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What are some present activities of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) group of countries

The BRICS bloc, consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, has been involved in several significant activities as of late:

Expansion of Membership: The BRICS bloc has recently agreed to expand its membership by including six new countries—Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, which are set to officially join in January 2024. This move signals an opening of the group towards a BRICS+ format.
Annual Leader's Summit: The BRICS nations held their 15th annual leader's summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 22–24, 2023. This summit focused not only on expansion but also on discussions surrounding the bloc's role in global governance and the multipolar world order.
Consensus on Global Issues: The group expressed a collective sentiment against the perceived unilateral financial sanctions, manipulation of international payment mechanisms, and neglect of the Global South's concerns by Western countries, especially in the areas of climate finance, food security, and health during the pandemic.
Trade in National Currencies: One of the practical activities includes the move towards trading in national currencies, as evidenced by a recent rupee-designated oil transaction between India and the United Arab Emirates. This is seen as an effort to reduce reliance on the US dollar in international trade.
Interest from Other Nations: Furthermore, a representative from South Africa noted that in addition to the six new members, over 20 other countries have applied to join the BRICS, underscoring its growing influence among emerging and developing economies.
Global Trade Impact: The current BRICS countries are responsible for 37% of global trade, illustrating their significant impact on the world economy. Their expansion and approach to membership might lead to further shifts in global trade dynamics.
Flexible Trade Practices: BRICS has been associated with a more flexible approach towards trade, which does not necessitate formal trade agreements or permanent tariff reductions, unlike what is typical of Western-led agreements. This could become an attractive point for emerging economies and more autocratic regimes that may not want enforced reforms.

These activities reflect a concerted effort by BRICS countries to reposition themselves within the global order, offering an alternative to the perceived dominance of Western economic frameworks and alliances.

Global Memos are briefs by the Council of Councils that gather opinions from global experts on major international developments. REUTERS/Alet Pretorius/Pool The BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) bloc met for its annual leaders summit in Johannesburg, South Africa on August 2224, 2023. The highlight of the fifteenth summit was the agreement to admit six new member countries: Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, who will officially join the group in January 2024. Ten Council of Councils (CoC) experts from BRICS members and beyond reflect on the future of the grouping and what expansion means for global governance. The World Should Welcome the New Kids on the Bloc The fifteenth BRICS summit has gone further than any other in the recent past to modernize and galvanize the grouping. It has sent a strong signal that the postWorld War II order should accept the multipolar reality and change with the times. The slew of applications to join the BRICS is clearly a symptom of a deeper malaise. The Wests proclivity to deploy unilateral financial sanctions, abuse international payments mechanisms, renege on climate finance commitments, and accord scant respect to food security and health imperatives of the Global South during the pandemic are only some of the elements responsible for the growing disenchantment with the prevailing international system. The expansion of the BRICS to a BRICS+ format and the adoption of guiding principles, standards, and procedures for the same, have potentially made the BRICS a more attractive institution for consensus-building and dialogue in the developing world. Even the profile of the new members suggest that the system is headed for something beyond traditionally acceptable partners in the eyes of the West. The presence of Iran especially and the reactions to it in the coming days will be interesting to follow. Another important aspect will be how these partners tap into the new systems of cooperation that the BRICS has been attempting to set up. Hype about a common BRICS currency might be impractical and premature, but trading in national currencies is becoming a reality. The recent rupee-designated oil transaction between India and the United Arab Emirates is not merely a swipe at the petrodollar arrangement that has prevailed since 1973. It is also a signal that the worlds major commodity exporters and importers can try to reduce their dependence on the dollar. If not a new world order, the BRICS expansion is certainly an attempt at an alternative world order, one with a more sympathetic ear for the developing many versus the developed few. The challenge ahead will not be who joins the BRICS as a partner country but who holds the key to decisions on policy positions. The consensus-driven decision-making process of the BRICS will not make policymaking easier but the attempt to democratize is worth a serious effort. The Geopolitical Moment of the BRICS+ The fifteenth BRICS summit will be remembered in two ways: as a summit that decided on the transformation from the BRICS to the BRICS+ and as a summit of complaints against the West for its responsibility for crises and wars and its inability to even control the consequences of these events. What some observers call a negative coalition of states that cannot agree on a common position, but can create a consensus on what they oppose, is growing in number to avoid sanctions and protectionist measures. The old scripts of belonging to a certain order are no longer valid because the reliability of traditional partners has changed. Meaningful narratives about old forms of order that have become fragile are losing their binding effect. New horizons of possibility are seized in anticipation of new options for action, pointing clearly to the urgent need to reorder international relations to overcome the self-referentiality of the West. The refusal to be drawn into a contest of competing global powers is a gen

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A summary of all 20 new candidate BRICS nations plus an overview of the global trade impact By Chris Devonshire-Ellis The BRICS Ambassador at large, Anil Sooklal, has stated that a further 20 countries, in addition to the recently proposed six new members invited earlier this year, have applied to join the BRICS group. When discussing South Africas current Presidency of the BRICS, he stated in late November that Over 20 countries have formally applied to join BRICS, while the same number have expressed interest. This is affirmation that BRICS is playing an important role in championing emerging and developing economies. There are a large number of interested parties and these will be dealt with by the respective Foreign Ministers. At present, the BRICS includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, while Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are expected to join from the coming January 1st. Argentina was also invited to join however with a recent change in the political regime is now expected to decline. The five current members of BRICS are responsible for 37% of all global trade. The 20 New BRICS Candidate Countries In terms of the 20 new candidates, what will be attractive to many is the fact that the BRICS does not insist upon formal trade negotiations and the permanent imposition of tariff reductions. Rather than a defined tariff reduction regime, the BRICS has a far looser approach. This removes political barriers that include insistence on market and political reforms, which is more of a Western approach, and also means that tariff reductions and trade development enhancements can be implemented on an as-need basis. These are fundamental points of interests to emerging economies who may otherwise struggle to compete with cheap imports. It also allows more autocratic regimes to participate without the need to introduce unwelcome reforms that may not be considered in their national interest. Most of the 20 applicants have not been publicly identified, however in my experienced opinion are likely to include the following. Afghanistan An outlier, but Afghanistan has significant resources and is a member of the BRI. Diplomatic changes are required, but China, India and Russia are all keen to see redevelopment in the country once political stability can be secured. More here. Algeria In terms of market size, Algeria has the tenth largest proven natural gas reserves globally, is the worlds sixth-largest gas exporter, and has the worlds third-largest untapped shale gas resources. More here. Bangladesh Bangladesh is one of the worlds top five fastest growing economies and is undergoing significant infrastructure and trade development reforms. It shares a 4,100 km border with India. More here. Bolivia Asset-rich but relatively poor, Bolivia has the fastest GDP growth rate in Latin America. More here. Cuba Cubas sanctions defiance has long made it a favorite of China and Russia when wanting to annoy the United States. It also has significant agreements with China and Russia, is a member of the BRI and has significant Caribbean and LatAm influence. More here and here. Ecuador Ecuador is negotiating Free Trade Agreements with both China and the Eurasian Economic Union. It would make sense to substitute these with a looser BRICS arrangement. More here and here. Indonesia One of Asias leading economies, Indonesias potential has again been raised to join BRICS. In July 2023, Jakarta accepted an invitation to participate in the 2023 BRICS summit. More here. Kazakhstan Kazakhstans economy is highly dependent on oil and related products. In addition to oil, its main export commodities include natural gas, ferrous metals, copper, aluminum, zinc and uranium. More here. Mongolia Mongolia is both a problem and solution, while geographically attractive. It requires extensive investment in its energy sector; yet is resource-rich and a transit point between Russia, Kazakhstan and China. It is not a member of any trade bloc, wi

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Johannesburg, South Africa The BRICS bloc of top emerging economies have taken a major step in expanding its reach and influence with the announcement that six more nations have been invited join as new members. Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been invited to join as full members from January 1 next year. The bloc, which was formed in 2009 with Brazil, Russia, India and China, first expanded to admit South Africa in 2010. Now, it is says it is seeking to grow a stronger coalition of developing nations who can better put the interests of the Global South on the worlds agenda. Before the start of its annual summit in South Africa this week, more than 40 countries had expressed interest in joining BRICS, and 23 formally applied to join. We appreciate the considerable interest shown by countries of the Global South in membership of BRICS, the bloc said in the Johannesburg II declaration it adopted on the final day of the summit on Thursday. It said the six were selected after BRICS countries reached consensus on the guiding principles, standards, criteria and procedures of the BRICS expansion process but did not provide more details about the specific criteria. From left to right, President of Brazil Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, President of China Xi Jinping, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and Russias Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attend the 2023 BRICS Summit on August 24, 2023 [Phill Magakoe/AFP] Significant states It is hard to find commonalities among the six countries invited to join BRICS other than that they are each significant states in their region, Danny Bradlow, a professor with the Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship at the University of Pretoria, told Al Jazeera. With the inclusion of Saudi Arabia, Iran, UAE and Egypt,you could argue its very Middle East centric, according to Sanusha Naidu, a senior research fellow at the Institute for Global Dialogue, a South African think tank focusing on China and Africa. This has geo-economic, geostrategic and geopolitical implications, Naidu argued, saying the latest additions will push some BRICS nations to think more about their Middle East policies, and for China and India to beef the existing policies. China recently brokered the re-establishment of ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a role that would traditionally have been filled by a country like the United States. Indias recently signed an agreement with the UAE to trade in Indian rupees and Emirati dirhams instead of in the US dollar. Crucially, Naidu argued, the expansion list is very energy centric, adding that followingthe announcement, some analysts at the venue even facetiously commented if they should call it BRICS plus OPEC?. When selecting new members, the bloc may have taken into consideration the pricing of energy products, and how their countries can reduce their liability and vulnerability in terms of the cost of oil, she said. Besides Russia, all of [the core BRICS countries] are non-energy producing countries. They need to be able to make their economies function, but they dont want to get caught in the secondary collateral damage of sanctions, she explained. The use of unilateral sanctions against countries and the continued dominance of the US dollar in global trade is something BRICS has vocally challenged. The expansion opens up new avenues for trade, said Karin Costa Vasquez, a non-resident senior fellow at the Center for China and Globalization in Beijing. One of the aims behind the planned expansion is creating opportunities for BRICS nations to trade more easily with one another using local currencies, Vasquez added This shift could increase the potential for using currencies other than the US dollar, particularly by creating a network of countries that enhances the utility of their respective currencies. [Al Jazeera] Inclusion Analysts have said that one of the countries that could benefit from

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What are the future endeavors of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) group of countries

BRICS, an intergovernmental organization comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, is engaged in various endeavors and initiatives that shape its future activities:

Membership Expansion: One of the significant future endeavors of BRICS involves expanding its membership. Following the invitation to Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, there is an emphasis on adding new members, with full membership for the newly invited states (except for Argentina, which declined the invitation) set to take effect on January 1, 2024. This strategic inclusion of new members underlines a push for greater influence and diversity within the grouping.
Economic Cooperation: BRICS nations are working to deepen economic cooperation among themselves. This includes the promotion of trade in local currencies to mitigate reliance on the US dollar, and potential initiatives such as setting up a BRICS payment system or a BRICS basket reserve currency. These efforts are aimed at insulating the group from financial crises and strengthening their internal economic ties.
New Development Bank (NDB): The BRICS countries have established the New Development Bank, which aims to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies. The bank represents a parallel to Western-dominated financial institutions, reflecting the group's desire for more autonomy in global finance.
BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement: Another key future endeavor is the operationalization and possible expansion of the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA), which serves as a safety net to provide protection against global liquidity pressures.
Strengthening Political Alliances: The bloc continues to consolidate its political stance on various global issues, from reforms in international financial organizations to issues like climate change and terrorism. These coordinated multilateral policies build the political and diplomatic weight of the grouping in international affairs.
Regional Integration Efforts: BRICS nations are also focusing on strengthening regional economic integration through various sub-groups and bilateral relations, like the Eurasian Economic Union, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and economic blocs in Africa and South America.
Addressing Geopolitical Challenges: BRICS nations are likely to navigate geopolitical tensions, such as those arising from Russia's involvement in Ukraine, which impacts the group's cohesion and international standing. Balancing these relationships and aligning their diverse geopolitical interests remain a complex endeavor for BRICS.
Innovation and Development: Joint initiatives in technology, space exploration, and other areas of innovation also form part of BRICS's future focus, positioning its member countries as competitive players in the global knowledge economy.

The future endeavors of the BRICS countries reflect an ambition to restructure the traditional geopolitics and economics of power, with a particular emphasis on the interests of emerging economies and financial independence from traditional Western-centric models.

BRICSThe BRICS leaders in 2023, from left to right: Lula da Silva, Xi Jinping, Cyril Ramaphosa, Narendra Modi and Sergey Lavrov (representing Vladimir Putin).Map key: Member states States invited to join on January 1, 2024[needs update]AbbreviationBRICSNamed afterMember states' initials (in English)PredecessorBRICFounded atUN HQ, NYC (UNGA 61st session)Yekaterinburg (1st BRIC summit)TypeIntergovernmental organizationPurposePolitical and economicalFieldsInternational politicsMembership (2023) 5 members Brazil Russia India China South Africa FundingMember statesWebsitehttps://brics2023.gov.za/Formerly calledBRIC BRICS is an intergovernmental organization comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. It was formed in 2010 by the addition of South Africa to its predecessor called BRIC.[1] In August 2023, at the 15th BRICS Summit, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had been invited to join the organisation. Argentina declined the invitation and wont join.[2] Full membership is scheduled to take effect on 1 January 2024.[3][4] Currently the BRICS nations encompass about 27% of the world's land surface and 42% of the global population.[a] Brazil, Russia, India, and China are among the world's ten largest countries by population, area, and GDP (PPP). All five states are members of the G20, with a combined nominal GDP of US$28 trillion (about 27% of the gross world product), a total GDP (PPP) of around US$57 trillion (33% of global GDP PPP), and an estimated US$4.5 trillion in combined foreign reserves (as of 2018).[6][7] The BRICS were originally identified for the purpose of highlighting investment opportunities and had not been a formal intergovernmental organization.[8] Since 2009, they have increasingly formed into a more cohesive geopolitical bloc, with their governments meeting annually at formal summits and coordinating multilateral policies. Bilateral relations among BRICS are conducted mainly on the basis of non-interference, equality, and mutual benefit.[9] The BRICS nations are considered the foremost geopolitical rival to the G7 bloc of leading advanced economies, implementing competing initiatives such as the New Development Bank, the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement, the BRICS payment system, the BRICS Joint Statistical Publication and the BRICS basket reserve currency. Since 2022, the group has sought to expand membership, with several developing countries expressing interest in joining.[10] BRICS has received both praise[11][12][13][14] and criticism[15][16][17] from numerous commentators. History[edit] The BRIC[edit] The term BRIC was originally developed in the context of foreign investment strategies. It was introduced in the 2001 publication, Building Better Global Economic BRICs by then-chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Jim O'Neill.[18][19] The foreign ministers of the initial four BRIC General states (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) met in New York City in September 2006 at the margins of the General Debate of the UN Assembly, beginning a series of high-level meetings.[20] A full-scale diplomatic meeting was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on 16 June 2009.[21] The BRIC grouping's 1st formal summit, also held in Yekaterinburg, commenced on 16 June 2009,[22] with Luiz Incio Lula da Silva, Dmitry Medvedev, Manmohan Singh, and Hu Jintao, the respective leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, and China, all attending.[23] The summit's focus was on improving the global economic situation and reforming financial institutions, and discussed how the four countries could better co-operate in the future.[22][23] There was further discussion of ways that developing countries, such as 3/4 of the BRIC members, could become more involved in global affairs.[23] In the aftermath of the 2009 Yekaterinburg summit, the BRIC nations announced the need for a new global reserve currency, which would have to be "diverse

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Back in the 1960s, General Charles de Gaulle quipped about Brazils economy: Brazil is the country of the future and always will be. He was referring to those countries that seem to have all the resources and ingredients for success but nonetheless repeatedly fail through inadequate leadership, unsound policies or weak institutions to translate that potential into real performance.In recent times, the same could be said of the BRICS, the grouping that brings together Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The term BRICs was coined by Jim ONeill, then the chief economist at Goldman Sachs, back in 2001 although the informal club itself only burst onto the scene in 2009. South Africa joined a year later turning the small s in the original BRICs into the large S of the current BRICS. This new group supposedly represented the major emerging economies that were rapidly modernising and opening up for investment, trade and the inter-dependencies created by globalisation. So, their faster rates of economic growth and investment would in turn drive global economic growth and allow the mature industrialised economies of the West to recover more quickly from the banking and sub-prime lending crisis triggered by the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008.Yet, in the decade and a half since its creation, the BRICS has failed to be a major player on the global diplomatic or economic scene. Its summits have been frequent but largely inconsequential, condemning the West with many a rhetorical flourish but producing little of lasting or concrete value. Unlike other new institutional creations, such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the G20 or the African Union, it has not developed a permanent bureaucracy, a steering structure nor a clear agenda. No further countries have joined since South Africa in 2010. The five BRICS members, notably India and China, have had as many divergences as agreements on key international issues, and whereas Russia and China have been keen to use the BRICS to score geopolitical points in their increasing rivalry with the United States and the European Union, the other three have been more interested in using the BRICS mechanism to secure economic benefits, such as trade in local currencies outside the dollar zone, a New Development Bank (NDB) to tap the bond market and foreign investment with fewer strings attached.All five have also devoted more time to promoting regional economic integration for instance, China with its Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Russia with its Eurasian Economic Union, Brazil with Mercosur or South Africa with the Southern Africa Development Community than to developing the BRICS as a serious competitor to the G7 or G20. The five have also lost their earlier image of economic tigers and aspirational models, with the possible exception of India. Their growth rates have slowed considerably. On average, they have been less than 1% annually for Russia, Brazil and South Africa, and around 6% for China and India since 2013. The Putin episode immediately placed the BRICS meeting in the shadow of the war in UkraineRussia has been mired in sanctions since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2021. The rouble has lost nearly 30% of its value against the US dollar and in late August the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, suffered the humiliation of seeing its lunar spacecraft, Luna 25, crash into the surface of the moon after a technical malfunction. This cast doubts as to Russias capacity to remain a major player in space exploration, an area in which the Soviet Union was once able to lead and challenge the mighty US. To rub salt into Moscows wounds, two days after the crash of Luna 25, India landed its space probe, Chandrayaan 2, on the Moons south pole in a flawless technical manoeuvre. China has also been experiencing a sharp decline in growth and endemic inflation. In late August, its largest property developer, Evergrande, filed

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If accepted, the new proposed BRICS members would create an entity with a GDP 30% larger than the United States, over 50% of the global population and in control of 60% of global gas reserves. By Chris Devonshire-Ellis The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov has stated that over a dozen countries have formally applied to join the BRICS grouping following the groups decision to allow new members earlier this year. The BRICS currently includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It is not a free trade bloc, but members do coordinate on trade matters and have established a policy bank, the New Development Bank, (NDB) to coordinate infrastructure loans. That was set up in 2014 in order to provide alternative loan mechanisms from the IMF and World Bank structures, which the members had felt had become too US-centric. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) was set up by China at about the same time for largely the same reasons and to offer alternative financing than that provided by the IMF and World Banks, which were felt to impose political reform policies designed to assist the United States in return for providing loans. Both the NDB and AIIB banks are Triple A rated and capitalised at US$100 billion. The NDB bank shares are held equally by each of the five members. In total, the BRICS grouping as it currently stands accounts for over 40% of the global population and nearly a quarter of the worlds GDP. The GDP figure is expected to double to 50% of global GDP by 2030. Expanding BRICS will immediately accelerate that process. Concerning a BRICS expansion, Lavrov stated that Algeria, Argentina, and Iran had all applied, while it is already known that Saudi Arabia, Trkiye, Egypt and Afghanistan are interested, along with Indonesia, which is expected to make a formal application to join at the upcoming G20 summit in Bali. Other likely contenders for membership include Kazakhstan, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Senegal, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. All had their Finance Ministers present at the BRICS Expansion dialogue meeting held in May. We can examine the basic economic data of the proposed new BRICS members as follows. GDP figures given are nominal, 2022 growth rates are based on the first 9 months of the year from data issued by the respective Central Banks. Afghanistan GDP: USD21.5 billion GDP Per Capita: USD520 2022 Growth Rate: 2% Population: 40 million Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, shattered by decades of war. Yet maintaining peace and rebuilding infrastructure and regional trade connectivity are crucial to the development of Central Asia, and Afghanistans membership of an expanded BRICS will provide much needed additional security. The United States has frozen all Afghani assets held overseas for reparations for 9-11, joining BRICS will give it access to new funding and redevelopment sources. Afghanistan is an observer state to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation which includes China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as full members, while Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belarus, Cambodia, Egypt, Kuwait, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, Turkiye, Turkmenistan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are all in various status as SCO dialogue partners and observers. It is also a member of the SAARC South Asian trade bloc which includes Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Afghanistans largest trade partner is India, followed by Pakistan, China, Turkiye and the UAE. Algeria GDP: USD168 billion GDP Per Capita: USD3,700 2022 Growth Rate: 2.3% Population: 45 million In terms of market size, Algeria has the tenth largest proven natural gas reserves globally, is the worlds sixth-largest gas exporter, and has the worlds third-largest untapped shale gas resources. Algeria is a member of OPEC, which also includes Congo, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, S

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