Millions of Middle-Class Indonesians Fall into Poverty, Due to Gallon Water!

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Many middle-class citizens in Indonesia have reportedly fallen into a lower class. This is revealed in the Mandiri Institute report titled 'Demographic Insights: Dynamics of the Middle Class in 2025' released in February 2026. In the report, the number of middle-class residents decreased by 1.2 million from 47.9 million in 2024 to 46.7 million throughout the past year. With this decline, the proportion of the middle class relative to the total population dropped from 17.1 percent in 2024 to 16.6 percent in 2025. Consumption of Gallon Water Makes Citizens Poor? Senior economist and former Finance Minister, Bambang Brodjonegoro said the decline in the economic level of the middle class in Indonesia is not only due to the Covid-19 pandemic and many job terminations (PHK). But also due to the daily habit of needing packaged water, such as gallon water. "Until now, unconsciously it has already eroded our income quite significantly with our lifestyle that ...