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As of the end of 2023, 108 countries are classified as middle-income countries, each with an annual per capita GDP between US$1,136 and US$13,845.
The World Bank reports that it will take more than 10 years for China's per capita income to reach a quarter of that of the United States, and nearly 70 years for Indonesia.
A World Bank report said more than 100 countries, including India, face serious obstacles to becoming high-income countries in the coming decades, while New Delhi may take nearly 75 years to reach a quarter of the per capita income of the United States.
According to the “World Development Report 2024: The Middle-Income Trap”, it will take China more than 10 years to reach a quarter of the United States' per capita income, and Indonesia will take nearly 70 years.
Drawing on lessons learned over the past 50 years, the report found that as countries become wealthier, they typically fall into a “trap” with GDP per capita of about 10% of U.S. annual GDP – the equivalent of $8,000 today. This is in the middle of the World Bank's classification of middle-income countries.
As of the end of 2023, 108 countries are classified as middle-income countries, each with an annual per capita GDP between US$1,136 and US$13,845. These countries are home to 6 billion people (75% of the world's population), and two out of every three people live in extreme poverty.
The road ahead faces more challenges than those faced in the past: a rapidly aging population and surging debt, intense geopolitical and trade frictions, and the increasing difficulty of accelerating economic development without polluting the environment.
“However, many middle-income countries are still following the practices of the last century, relying mainly on policies aimed at expanding investment. This is like driving a car in first gear and trying to make it go faster,” the report said.
Indermeet Gill, chief economist and senior vice president for development economics at the World Bank Group, said most developing countries will fail in the race to create reasonably prosperous societies by mid-century if they stick to old ways.
The report states: “Based on current trends, it will take China more than 10 years to reach a quarter of the US per capita income, Indonesia nearly 70 years and India 75 years.”
Gill also said that the outcome of the battle for global economic prosperity depends largely on middle-income countries.
The report proposes strategies for countries to achieve high-income status. All countries need to adopt an orderly and gradually improved policy mix according to their respective development stages. said, integration into the EU or previously undiscovered oil.
(This report has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from United News Agency-PTI)
