With the Brics+ summit having concluded in Brazil this week, questions remain about the purpose of this growing bloc. The summit's joint declaration reaffirmed the group's commitment to multilateralism and the possibility of a Brics-Africa partnership.
The declining dominion of the Bretton Woods system and the undermining of global institutions mean that there is a fast-growing gap in global governance. Who will step into the vacuum is a question that lies at the heart of the current era of turbulence.
New leadership with a fresh approach to sustainable economic development is urgently needed. With its diverse Global South footprint and collective economic and financial strength, Brics+ can step up and show the leadership needed.
But for the forum to thrive, it cannot work in the way other global organisations and platforms have done in the past. It needs to think hard about partnerships and establish a working model for mutual development. An Africa-Brics+ partnership presents a novel opportunity to recast the continent’s developmental trajectory.
Africa’s development stands at the heart of reaping long-term economic rewards, considering that the continent is set to be the next economic engine for the world
Africa’s development stands at the heart of reaping long-term economic rewards, considering that the continent is set to be the next economic engine for the world.
The ingredients for this shift are already there: a young, growing population hungry for opportunity (by mid-century one in five people on the planet will be African); and a proven ability to leapfrog technologically — Africa did it with telecommunications and is taking big steps towards a reliable energy mix dominated by renewable energy.
Add in closer Global South trading ties and initiatives such as the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and there is the rich potential to create a common market larger than India, which would be able to offer the highest rates of return on investment.
The Economist has identified African youth as the future bank of labour for the rich world. They still play into the stereotype that the rich world needs cheap labour to take care of them. Most of the world does not yet realise it could be reaping major rewards by investing in Africa’s youth in a very different way.
Most of the world is still comfortable using old metrics instead of finding out more about what’s happening in Africa. Brics+ can move away from this stuck development paradigm and from a playbook that is so cautious it cannot see opportunity. Traditional sources of investment and finance from the Global North often see Africa as “too risky”. Brics+ countries are more robust because they are more familiar with the context.
One of the key challenges for Africa is a lack of access to affordable capital. Investors in the Global North do not want to invest because of outdated perceptions about African countries. Brics+ has an opportunity to move past these stereotypes and look at Africa through a different lens.
Our work shows that African leaders, especially Brics+ members South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia and Nigeria, are critical in changing perceptions through designing and implementing strategies to lower the cost of capital, reform African risk assessments and build more resilient, nature-positive economies.
Moreover, they can play a significant role in resetting Africa’s global trade relationships, ensuring the continent secures a fair share of institutional, private and developmental finance.
Brics+ needs to advocate for Africa’s sustainable economic transition, support technology partnerships and invest in renewable energy expansion, including modern grids, whether micro or larger.
Brics+ should also press for more processing of critical minerals in Africa, instead of rehashing the extractive model. In this way, Brics+ can be at the centre of the green industrialisation and economic development of the continent.
As the geoeconomic landscape shifts, there are new opportunities to be grasped. China has already given 53 African countries a zero-tariff boost to exports and value chains. This could serve as a model for trade, as the US pulls away from Agoa.
An Africa-Brics+ partnership presents three major opportunities for Brics+. It gives it a working model that would set it apart from legacy groups dominated by the Global North that have excluded the growth and development of the Global South for generations. It unlocks major markets in the form of an industrialised Africa. And it would turn Brics+ into a geopolitical and economic powerhouse, not only because of the economic growth that would be unlocked, but also because of the confidence that willing countries around the world would have in associating and trading with the bloc.
• Nkomo is Africa programme manager, University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
