Frequently Asked Questions about the BRICS

The BRICS is a group formed by ten countries: Brasil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Iran.

The BRICS serves as a political and diplomatic coordination forum for countries from the Global South and for coordination in the most diverse areas. It does not have a constitutive treaty, its own budget, or a permanent secretariat.

The members of the BRICS include Brasil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia, and Iran.

The group was originally composed of Brasil, Russia, India, and China, and was expanded for the first time with the admission of South Africa in 2011.

During the 15th Summit in Johannesburg, in August 2023, the BRICS leaders decided for a new expansion, admitting Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Indonesia formally accepted the invitation to join the group in 2024. On January 6, 2025, the Brasil Rotating[2]  Presidency officially announced Indonesia’s formal entry.

In line with the Johannesburg Declaration, the leaders approved the creation of the “BRICS partner country” status during the 16th BRICS Summit, held in Kazan in August 2024.

In December 2024, the then-Russian BRICS Presidency announced the entry as partner countries of Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, and Uzbekistan as of January 1st, 2025.  Also in January, Nigeria formally accepted the invitation to become a BRICS partner country.

The Global South refers to a group of developing countries primarily located in the Southern Hemisphere, including Latin America, Africa, Southern Asia, and Southeast Asia. These countries share characteristics such as diversified economies, social challenges, and often act in coordination at international forums to advocate for reforms in the global economic and political order. Their goals include fostering economic cooperation, strengthening their negotiating power in international forums, reducing dependency on developed countries, promoting sustainable development, and re-balancing global power. These countries are represented by groups such as BRICS, the G77 + China, and the African Union.

The expansion of the BRICS full membership took effect on January 1, 2024, following a decision by the leaders during the XV BRICS Summit in August 2023, in Johannesburg.

The expansion was guided by the criteria and guidelines negotiated by the original members, including: i) geographic balance; ii) good relations with all BRICS members; iii) support for global governance reforms, and a clear stance in favor of reforming the UN and its Security Council; and iv) no imposition of unilateral sanctions.

The BRICS does not have a constitutive treaty, its own budget, or a permanent secretariat.

The presidency rotates annually, with the incumbent responsible for organizing and sponsoring the group’s activities.

Over time, leaders’ declarations and ministerial statements have formed a legacy of shared decisions and positions that underpin the group’s work.

The choice of the rotating presidency does not follow an electoral process. The presidency rotates among its members. Presently, the definition of the presiding country follows the order of the acronym, starting annually on January 1 and ending on December 31.

India will assume the BRICS Presidency in 2026.

The BRICS does not constitute an international organization, nor a formal group. Rather, it is a forum, a group, or a coordination and cooperation mechanism among countries of the Global South.

In order to accede to the BRICS as a member, a country must go through the following stages: 1) declaration as a country interested in becoming a BRICS member; 2) potential BRICS member state; and 3) BRICS member state.

A country is considered interested when its highest leadership or minister of Foreign Affairs formally communicates its desire to become a member of the BRICS to the mechanism’s rotating presidency.

Next, the BRICS rotating presidency shares the group’s guiding principles, standards, and criteria related to the adhesion process with the interested country, and forwards the country’s formal interest statement to the BRICS members.

The member country Sherpas will then analyze the requests and issue recommendations for the consideration of the BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs, who will decide whether to elevate the candidates to the consideration of the presidents.

The final decision regarding the adhesion is reached through consensus among the BRICS leaders.

In order to accede to the BRICS as a partner, a country must go through the following stages: 1) declaration as a country interested in becoming a BRICS partner; 2) potential BRICS partner state; and 3) BRICS partner state.

A country is considered interested in becoming a BRICS partner when its Head of State or Government or minister of Foreign Affairs formally communicates its interest to the BRICS rotating presidency.

The BRICS rotating presidency will share the group’s guiding principles, standards, and agreed criteria for a Partner Country with the interested country.

The president of the BRICS forwards the country’s formal interest statement to the BRICS members. The member country Sherpas will consider the requests and issue recommendations for the consideration of the BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs.

The BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs will issue recommendations of possible Partner Countries for the consideration of the BRICS Heads of State or Government.

The decision regarding the status of partner countries will be made by the Heads of State or Government of the BRICS member countries, through consensus.

The admission criteria for partner countries, as well as their level of engagement within the group, are defined in a document that sets the creation of the modality

The criteria include: maintaining geographic balance; upholding good diplomatic relations with all full members of the group; refraining from adopting sanctions without authorization from the UNSC; being a member of the United Nations; supporting multilateralism; and committing to global governance reform.

They will be individually invited to sessions of the Summit and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs meetings.

They may be invited by the rotating presidency to attend other meetings, subject to consultation and consensus among member countries.

Partner countries may also endorse BRICS Summit Declarations, BRICS Foreign Ministers' Joint Declarations, and other final documents.

The BRICS leaders decided to create the partner country modality during the Kazan Summit (October 2024).

Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrein, Bangladesh, Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Honduras, Indonesia, Kuwait, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Morocco, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Palestine, Syria, Thailand, Türkiye, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe.

After informal consultations conducted by the Russian Rotating Presidency and following the criteria of geographic balance, maintenance of good diplomatic relations with all members of the group, and a decision by consensus, among others, the BRICS leaders decided to invite 14 countries to join the BRICS.

With the conclusion of the consultation process, the list of countries that have accepted the invitation to enter the BRICS as partners includes Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, and Uzbekistan. In January 2025, Nigeria formally accepted the invitation to become a partner country.

Yes. During the XV BRICS Summit, which took place in Johannesburg between August 22 and 24, 2023, Argentina was one of the six countries invited to become members of the BRICS as of January 2024.

Argentina has declined the invitation to join the BRICS.

One of the priorities of the Brazilian BRICS Presidency will be to fully integrate the new members and partners into the BRICS activities. A new expansion process is not currently expected.

Any possible expressions of interest in joining BRICS will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with the established criteria and principles.

The new configuration strengthens the capacity of Global South countries to engage on priority international issues, such as the reform of global governance institutions and the promotion of sustainable development.

The expansion of BRICS thus represents a victory for all countries advocating for a more just, democratic, and balanced international order.

Together, the member countries form a group with significant global participation in areas such as geography, economics, trade, energy, and food, enabling the establishment of expanded partnerships and strengthening cooperation for development.

The BRICS countries form a group with significant global participation in areas such as geography, economics, trade, energy, and food, enabling the establishment of expanded partnerships and strengthening cooperation for development.

Since the creation of the term BRICS, the original members have expanded their participation in the global GDP. In 2003, the economies of Brasil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa jointly represented a little over 20% of the global GDP in PPP (at current rates); in 2023, the group expanded its participation to 33% of the global GDP in PPP, totaling approximately USD 60 trillion. Considering the recent adhesion of Indonesia and the five members that joined in 2024 (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Iran), the participation of the BRICS in the global GDP increased to approximately 40% in 2023.

The IMF projects that, in 2024, all BRICS countries will have experienced positive economic growth, with rates ranging from 1% to 6%.

In international trade, all original BRICS members, including South Africa, have expanded their presence, increasing their combined participation from nearly 18% in 2003 (at current rates) to 22% in 2023. With the addition of Indonesia and five new members in 2024, BRICS' share of international trade reached 26% in 2023.

Intra-BRICS trade has grown significantly since the early 21st century. In 2000, the total was close to USD 17 billion, while by 2020, it had reached USD 334 billion, highlighting the complementarity of the members' economies.

Brasil’s trade with BRICS countries totaled USD 204 billion, representing 35.2% of its total trade in 2023. BRICS was the destination for USD 127 billion of Brazilian exports (37% of total exports) and the source of USD 77 billion of Brazilian imports (32% of total imports) in 2023. Brasil’s trade balance with BRICS countries totaled USD 50 billion, making up 50% of its overall trade balance.

In terms of population and territory, BRICS represents 49.5% of the world’s population (with a tendency to grow above the global average) and 38.3% of the global territory. It includes members from four continents: America, Asia, Europe, and Africa.

In the energy and natural resources sectors, BRICS accounts for 44% of global production and 44% of the world’s oil reserves, 38% of global natural gas production, and 55% of the world’s natural gas reserves. It also holds 72% of the world’s rare mineral reserves. According to the World Bank (2021), the ten BRICS countries control approximately 32% of the world’s agricultural land (15,141,490 km²). With the addition of Indonesia, this share is expected to increase to around 33%.

According to FAO data (2023), the 11 BRICS countries represented a significant portion of global food production, with notable shares in: corn (43%), poultry (41%), pork (56%), rice (61%), soybeans (53%), wheat (47%), oranges (57%), potatoes (50%), cow milk (34%), beef (32%), sheep meat (43%), and goat meat (61%).