Two more African countries to join BRICS as bloc expands to 11 nations

Expansion of the BRICS bloc of emerging economies could give Africa a stronger voice on the world stage, African Business said in a report.

The leaders of the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), meeting at a summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, have announced their decision to expand membership of the group of emerging economies.

Two African countries – Egypt and Ethiopia – will be invited to join the group from 1 January 2024 along with Argentina, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

“This membership expansion is historic & shows the determination of BRICS for unity & cooperation of developing countries” tweeted the organisers of the summit.

The leaders also announced that BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors would be tasked to consider the issue of expanding the use of local currencies for international trade in an ongoing effort to challenge the dominance of the US dollar and improve the “stability, reliability and fairness of the global financial architecture”.

Africa to represent over 25% of BRICS membership

According to Statista, in 2020 the five current members of the BRICS surpassed the G7 in terms of combined GDP as measured in purchasing power parity. Their share of world GDP has risen from 16.9% in 1995 to 32.1% this year.

Expansion of the group, which has been meeting since 2009 and which admitted South Africa in 2010, has been mooted for some time, and membership offers African countries the chance to gain a louder voice on the world stage. The expansion raises the African presence in the bloc from one fifth to over a quarter of members.

002