The South African Foreign Minister announced, on Wednesday, that the BRICS countries have agreed to expand the group, which currently includes only 5 countries.
quoted Minister Naledi Pandor as saying: “The BRICS group has adopted a document that sets out guidelines and principles for expanding the group.”
“More details on expanding the group’s membership will be provided by BRICS leaders before the conclusion of the summit,” she added.
According to South African officials, 23 of the more than 40 countries that have expressed interest have so far applied to join the BRICS group, which currently includes Brazil, Russia, China, India and South Africa.
The expansion will be only the second in the history of the group, which is focused on economic development and increasing the voice of its members in global forums.
BRICS held its first summit in 2009 with 4 members, then added South Africa the following year.
According to the official platform of the activities of the 15th BRICS Summit, and given the growing interests, the founding members are ready to open the doors of the group to expand its membership, and it will be called “BRICS Plus” or “BRICS +”, similar to the “OPEC Plus” group.
Johannesburg is hosting the BRICS Emerging Economies Summit, with the participation of leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
It is noteworthy that the “BRICS” group represents about 40 percent of the world’s population and more than 30 percent of global output.
Sky News Arabia