Where has all the Middle Class gone?
Having lived in Jordan for over thirty years I have witnessed what seems to be the demise of the middle class. Articles in the Jordanian Arabic papers have also referred to the disappearance of the middle class as it used to be known. This phenomenon seems strange given the fantastic figures for growth and investment in the Kingdom. Therefore, I find myself pondering how much benefit the average Jordanian is really reaping from these investments and development.
I am no economist but I believe the middle class in any country is usually the backbone of the society. Healthy growth should initially benefit the middle class, as they are the ones who rotate money locally in a way that benefits the greatest number of people. However, this does not seem to be happening. More and more I hear people complain that they cannot cope with the fast rising cost of living. The weed-end edition of the Jordan Times again had an article about the growing number of unemployed.
Jordan has been following market economy but I fear much of this is just in terms of theory. A small example may be that in developed countries the rich are taxed in proportion to their income while in Jordan they are not. In fact, most of the tax burden seems to fall at the lower income level, which used to be the middle class, while large companies, corporations etc. seem to get away without paying taxes proportional to their income. If we are going to follow the example of developed countries then we must adopt a similar taxation system.
I believe more work needs to be done to make Jordan economics more people oriented with the aim of improving the quality of life for all Jordanians. z
I am no economist but I believe the middle class in any country is usually the backbone of the society. Healthy growth should initially benefit the middle class, as they are the ones who rotate money locally in a way that benefits the greatest number of people. However, this does not seem to be happening. More and more I hear people complain that they cannot cope with the fast rising cost of living. The weed-end edition of the Jordan Times again had an article about the growing number of unemployed.
Jordan has been following market economy but I fear much of this is just in terms of theory. A small example may be that in developed countries the rich are taxed in proportion to their income while in Jordan they are not. In fact, most of the tax burden seems to fall at the lower income level, which used to be the middle class, while large companies, corporations etc. seem to get away without paying taxes proportional to their income. If we are going to follow the example of developed countries then we must adopt a similar taxation system.
I believe more work needs to be done to make Jordan economics more people oriented with the aim of improving the quality of life for all Jordanians. z
posted by joladies at Saturday, May 20, 2006
2 Comments:
and it shall continue to demise even further, a direct effect of the new world order and free market.
I don't think the Middle Class will grow any bigger than it is now, simply because the only ones who are capable of doing that are those in the upper class and they wouldn't give a damn if the middle class toally disapperas, that might even help them grow richer.
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