Middle class South Africans in Johannesburg's Soweto township. |
There's an interesting article on the CNN site about the growing middle class sector in Africa. You can read the whole story here. A report released last week by the African Development Bank (AFDB) said that Africa's middle class -- defined as people spending between $2 and $20 a day at 2005 prices -- increased to 34.3% of the continent's population in 2010 -- nearly 313 million
I question this whole study being based on the notion of being spending $2 to $25 a day. Sounds a bit silly to define that as middle class no? Notwithstanding the basis of the survey, there are indeed folks in Africa that seem to be indeed living the life. I just got back from South Africa a few months back and I find it highly probable that the middle class is growing. I saw many luxury cars on the roads, people dressed in the finest clothing and plenty of people living a very comfortable life. Emphasis on the word very in the previous sentence. I would be amiss not to mention the large and disproportionate gap between the have's and have nots. Africa still has a ways to go in that regard.
So talk me, have you been to Africa or are you planning on going there? What's your take on the growing middle class?
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