BRICS represents 'a new era for the Global South'

SOUTH African High Commissioner to India, Professor Anil Sooklal yesterday highlighted the significance of BRICS. He stressed that the grouping’s purpose is not to replace existing international bodies, but rather to secure the appropriate recognition and standing for countries of the Global South.

- THOBEKA NGEMA

BRICS, a political and diplomatic coordination forum, comprises eleven nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Iran. This group functions as a platform for countries of the Global South to coordinate on a wide range of issues.

Sooklal, speaking to World is One News (WION), said BRICS began as an informal gathering of foreign ministers in 2006 and he thought it was appropriate that India was taking over the chairmanship at a critical time.

“BRICS has become a powerful force in the global scenario. It is no longer a group that is trying to find its feet. It has firmly established itself. It's a powerful group of countries,” Sooklal said.

He said that in 2023, South Africa chaired BRICS and that over 40 countries have asked to become BRICS members.