Nigeria has officially joined the BRICS bloc as a partner country, alongside 12 other nations, in a move that is expected to further bolster its economic ties with the intergovernmental group. The announcement was made during the ongoing BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, which is being held from October 22 to 24, 2024.
The inclusion of Nigeria comes after a remarkable surge in foreign capital inflows from BRICS nations, which soared by 189% in the first half of 2024. This amounted to $1.27 billion, a significant increase from $438.72 million during the same period in 2023.
Apart from Nigeria, the newly added partner countries are Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. These nations have been designated as partner countries rather than full members.
The official BRICS bloc posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, stating, “BRICS officially adds 13 new nations to the alliance as partner countries (not full members).” This expansion follows the admission of Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates as full BRICS members in January 2024. These four countries attended their first BRICS summit as full members at this year’s gathering in Russia.
BRICS, initially founded in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China (BRIC), expanded to include South Africa in 2010, at which point the bloc rebranded as BRICS. The group aims to enhance trade, investment, development, security, and cooperation among major emerging market economies.
The 2024 summit, held under the theme “Strengthening Multilateralism for Fair Global Development and Security,” marks the sixteenth annual gathering of the bloc and underscores its commitment to deepening economic integration with key emerging nations.
