by providing protection for social safety nets, including for health and employment.

"Now there are two guarantees for them, especially for the working class, formal worker groups. The health insurance targets universal health coverage. Regions are encouraged to provide a budget to ensure that their citizens can get health insurance, free health services," he said when met after the 2024 BPJS Employment Tourism Award in Jakarta, Thursday, September 12, was confiscated by Antara.

In addition, there are also employment social security that includes Old Age Security (JHT), Work Accident Insurance (JKK), Death Security, Pension Security and Job Loss Guarantee (JKP).

Muhadjir explained that the decline in the number of middle classes was due to the prolonged impact of COVID-19, because five years before COVID-19 hit in 2020 there had been an increase in the middle class.

"Those are various social assistances, now we are disbursing them. Then expanding the workforce earlier (Menaker) Mrs. Ida has conveyed. That is our way to encourage them to move up to the middle class again," said Muhadjir.

Previously, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) as of August 2024 showed a decline in the number of people in the middle class category. Data in 2019 showed 57.33 million people who fell to 53.83 million people in 2021.

BPS again recorded a decline in the middle class population in 2022 to 49.51 million people and 48.27 million people in 2023. That figure again fell this year to 47.85 million people.

However, the same data shows that the number of people entering the category towards the middle class rose from 128.85 million people to 137.50 million people in 2024.