Nigeria, 12 Other Nations Officially Added As BRICS Partner Countries

October 24, (THEWILL) – Nigeria has been recognised as one of 13 nations officially added to BRICS as a partner country, a bloc that collectively accounts for one-fifth of global trade.

“BRICS officially adds 13 new nations to the alliance as partner countries (not full members)”, the bloc said on Wednesday, in a post on X.

Nigeria and 12 other countries including Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan and Vietnam, were officially absorbed into the bloc on Wednesday.

Nigeria’s inclusion comes on the heels of a significant surge in foreign capital inflows from BRICS nations, which rose by 189% in the first half of 2024, reaching $1.27 billion, compared to $438.72 million during the same period in 2023.

Currently chaired by Russia, BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, and China, was established in 2009 as a cooperation platform for emerging economies, with South Africa joining in 2010.

The bloc has since expanded to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.

BRICS represents about 40 percent of the global population and accounts for a cumulative gross domestic product (GDP) of US$26.6 trillion, or 26.2 percent of the world’s GDP, nearly matching the economic strength of the Group of Seven (G7). (US$1 = RM4.34).

The G7 is an informal grouping of seven of the world’s advanced economies, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.