Middle class in South Africa in 2022: How is it defined, and what percentage does it include?
Following the Coronavirus pandemic, which led to a total lockdown of socioeconomic activities in different parts of the world, it is no surprise that two years later, countries are just beginning to find their feet again economically. Like most African countries, South Africa suffered a setback in the citizenry's economic power. But then, this is expected to happen for a while with the increasing middle-class South Africa population.
Source: UGC
Generally, when a group of people is referred to as belonging to the middle class, it is often assumed to be an economic reference. This means that they are neither considered rich nor deemed poor. These folks are seen as people who can meet the primary needs, as described in Abraham Maslow's triangle of needs. A middle-class person is economically buoyant enough to comfortably care for their feeding, clothing, and housing needs.
How is the middle class defined in South Africa?
The middle class in South Africa appears to be rapidly decreasing, especially with the elevation of several black South Africans from poverty. This has been the case since 1994 when the black middle class's growth determines the success of the country's economic policies of successive governments.
As such, the general definition of the South African middle class hinges on the amount of the lower class who have moved up a step on the social ladder. Below are some of the methods used in defining the middle class in South Africa:
Self-identification
As a part of the income classes in South Africa in 2022, the middle class has yet to have a definitive consensus on what makes it such. People should be asked what income class they consider themselves to be. But the weakness of this method is that their opinions about their economic status may change with their daily financial experience.
Sometimes, they may not be truthful about it because they may be embarrassed about their situation. In a 2013 survey, a percentage of persons claiming to be in the middle class also answered that they often went without sufficient food.
Source: UGC
Literal middle
This is a more objective determination of the middle class that is done by understudying peculiar characteristics of the individual(s) in question, such as personal income. This finding helps to know the middle of the range of the whole population. The median income is one in which half of the population earns more than and the other half earns less than.
Occupation
Another way of identifying persons in the middle class is by looking through their source of livelihood. This technique, according to Visagie, helps to detect the affluent middle class compared to the methods mentioned above.
This method determines the middle class by occupying the highest income earner in a household, and these individuals are often managers and senior officials. This supplies a better identification of the South African population who are neither rich nor poor.
Vulnerability
After looking at the other methods of identifying the middle class, the question of what differentiates the middle class from the working class or poor becomes imperative. According to a paper credited to the Southern African Labour and Development Research Unit (SALDRU), the middle class is defined by "its (im)probability of falling into poverty."
This means that, for individuals in the middle class, financial security is not available to the poor or working class. The latter will still likely fall back into poverty if they lose their job or experience similar reversals in fortune. According to the authors:
Being able to afford a certain basket of goods at a given point in time does not yet give any indication of whether the same will be true in the next period.
What is a middle-class salary in 2022?
The middle-class salary in South Africa as of 2022 is about R500,000 annually, approximately R41,000 per month.
What is middle-class income in South Africa?
Individuals who belong to the middle class mostly make a cumulative income ranging from above R 54,345 to R 863,906. There are various forms of the middle class in this range as an individual may be low, emerging middle class, realised middle class, or upper middle class.
Source: UGC
Lower class income in South Africa
How much do the people in the lower class earn? According to a 2018 research, participants earning less than R54,344 were labelled as "poor." Those whose income is between R54,345 and R151,727 were described as "low-emerging middle class."
What is upper-middle-class income in South Africa?
The folks who belong to the upper-middle class in South Africa are those whose income almost puts them in the upper class. For these people, the annual income ranges between R631,121 and R863,906.
Upper-class income in South Africa
For anyone to be considered as belonging to the upper-class echelon of the South African economic community, they must have a net worth of about R4.2 million. The majority of the people in this class are chief executive officers of lucrative businesses in sectors.
What percentage is middle-class in South Africa?
The percentage of the middle-class population in South Africa keeps fluctuating with different government regimes. According to 2013 data, the class constituted about 13.5% to 43.2% of the South African population, of which 48% and 83.9% were black South Africans.
Understanding the dynamics of the population of middle-class South Africa takes more than just understudying the inquiry into individual purchasing power. The class differentiates between the rich and the poor in the general understanding of the term. Still, testing the authenticity of such a basic definition will produce various forms of the class.
READ ALSO: Top UNISA telegram groups to join in 2022/2023: How can I join a Telegram group?
As published on Briefly.co.za, students often must be abreast of information about events in the learning environment. In most cases, a lack of information can leave students in the dark about aspects of their educational journey.
Fortunately, with the advent of technology and various social media platforms, students at the University of South Africa can avoid this setback by joining appropriate Unisa Telegram groups.
Source: Briefly News
