The middle classes in the Global South gained growing attention since the turn of the century, mainly through their rapid ascendancy in the Asian emerging economies. A side effect of the economic growth during these "fat years" was a relative increase of monetary income for a growing number of households. This also benefited some lower income groups in resource-rich African economies. Many among these crossed the defined poverty levels, which were raised in late 2015 from $1.25 a person a day to $1.90. As some economists had suggested, from as little as $2 they were considered as entering the “middle class”. The ominous term was rising like a phoenix from the ashes to characterise this trend. It added another label to the packaging of a neo-liberal discourse. By emphasising the free market paradigm as creating the best opportunities for all, it suggests that everyone benefits from a laissez-faire economy. But the middle class concept remained vague and limited to number crunching. T...
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