BRICS sustainable development crucial

The 8th BRICS Summit took place over the weekend in Goa, India. It has been seven years since the first BRIC Summit was held in 2009. What is the group’s role in global governance? What challenges does it face and how should the five countries further enhance their cooperation in the future? During a just concluded forum held by Beijing-based think tank Pangoal Institution, experts shared their views on these issues. He Yafei, former Chinese vice foreign minister Over the past years, BRICS has developed into a crucial cooperative platform of politics, economics, finance, development and culture for its five members. BRICS represents 42 percent of the world’s population and accounts for about 20 percent of the world’s GDP, making it the major engine driving global economic growth. The group’s contribution to the world’s economic growth over the past decade has exceeded 50 percent. China and India have played vital roles. Regular meetings among BRICS members’ heads of state have further enhanced coordination and collaboration in terms of financial reforms, climate change and trade frictions not only among these five countries, but also around the world. The organization will keep promoting common development for all developing nations, benefitting long-term sustainable development, helping overcome negative influences of globalization, bridging the rich-poor gap worldwide and leading the world into a new era of globalization. Zhu Feng, executive director of the Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies at Nanjing University Look at the turmoil in Brazil, China’s economic slowdown and Russia’s economic recession, and  it can be argued that the idea of the “emerging economy” has come to an end. The lesson we can learn from BRICS is far more than the experiences and achievements we have gained. For the moment, whether BRICS can reach sustainable development is of great importance to the bloc’s future. The huge divergences among the member states can be mirrored in not only different social systems and levels of development, but also in distinct cultures. In light of this, what is holding all five nations together? The answer remains unclear. Over the past two years, no substantial progress has been made at BRICS summits. Brazil and South Africa are now facing huge economic difficulties. Yet BRICS has not yet provided strong support to them. This means that BRICS’s cooperative mechanism and capacity for action are getting worse. Therefore, finding out what exactly are our common interests and common challenges is the biggest lesson to be learned from the current BRICS cooperation mechanism. Sun Yanfeng, assistant director of the Department of Latin American Studies at China’s Institute of Contemporary International Relations BRICS is indeed facing a number of structural problems. Apart from economic issues and political crises among some members, specific differences, such as divergences on India and Brazil’s bids for permanent membership on the United Nations Security Council, as well as India’s wish to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group, have also brought troubles to the group. However, I believe BRICS is of great significance to China. Being a multilateral mechanism, BRICS will bring a huge boost to bilateral cooperation among its member states. In addition, China is a bit isolated for the moment in terms of diplomacy. Hence Beijing needs to collaborate with partners that share similar ideas. As long as these five states can stay together, change will happen. That’s why we must ponder carefully over how to overcome difficulties in BRICS. Since the group was formed in 2009, the biggest complaint about it is that it is no more than a club for empty talks. BRICS has proposed quite a number of ambitious plans, yet few have been fully carried out. For example, there is no permanent secretariat to coordinate all the members. As far as I am concerned, the biggest issue is that BRICS countries have not yet realized the benefits the group can bring to them. Hence, we should put more efforts into relaxed visa policies and tax preferences. Xu Xiujun, deputy director of institute of World Economic and Politics at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences BRICS’ contribution to world economic growth over the past years has reached 50 percent. The figure can well illustrate the importance of the group. The crucial task for now is how to connect all the strategies of all member states together. China has the “One Belt and One Road” initiative, India has the Mausam Project, Russia initiated the Eurasian Economic Union - linking all these together under the BRICS framework while enhancing strategic and political trust among members should be a top priority for the future. Wang Liyong, director of Strategic Research Division at Research Office of International Department of Central Committee, Communist Party of China As with many BRICS forums, we hear different views about the organization. There are people who doubt it, and those who believe in it. The truth is, collaboration among BRICS members is rapidly developing. Though BRICS was formed only seven years ago, a series of mechanisms have been established. Regular meeting of BRICS heads of state, communication among senior representatives on security issues, gatherings of foreign ministers, dialogues among think tanks and the establishment of the BRICS New Development Bank are proof of our achievements. Western nations seldom invest in infrastructural projects in developing countries, given the low profits. But the NDB aims at mobilizing resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in emerging economies. In this way, it complements the original world financial order. (Editor’s Note in Global Times)