By Emmanuel Nduka
As a group of world leaders meet at the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, South Africa this week, topmost on their agenda would be working out modalities to reduce reliance on the US dollar.
BRICS is a group of five countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, with emerging economies that want to instate their own world economic and trade systems.
They are now discussing creating a new currency, even as dozens of other countries are pushing to join the group.
The New Development Bank set up by the BRICS nations plans to begin lending in the South African and Brazilian currencies, as part of their plans to reduce reliance on the dollar and promote a more multipolar international financial system, according to its president.
Dilma Rousseff, the former Brazilian leader who heads the bank, also said the Shanghai-based lender was considering applications for membership from about 15 countries and was likely to approve the admission of four or five, but declined to name the countries but said it was a priority for the NDB to diversify its geographic representation.
More than 40 countries have said they want to join BRICS and 22 have submitted applications. “This growing coalition is a testament to the increasing influence of BRICS in the international arena and its potential to shape the future of global finance,” the group said.
Iran, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, Bolivia, Indonesia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Cuba, Algeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Comoros and Gabon are among the countries that have said they are interested in joining BRICS
These countries are hopeful that by joining, they will have more economic benefits than under the current Western economic and trade model.
