World
World Bank, IMF and Africa’s Development
By Professor Maurice Okoli
Amid heightened criticisms and intense debates over several significant global issues including new financial architecture, economic diversification, growing debts and reforms, the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, on October 15 wrapped up their week-long annual meetings held under the theme “Global Action, Global Impact” in Marrakesh, Morocco in North Africa.
With the rapid geopolitical changes, it featured prominently finance ministers and central bank governors from 190 countries in desperate search of comprehensive mechanisms and suitable approaches to address the prevailing economic crisis across the globe. The coordinated annual meetings also reviewed its scope of geographical operations with particular emphasis on Africa.
Fundamentally Africa’s key drawbacks mostly mentioned in all the discussions are related to the system of governance, official policies and strategies, and persistent conflicts. Due to the severity of threatening conflicts combined with worsening insecurity and ineffective policies, speakers at the annual meetings reviewed with circumspection the economic performance in Africa.
The importance of this annual meeting particularly for Africa need not be over-emphasized. Of course, the popular paradox is that Africa has huge untapped resources including rich deposits of strategic minerals, the population is growing and now stands at 1.4 billion providing the human capital and yet that region is engulfed with abject poverty, lack of industrial infrastructure and technology, while agriculture largely remains at the rudimentary stage. It is impossible not to notice on the political map of the world – it is located roughly in the centre of the globe just on the equator and its huge expanse of territory.
Economic Picture
The global financial system “is now outdated, dysfunctional and unjust,” said a New York Times opinion column jointly written by Kenyan President William Ruto, African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina, African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki and Patrick Verkooijen, chief executive of the Global Commission on
Adaptation.
It’s outdated because international financial institutions “are too small and limited to fulfil their mandate. Dysfunctional because the system as a whole is too slow to respond to new challenges, such as climate change. And unjust because it discriminates against poor countries,” the leaders wrote.
Often lenders of last resort, the IMF and the World Bank use billions in loans and assistance to buoy struggling economies and encourage countries operating in deficit to implement reforms they say promote stability and economic growth.
During a panel session in Marrakech second week of October 2023, African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development called for key reforms during a meeting of the Africa High-Level Working Group on the Global Financial Architecture, coordinated by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). The ECA has the mandate
to promote the economic and social development of its member states, foster intra-regional integration, and promote international cooperation for Africa’s development.
Their position, among others, was to strengthen the African voice on the global stage. This resounding call emphasized the need for a quota formula to increase the number share for Africa. The meeting expressed support for the establishment of an additional chair to represent African countries at the IMF Executive Board to amplify the region’s voice and representation.
The meeting further underscored the importance of scaling up both concessional and non-concessional financing priorities of African countries, including regional integration, infrastructure development and structural transformation. Also, there was the proposal for temporal suspension of debt service and to pause debt service payments in the event of climate-related disasters.
At the opening ceremony, IMF Chief Kristalina Georgieva in a speech stated that since 2020, successive economic shocks have led to the loss of $3.6 trillion of the global output, and that have pushed the IMF and the World Bank in hollowing for an enduring role in addressing the socio-economic challenges.
Fifty-seven per cent of the world’s poorest countries, home to about 30 per cent of the world’s population, will have to cut their public spending by $229 billion by 2029. Low and lower-middle-income countries will be forced to pay almost $500 million every day in interest and debt repayments from now until that year, according to her suggestion.
Role of the Financial Institutions
The African Development Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the Council of Europe Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, and the New Development Bank joined the World Bank in the collaboration agreement.
World Bank together with other nine multilateral development banks jointly seek to boost lending power to developing countries. These banks pledged to bolster collaboration in accelerating an appreciable, liveable world free of poverty. Under consideration is estimated $300 billion to $400 billion of additional lending capacity to help developing countries confront “a perfect storm of intertwined crises — from climate shocks and conflicts to pandemics and surging debt.”
They would also work to catalyze private-sector engagement. In addition, and as incorporated in the official document after the summit, the World Bank will be strengthening efforts to partner with the private sector, civil society, other multilateral institutions, and charitable organizations.
Some experts are of the view that the banks should also release emerging market data so private investors can better understand the actual risks and opportunities of investing in such markets. According to economic experts, exploring ways to directly increase the voice of emerging markets and developing countries in the IMF by adding another deputy managing director to represent emerging markets and low-income countries, and a third executive board chair representing sub-Saharan Africa.
“Working together for a common cause, we can bring more experience, expertise, knowledge, and, especially, more funding to the massive challenges facing the world today,” World Bank President Ajay Banga said. “Together, we are greater than the sum of our parts.”
In addition to improved analytical and diagnostic tools, including country climate and development reports, the multilateral banks have to work on principles for using concessional finance to target support for projects that address the challenges. Concessional finance involves loans at more generous terms than the market provides. The socio-cultural conditions should also form part of the decision-making process for extending these loans to accelerate private sector mobilization.
African States Struggling with Debts
International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva called for wealthy nations to provide more support to debt-saddled developing countries, and to better help vulnerable nations deal with poverty and climate change, as she opened the first IMF-World Bank meetings on African soil in 50 years. The global lenders traditionally hold their annual gathering of finance ministers and central bank governors outside their Washington headquarters every three years.
The IMF and World Bank last held their meetings in Africa in 1973, when Kenya hosted the event and some nations were still under colonial rule. Half a century later, the continent faces various challenges ranging from conflict to a series of military coups to unrelenting poverty to natural disasters.
“Bringing the meetings to Africa, again, is symbolically and substantively very important,” Georgieva said at a meeting with members of civil society organizations. She noted that the continent is wrestling with “remarkably similar” problems as 50 years ago, including high inflation and “political upheaval in many places”.
“Many countries are under a burden of debt that can crush them and we very, very much hope that the meetings would be a place to build more trust among nations. We all need each other,” she said and added that the IMF and World Bank need “more capacity” to support African countries that need help, including providing zero-interest loans on a larger scale.
In the final analysis, China has to be considered for an increase in a quota within the institutions and given more representation if it played an active role in debt relief for low-income countries. China has already considered some African countries for addressing issues of debt restructuring deals, for instance, Angola, Egypt, Nigeria, Zambia and a few others.
It was also the result of several direct consultations by the US Treasury Secretary Janet Louise Yellen and other officials, trying to pressure and coax China — the largest creditor to the developing world — into participating more readily in such agreements. There are also proposals to seriously look at ways to revive the effectiveness and monitoring of funds utilization on the continent. Expectations are high for a breakthrough.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi is looking to extend his rule until 2030. And Egypt seeks to boost IMF loan to over $5 billion amid currency woes, according to the discussions made available on the government’s website. A mission from the IMF may visit Egypt to start the two reviews around the end of October. Egypt owes nearly $22 billion to
the IMF, according to Egypt’s central bank which I found during my research for this article.
With regards to Africa, the IMF and World Bank need to take into serious account the ‘cultural change’ to better mobilize private capital. The process of reforming its operations to better address climate change and other numerous challenges requires an endorsement of a new vision “to end poverty on a livable planet” and that is what its new president, Ajay Banga, was working to turn into reality.
Under the auspices of the African Union, African leaders have to collectively within the framework of “African Problems, African Solutions” in this changing world. While calling for reforms in international organizations, the African Union also needs an urgent overhaul to effectively and rationally address the continent’s security and development issues. Africa does not need any “global coalition of democracies” to fight violent extremist groups, especially in West Africa that have been spreading south from the Sahel region. It requires African continental and/or regional forces with external support rather than bilateral mechanisms.
Fresh Hopes for a Better Future
A new tool developed by the Center for Global Development (CGD), and launched to track reforms by the World Bank and the five biggest multilateral development banks (MDBs), shows that broad changes are “firmly in play” but progress in implementing them has been limited thus far. The new platform assesses progress being made on reforms, but at the same time, concludes progress in implementing the changes was “quite limited.”
The CGD researchers however lauded some steps taken – including the World Bank’s inclusion of the phrase “livable planet” in its mission statement, but said the development banks were still largely debating how to integrate global challenges into their operations and how to pay for them.
Anna Bjerde, the World Bank’s managing director for operations, said she had been at the bank for 27 years and had never felt such energy and momentum for changing course. “To make a change in the work we’re in will, of course, take time,” Bjerde said, noting decisions already made at the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank would boost financing and further steps were expected at the meeting in Morocco.
Critics have argued for years that MDBs manage their balance sheets too conservatively and could unlock significantly more capital without losing their AAA credit rating status. They said the reform discussion was also largely dominated by Northern Hemisphere voices and major emerging markets like China, India and Brazil, and it was crucial to include more MDB borrowing countries and address their goals and concerns.
“We have already seen notable progress in areas like raising lending limits and launching innovative finance programs,” former senior Treasury official Nancy Lee and other researchers wrote in a blog unveiling the tool. “Many reforms are still in the aspiration phase rather than the implementation phase.”
Axel Van Trostsenburg, Senior Managing Director, Development Policy and Partnership, World Bank, made known, during panel discussions, that the International Development Association (IDA), a World Bank subsidiary, is making available $70 billion of its $93 billion replenishing to Africa to support digital infrastructure and other developments.
In his idealistic view, physical-digital infrastructure needs to be developed and linked to the acceleration of the implementation and realization of the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). The AfCFTA is purposefully created as a single borderless market for free movement of goods products, people and services across Africa.
And it is only through digital development that we see an incredible increase in economic growth under AfCFTA. In this case, there is the necessity to engage the African leadership. This also requires the adoption of a multi-set of approaches in helping countries with regulatory frameworks, setting up infrastructure and mobilising private sector finance for digital development.
Perhaps, this is the appropriate moment for Africa to be very objective while asking for feverish reforms, such steps must begin also at home. African leaders can hardly escape some responsibility for the present state of affairs, the level of economic development and existing social welfare for the people in Africa. The African Union and the Regional Economic blocs or associations have to watch their reflections in the mirror if their platforms have undergone valuable and effective reforms necessary to achieve their fundamental development goals across the continent, at least over the past decade.
Reading through reports, the African Union’s assessment of the multinational financial banks notes the possibility of scaling up adequate funds to grease commitments, as many African countries now face the reality of growing debts that in some cases threaten to destabilize their economies. That, however, financing development objectives would have to noticeably change the expected economic progress and the landscape of bad infrastructure across Africa.
In a symbolic move, the IMF and World Bank are poised to give Africa a third seat on their executive boards. The summit’s final report has offered irreversible practical hopes for Africa. That would be a testament to the resilience on the part of the African community. But still, the African Union and Regional Economic blocs and associations have to engage in discussing and reviewing the ultimate work of international financial institutions to stand ready to support Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Professor Maurice Okoli is a fellow at the Institute for African Studies and the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, Russian Academy of Sciences. He is also a fellow at the North-Eastern Federal University of Russia. He is an expert at the Roscongress Foundation and the Valdai Discussion Club.
As an academic researcher and economist with a keen interest in current geopolitical changes and the emerging world order, Maurice Okoli frequently contributes articles for publication in reputable media portals on different aspects of the interconnection between developing and developed countries, particularly in Asia, Africa and Europe. With comments and suggestions, he can be reached via email: markolconsult (at) gmail (dot) com
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
Over the past few years, Jude Osakwe, a Nigerian professor at the Namibian University of Science and Technology (NUST), Continental Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Organization (NIDO) Africa, has been working on various aspects of BRICS+ (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) collaborating with the Global South. Despite the huge noticeable differences in political systems, economic structures and cultural norms, Professor Osakwe unreservedly believes that this diversity can be a source of strength for aligning priorities and especially shaping economic interests for sustainable development. In 2024, for instance, Professor Osakwe presented papers at BRICS+ forums and conferences, organized in mid-March and in August, online BRICS+ discussions that highlighted Nigeria, together with African BRICS members (Ethiopia, Egypt and South Africa), their expected collective roles in the evolutionary development processes across Africa.
In addition, the members of BRICS+ are endowed with resources which, in terms of their level of geopolitical influence, have the potential capability and capacity to drive significant economic growth and development in the African region. However, the challenge is to get organized, hence the necessity to prioritizing dialogue among Nigerians in the Diaspora (NIDO) and its power dynamics, and build a stronger and more effective alliance that can positively impact the lives of millions of people in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Africa and the Global South.
With the changing times, and shifting geopolitical situation, Professor Osakwe, in this insightful interview, argues that BRICS+ has the potential to drive significant economic growth and development across Africa. In this evolving process, he has further identified Nigeria in Diaspora throughout world, who can be uplifted to play an important role on the BRICS+ platform. The most essential factor here is the fact that Nigeria is currently in the “partner state” category awaiting to become a full-fledged member of BRICS+ in the near future. Here are the interview excerpts:
In practical terms, how would you characterize NIDO Africa in the context of the popular slogan “Africa We Want” as endorsed by the continental organization, the African Union (AU)?
In the context of the popular slogan “Africa We Want,” NIDO Africa can be characterized as a key organization working towards the vision of a united, integrated, and prosperous Africa. NIDO Africa brings together Nigerian professionals in the diaspora to contribute their skills, expertise, and resources to the development of Nigeria and Africa as a whole. This aligns with the African Union’s (AU) goal of fostering unity, solidarity, cohesion, and cooperation among African nations. NIDO Africa’s focus on promoting economic growth, trade, and investment across Africa reflects the AU’s commitment to creating a prosperous and self-reliant continent.
Does Nigeria, as a West African economic power, face similar challenges for integrating and uniting its nationals for development? How would you assess Nigeria’s economy today under President Bola Tinubu?
Nigeria, as a West African economic power, faces similar challenges to other African nations in terms of integrating and uniting its population for development. These challenges include political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and income inequality. Nigeria’s economy has been heavily reliant on oil exports, which has led to a lack of diversification and vulnerability to fluctuations in global oil prices. While there have been some efforts to diversify the economy and promote non-oil sectors, much work remains to be done to create sustainable and inclusive growth.
Judging from above, NIDO Africa is perhaps prioritizing economic sectors such as agriculture and industry, and increasing exports in the framework of AfCFTA. How and what approach do you envisage in creasing value-added exportable goods? Besides internal market, why external markets are important for NIDO Africa?
NIDO Africa’s focus on agriculture and industry, as well as increasing exports, aligns with the goals of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to promote intra-African trade, industrialization, and economic diversification. To increase value-added exportable goods, NIDO Africa can prioritize the development of local industries and the promotion of innovation and technology. This can be achieved through partnerships with local and international organizations, the provision of training and capacity building, and the facilitation of access to finance and markets. External markets are important for NIDO Africa as they provide additional opportunities for trade and investment, as well as access to new technologies, knowledge, and expertise.
(A) To increase value-added exportable goods in the sectors of agriculture and industry, NIDO Africa could adopt the following approaches:
(i) Encourage innovation and research: NIDO Africa can invest in research and development to improve production processes, create new products, and enhance the quality of existing ones. This will not only increase the value of exportable goods but also make them more competitive in the global market.
(ii) Promote skills development and capacity building: NIDO Africa can collaborate with educational institutions and training centers to provide specialized training and skill development programs for workers in the agriculture and industry sectors. This will improve productivity, efficiency, and the overall quality of exportable goods.
(iii) Facilitate access to finance: NIDO Africa can work with financial institutions to create financing options for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the agriculture and industry sectors. This will help them to scale up their operations, invest in new technologies, and expand their export capacity.
(iv) Foster partnerships and collaborations: NIDO Africa can encourage partnerships and collaborations between local businesses, international companies, and research institutions to share knowledge, resources, and expertise. This will create synergies that can lead to the development of innovative products and services that are competitive in the global market.
(v) Advocate for favourable policies and trade agreements: NIDO Africa can lobby for policies and trade agreements that support the growth and competitiveness of the agriculture and industry sectors. This includes advocating for the removal of trade barriers, the provision of tax incentives, and the establishment of special economic zones.
(B) External markets are important for NIDO Africa for several reasons:
(i) Diversification of markets: By expanding into external markets, NIDO Africa can reduce its dependence on a single market and minimize the risks associated with fluctuations in demand, supply, and prices.
(ii) Increased revenue: Exporting goods to external markets can generate additional revenue for businesses and contribute to the growth of the Nigerian economy.
(iii) Technological and knowledge transfer: Engaging in trade with other countries can facilitate the transfer of technology and knowledge, leading to the development of new products, processes, and services.
(iv) Enhanced competitiveness: Exporting to external markets can help businesses to improve their competitiveness by exposing them to new challenges and opportunities.
(v) Economic integration: Participating in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) can help to promote economic integration and cooperation among African countries, leading to the development of a more prosperous and stable continent.
Can you also discuss the economic advantages of Federal Republic of Nigeria, in the ‘partner state’ category of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS)?
Nigeria, as a member of the BRICS partner state category, can benefit from economic advantages such as access to a larger market, increased investment opportunities, and technology transfer. Nigeria can leverage its position to attract investment from BRICS countries in sectors such as infrastructure, energy, and agriculture. Additionally, Nigeria can benefit from the BRICS’ focus on promoting South-South cooperation and supporting the development of African countries.
NIDO Africa’s priority is to increase trade, most probably, to the United States. Does Nigeria support de-dollarizing U.S. currency? What is African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and its future prospects for NIDO Africa?
NIDO Africa’s priority to increase trade aligns with the goals of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which aims to promote economic growth and development in Africa by providing duty-free access to the US market for certain African exports. While Nigeria is a beneficiary of AGOA, there is potential for further expansion of trade relations between the two countries. De-dollarizing the US currency may not necessarily be a priority, as the US remains an important trading partner for Nigeria and Africa as a whole. However, diversifying trading partners and currencies can help to mitigate risks and promote economic resilience. The future prospects of AGOA for NIDO Africa will depend on the ability of both Nigeria and the US to maintain a strong and mutually beneficial trade relationship, as well as the continued commitment of the US to support African economic development.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
About 115 agrifood experts, government advisors and business leaders from Africa and South East Asia have knocked the United Nations for backing the elimination of trans-fatty acids from global diets, stressing this denies the world’s poorest the nutritional benefits of milk and meat.
In a protest letter endorsed by signatories from Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), and the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND), it was argued that while industrial sources of trans-fatty acids contribute to non-communicable diseases like diabetes and heart disease, animal-source foods contain low levels of trans-fatty acids that may even offer health benefits.
The UN, in a bid to reduce non-communicable diseases (NCDs), proposed the elimination of all trans-fatty acids from global diets.
“The risk of a blanket commitment to eliminate all trans-fatty acids is that it unnecessarily discourages the consumption of highly nutritious dairy, meat and other animal-source foods. And once again, the burden will fall heaviest on low- and middle-income countries, where nutrient-rich meat, milk and dairy are already under-consumed,” a part of the open letter to UN negotiators stated.
“A single glass of milk is among the most affordable, nutrient-rich foods available — milk has been shown to reduce stunting in children and lessen the burden of hunger,” a nutrition expert and ILRI’s Director General’s Representative to Ethiopia, said Namukolo Covic, noted.
“Industrially-produced trans-fatty acids come from food processing, a sector that is still in its infancy in many African countries. These countries have the opportunity to create a new food future as their food systems transform. These food systems must transform towards eliminating industrially derived trans-fat,” Covic added.
“For people in low-income settings, animal-source foods are often the only reliable and available source of essential nutrients, we need a nuanced approach supported by sustainability solutions.
“UN negotiators must ensure this resolution recognizes the distinction between the large amounts of trans-fats of industrial origin and the low levels naturally occurring in animal-source foods,” a professor in Food Science and Nutrition and Editor-in-Chief of the African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, Ruth Oniang’o, submitted.
“The contribution of animal-source foods to trans-fatty acids is very low compared to industrially derived trans-fats and should be weighed against their contributions to nutrient density, given their nutritional benefits even in small quantities,” she added.
NCDs disproportionately impact developing countries, where obesity and diet-related disease in adulthood are closely linked to undernutrition in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life. In 2023, one in every five Africans faced hunger and around a third of children under five were affected by stunting.
Animal-source foods like meat and milk are energy-dense and a rich source of high-quality proteins and micronutrients, including Vitamins A and B12, riboflavin, calcium, zinc and iodine.
Research has found that a child who drinks milk daily can grow up to three per cent more in a month than a child who does not, yet average annual milk consumption can be as low as just 1kg per person per year in some developing countries.
The draft resolution is currently under review with member states with a final draft due to be presented for endorsement at the UN General Assembly in September.
In the meantime, countries will gather in New York from July 14 to 23 for the UN’s High-Level Political Forum, which will assess progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing) among others.
By Kestér Kenn Klomegâh
Popularly referred to as BRICS, the informal group of emerging-market economies (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), meeting in Rio de Janeiro, has outlined a new unprecedented multitude of goals to challenge unipolar system. In the context of rising uncertainty, BRICS has further set up new models to change the economic architecture through South-South cooperation.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva hosted early July BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, capital city of Brazil. U.S. President Donald Trump’s position on many sensitive issues has offered the association something of a dilemma. In a joint statement decried “the rise of unjustified unilateral protectionist measures” and the “indiscriminate raising” of tariffs. BRICS members all agree that “these tariffs are not productive,” Ambassador Xolisa Mabhongo, South Africa’s lead negotiator, or sherpa, said in an interview. “They are not good for the world economy. They are not good for development.”
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has a raft of controversies with United States over the introduction of single BRICS currency, a suggestion he mooted in 2023. Besides that Brazil is currently facing steep economic challenges in the face of trade frictions with the United States. Majority of his citizens are facing deportation, it implies significant fallen in remittances and that would worsen social and financial standing of families across Brazil. It has had diverse criticisms, so are other new BRICS members with vastly different political and economic systems, and yet advocating for reshaping the global balance of power. Most of them are negotiating to be at discussion table, to straighten economic ties, with President Donald Trump.
On one hand, BRICS leaders seriously Trump’s “indiscriminate” import tariffs and other trade policies. On the other hand, Trump has also warned that countries which sideline with the policies of the BRICS alliance against United States interests will be hit with an extra 10% tariffs.
BRICS summit further called for strengthening multilateralism. China unreservedly underscored its desire to work with member states to “strengthen the BRICS strategic partnership and safeguard multilateralism,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said in a briefing in Beijing. With noticeable policy and economic disparities, its rapid expansion to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates bolstered its representation — the new BRICS accounts for about 40% of global GDP and roughly half the planet’s population.
BRICS policy to build a multipolar world has attracted developing countries. Trade among the five original BRICS nations grew 40% between 2021 and 2024 to US$740 billion a year, according to International Monetary Fund data.
Emerging Tasks from Rio de Janeiro
Brazil took over from Russia last year December, promised to put in complete order housekeeping issues — officially termed institutional development — on the agenda to better integrate new members and boost internal cohesion. With ten (10) partner members that includes Belarus, Cuba and Vietnam, BRICS plans to work ‘ad hoc practical cooperation’ basis. These partner states have absolutely no decision-making authority as full members. The enlarged bloc is now characterized by emerging potential opportunities but deepening frictions. BRICS is increasingly experiencing complexities based on their individual priorities and geopolitical orientations. Yet the bloc, often denying the unpredictable stage of stark realities, continues boasting of coherence and systemic efforts toward creating a multipolarity.
BRICS boasts of huge resources, and substantially claims to be ahead of other groups in this parameter, including G7 with US$57 trillion. Further to that, BRICS has many supporters in the Global South and East.
At the tail-end of the July 6th to 7th summit, BRICS reset new tasks, little achievements were highlighted by speakers, in addition to those previously rattled phrases such as BRICS leads ‘multipolar world’ and be guided as key centres of global governance and work collective towards economic growth, and further gravitate the development of markets in the Global South. The question of payment in local currencies was underscored while BRICS members emphasized reducing the use of dollar in currency transactions. In fact, several promising initiatives have, thus become future responsibilities of India, who takes up the BRICS Chairmanship.
Russia’s Achievements
During the final summit at Kazan, which was held in October 2024, Russia established a category of BRICS partner states. In addition, Russia proposed creating a whole new BRICS investment platform. The idea behind it is to jointly develop coordinated instruments to support and to bring in the funds from the economies of BRICS countries and from the Global South and Global East countries. It suggested launching a special mechanism for holding consultations on World Trade Organisation matters. The processes for creating a grain exchange, a climate research centre, a permanent logistics platform, and a sports cooperation programme in BRICS are moving forward.
There are other valuable ideas proposed by Russia, which include the formation of a carbon market partnership, an arbitration investment centre, a fair competition platform, and a permanent tax secretariat within BRICS.
In September, Moscow will host Intervision, a popular international television song contest which has got the attention of numerous performers from BRICS and BRICS partner countries who confirmed their willingness to participate in it. A humanitarian project of that magnitude is designed to promote universal, cultural, family, and spiritual values shared by members.
India’s Proposals
With participation of BRICS members, partners and outreach invitees, India proposed the creation of BRICS Science and Research Repository to promote collaboration in critical areas, highlighted its initiatives in agri-biotech and digital education access, calling on BRICS to adopt a demand-driven approach and ensure long-term financial sustainability in New Development Bank (NDB) projects.
China’s Suggestions
Chinese Premier Li Qiang praised the complementary advantages and suggested broader forms of cooperation in such areas as digital economy, green economy, sci-tech innovation and aerospace. From notable indications, China stands ready to closely work with members and partners in enriching the dimensions both on bilateral basis and multilateral relations. China expressed high concerns over achieving concrete results, rather than mere high-quality rhetoric. Premier Li Qiang further talked about BRICS working within multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations, the G20 and the African Union (AU), Eurasia and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.
New Development Bank
The BRICS Bank President, Dilma Rousseff, has officially welcomed Colombia and Uzbekistan as new members. The membership now totalled 11 members, including Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Algeria. “We have several other countries under observation and review, and they may join the bank in the future,” Rousseff stated at the briefing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The NDB, established in 2015 as a multilateral development bank, operates with full respect for the sovereignty and development priorities of its member countries. Based in Shanghai, the bank has already approved over 120 projects worth a total of US$40 billion, focusing on areas such as clean energy, transport infrastructure, environmental protection, and social infrastructure.
Final Declaration
After the plenary session the final Declaration of the 17th BRICS summit – “Rio de Janeiro Declaration” – was adopted on 6th July 2025. The document welcomed Indonesia as a new BRICS member, and the following Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Nigeria, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Uganda, and Uzbekistan as BRICS partner countries.
The 126 point-document passed on the Chairmanship to India in 2026 and the holding of the XVIII BRICS Summit in India. The document acknowledged the significance of (i) Strengthening Multilateralism and Reforming Global Governance (ii) Promoting Peace, Security and International Stability (iii) Deepening International Economic, Trade and Financial Cooperation (iv) Combating Climate Change and Promoting Sustainable Development (v) Partnerships for the Promotion of Human, Social and Cultural Development
Conclusion
Analysts say in a summarized comment that despite the glaring inconsistencies among the group, even as they have, somehow, managed to speak with one voice on major international issues, China and India both interested to lead the BRICS and the Global South as a whole. India Prime Minister Narendra Modi takes over the BRICS presidency for 2026, as he explained that the group’s diversity is its strength, and shares collective commitment to emerging multipolar world. Original members of the bloc Brazil, Russia, India, and China have been joined by South Africa and, more recently, by Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia.
Kestér Kenn Klomegâh has a diverse work experience in the field of business intelligence and consultancy. His focused research interest includes geopolitical changes, foreign relations and economic development related questions in Africa with external countries. Klomegâh has media publications, policy monographs and e-handbooks
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