South Africa takes three big demands to BRICS summit
PRETORIA — President Cyril Ramaphosa is heading to India this weekend with South Africa seeking more trade, greater investment in African infrastructure and stronger support for industrialisation as an expanded BRICS grouping confronts growing geopolitical divisions.
Ramaphosa will attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on 12 and 13 September at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Presidency says South Africa will use the gathering to push economic priorities that include increasing trade and investment between BRICS members, promoting value addition and mobilising capital for African infrastructure linked to the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The economic agenda is important for South Africa because membership of an increasingly influential geopolitical bloc does not automatically translate into factories, infrastructure investment or jobs at home. Pretoria’s challenge in New Delhi will be to convert its position within BRICS into tangible economic opportunities while ensuring Africa remains part of decisions being shaped by some of the world’s largest emerging economies.
BRICS now comprises Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, a significant expansion from the original five member grouping. Partner states and invited countries will also participate in the New Delhi discussions.
That expansion has increased BRICS’ economic and political reach, but it has also made maintaining common positions more complicated. The summit is taking place amid wars and instability in the Middle East and Ukraine, alongside broader competition between major powers. International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola has previously acknowledged that members will have to manage areas of disagreement that could undermine cohesion within the bloc.
South Africa is expected to use that increasingly complicated environment to continue pressing for greater representation of developing countries in global institutions. Leaders will discuss reforms to the United Nations and international financial institutions as part of a wider push by BRICS countries for greater influence for the Global South.
But the more immediate South African interest is economic.
Ramaphosa will participate in the BRICS Business Forum Leader’s Dialogue, bringing political leaders and business representatives together around trade and supply chains, agriculture, the digital economy, innovation and women led development. South African representatives from the BRICS Business Council and BRICS Women’s Business Alliance will also participate as Pretoria looks for increased commercial cooperation and investment.
The summit follows growing indications that India in particular sees further economic opportunities in South Africa. Indian High Commissioner Prabhat Kumar has identified critical minerals, infrastructure and skills development as areas where cooperation between the two countries could deepen, including opportunities to process minerals in South Africa rather than simply export raw resources.
That fits directly into Pretoria’s BRICS position. South Africa says it wants industrialisation and value addition to form part of deeper economic cooperation, an important distinction for a mineral rich economy seeking to capture more of the value generated from its natural resources before they leave the country.
Infrastructure will also be part of the pitch. South Africa wants BRICS investment to support African projects aligned with the AfCFTA, which is intended to progressively create a larger integrated market across the continent.
The summit will therefore test whether an enlarged BRICS can move beyond political declarations and deliver greater economic cooperation among countries with very different national interests.
Ramaphosa will be accompanied by International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and Deputy Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Zuko Godlimpi.
BRICS leaders are also expected to discuss inclusive global governance and multilateralism before adopting the New Delhi Declaration at the conclusion of the summit.
For South Africa, the value of the weekend’s meetings will ultimately be measured less by another declaration of BRICS solidarity than by whether Pretoria can turn its seat at the table into investment, industrial capacity, infrastructure and expanded markets for South African and African businesses.
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