BRICS and BRICS PLUS

BRICS and BRICS PLUS

Subject: IR

Section: Int Groupings

Context: 

• Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have confirmed that they are joining the BRICS bloc.

More on news:

• The five countries were extended invitations along with Argentina at a summit in August in Johannesburg to join the bloc comprising Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa. 
• Members say the move would help reshuffle a world order they view as outdated.

About BRICS:

• BRICS is an acronym for the grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
• The term BRIC was coined by Jim O’ Neil, the then chairman of Goldman Sachs in 2001.
• The first BRIC summit took place in the year 2009 in Yekaterinburg (Russia).
• In 2010, South Africa formally joined the association making it BRICS.
• The BRICS Leaders’ Summit is convened annually.
• The Chairmanship of the forum is rotated annually among the members, in accordance with the acronym B-R-I-C-S.
• Together, BRICS accounts for about 40% of the world’s population and about 30% of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product), making it a critical economic engine.
• During the Sixth BRICS Summit in Fortaleza (2014) the leaders signed the Agreement establishing the New Development Bank (NDB), headquartered in Shanghai.
• The Fortaleza Declaration stressed that the NDB will strengthen cooperation among BRICS and will supplement the efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global development thus contributing to sustainable and balanced growth.
• Considering the increasing instances of global financial crisis, BRICS nations signed BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) in 2014 as part of Fortaleza Declaration at Sixth BRICS summit.
• The BRICS CRA aims to provide short-term liquidity support to the members through currency swaps to help mitigate the BOP crisis situation and further strengthen financial stability.
• The initial total committed resources of the CRA shall be one hundred billion dollars of the United States of America (USD 100 billion).

About BRICS PLUS:

• BRICS Plus is a global platform fostering innovation, diverse collaboration, and sustainability in 186 countries.
• With plans to include Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE in 2024 it is  committed  to global economic advancement.
• BRICS+ Platform is shaping a future of innovation and positive impact worldwide.
• BRICS Plus was first mooted by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in March 2017 with the objective of widening the “circle of friends” of BRICS that can bring unity among developing countries and enhance South-South cooperation.