BRICS

Source: PIB
GS II: International Relations- Important International Institutions

Why in the News?

India under its 2026 BRICS Presidencyis set to host the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on 12-13 September 2026. This marks India’s fourth Chairship of BRICS.

News in Brief

• BRICS has expanded from the original four-member BRIC grouping to 11 full members, increasing its geographical, demographic and economic significance.
• India’s 2026 Chairship is guided by the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”
• During its Chairship, India held more than 350 meetings and high-level engagements across 25 cities, producing several cooperation initiatives in agriculture, health, energy, infrastructure, MSMEs, startups and global value chains.
• India aims to strengthen BRICS as a constructive platform for inclusive global governance, practical cooperation and the interests of the Global South.

Aims, Objectives and Areas of Cooepration

• BRICS was established as a platform for dialogue and coordination on major global political and economic issues.
• It seeks to promote a more democratic, legitimate and balanced international order, while advancing sustainable development, social inclusion and shared prosperity among emerging economies.
• Over time, BRICS cooperation has expanded to cover a wide range of strategic and developmental issues, including;
• • Terrorism and security
  • Climate change
  • Food and energy security
  • Trade and agriculture
  • Labour and employment
  • Telecommunications and technology
  • International finance and the global economy
• The grouping also advocates greater representation and equity for emerging and developing countries in international institutions, including the WTO and the global financial architecture.
• Overall, BRICS seeks to make global governance more inclusive, representative and responsive to contemporary challenges.

Evolution of BRICS

• The 2008 global financial crisis was a turning point in the evolution of BRICS.
• It exposed weaknesses in the existing global financial architecture and encouraged the BRIC countries to coordinate their positions on global economic governance.
• They called for a more representative international financial system, greater voice for emerging economies in the IMF and World Bank, and opposed protectionism while supporting an open, rules-based multilateral trading system.
• This cooperation paved the way for the first BRIC Summit in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in 2009.
• BRIC had formally emerged as a political cooperation forum in 2006, comprising Brazil, Russia, India and China.
• South Africa joined as a full member in 2011, transforming BRIC into BRICS and expanding its geographical representation.
• Over time, the grouping’s agenda widened beyond economic issues to include development, finance, health, climate action, technology and trade.

Expansion of BRICS

• A major expansion took place in January 2024, when Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE became full members. Indonesia joined in January 2025, becoming the eleventh full member.
• BRICS also introduced a Partner Country category to expand structured engagement.
• In 2025, ten countries joined this framework, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vietnam.
• The Partner Country Framework expands BRICS outreach without altering its full-membership structure.
• It strengthens South-South Cooperation and creates opportunities for collaboration in trade, finance, climate action, and sustainable development.
• Overall, BRICS  has evolved from a four-country economic dialogue into a broader framework for political, economic, financial and social cooperation, with greater geographical representation and a stronger role in global governance.

BRICS Presidency

• The BRICS Presidency rotates annually among member countries.
• Each Presidency runs from 1 January to 31 December.
• The country holding the Presidency,
  • Sets the priorities for the year’s agenda
  • Hosts the annual BRICS Summit
  • Organizes  and steers key ministerial and working-group meetings.
• With the expansion of BRICS membership, member countries are also discussing a new formula for the rotation of the Presidency.

India’s BRICS Leadership: Key Milestones and Outcomes

• Before 2026, India had chaired BRICS in 2012, 2016 and 2021.
• Each Chairship reflected the priorities and challenges of its time, while demonstrating India’s sustained engagement with the grouping and its commitment to constructive multilateralism and the interests of developing economies.

2012 : Laying the Foundation for Stronger Cooperation

• India hosted the Fourth BRICS Summit in New Delhi on 29 March 2012 under the theme “BRICS Partnership for Global Stability, Security and Prosperity.”
• Discussions focused on global governance reform, sustainable development, food security and energy security.
• The Summit adopted the Delhi Declaration and an Action Plan for strengthening BRICS cooperation, providing a stronger foundation for institutional and sectoral engagement. Key outcomes included the proposal to establish a New Development Bank (NDB) to support infrastructure and sustainable development, the Master Agreement on Extending Credit Facility in Local Currency to promote intra-BRICS trade, and the groundwork for the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) as a financial safety mechanism. India also institutionalised cooperation in agriculture, health and science.

2016: Goa Summit and Expanded BRICS Outreach

• India hosted the Eighth BRICS Summit in Goa in October 2016 under the theme “Building Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions.”
• India’s Chairship focused on strengthening intra-BRICS cooperation and expanding outreach, with emphasis on counter-terrorism, trade, innovation and multilateral coordination.
• The period saw the operationalisation of the New Development Bank, including its initial loans, particularly for renewable energy projects.
• BRICS also prioritised renewable energy access, clean energy transition and energy security, while strengthening cooperation on health issues such as HIV and tuberculosis.
• India secured stronger language on combating terrorism and promoted adherence to Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards.
• The BIMSTEC Outreach Summit further expanded BRICS engagement with the wider Bay of Bengal region.
• Cooperation mechanisms such as the BRICS Agriculture Research Platform, BRICS Railway Research Network and BRICS Sports Council were also advanced, along with youth-centric initiatives.

2021: Consolidating Cooperation in a Changing World

• India hosted the 13th BRICS Summit virtually on 9 September 2021, marking the 15th anniversary of BRICS.
• The theme was “BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus.”
• India focused on strengthening institutional continuity, deepening cooperation and building consensus among members.
• The Chairship advanced cooperation in health, digital technologies, counter-terrorism and sustainable development.
• Major outcomes included the adoption of a unified BRICS Counter-Terrorism Action Plan and the hosting of the first BRICS Digital Health Summit.
• A BRICS Vaccine Research and Development Centre was launched to strengthen collective preparedness for future pandemics.
• The Chairship also advanced cooperation on the BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation, enabling the sharing of remote-sensing data for environmental protection, disaster management and climate monitoring.
• India further introduced initiatives such as the BRICS Alliance for Green Tourism and the first BRICS Water Ministers Meeting.

BRICS 2026: Key Outcomes

• India assumed its fourth BRICS Chairship on 1 January 2026.
• During the year, it convened ministerial meetings and engagements across priority areas of cooperation.
• These discussions advanced cooperation under BRICS’ three pillars: political and security cooperation, economic and financial cooperation, and cultural and people-to-people exchanges.
• More than 350 meetings and high-level engagements across 25 cities generated several practical and development-oriented outcomes.

Agriculture and Food Systems

• Agreement on BRICS Centres of Excellence on Agro-Ecology to promote joint research, knowledge-sharing and capacity building in natural, organic and regenerative farming.
• Establishment of the BRICS Network on Digital Agriculture to promote AI-driven decision-making, geospatial intelligence, IoT-enabled monitoring and data analytics in agriculture.
• BRICS AGRIN (Agro-Inputs, Genetic Resources and Information Network) was agreed upon as a voluntary, farmer-centric framework for cooperation in seeds, germplasm and agricultural inputs.

Health and Well-Being

• Launch of the BRICS Mission for Healthy Lifestyle, along with a roadmap for 2026–2029, focusing on preventive approaches to obesity and other non-communicable diseases.
• Establishment of the BRICS Expert Working Group on Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine (TCIM) for cooperation in research, evidence generation, capacity building and the protection of traditional and indigenous knowledge.
• Greater focus on mental health through the BRICS Training Hub Network and the BRICS Network of Centres of Excellence, with NIMHANS India as the coordinating centre.
• Adoption of principles to strengthen climate resilience through community-based adaptation and promote academic collaboration on traditional and indigenous knowledge systems.

Sustainable Lifestyles and Skilling

• Promotion of sustainable lifestyles through a Network of BRICS Institutions for Knowledge Sharing, Research and Innovation and Sustainable Lifestyles Week.
• Launch of BRICS CONNECT for Skilling, a cooperation network focusing on social security, women’s workforce participation, skills and employability, and digital public infrastructure.

Energy and Urban Development

• Adoption of the BRICS Guiding Principles on Energy Storage and Smart Grids and the launch of the BRICS Digital Centre of Excellence for Smart Grids and Energy Storage.
• Establishment of the BRICS Urban Mobility Hub and adoption of voluntary principles for climate-resilient urban infrastructure.
• Creation of a BRICS Urban Research and Knowledge Network to promote applied research, peer learning and institutional collaboration.

MSMEs, Startups and Innovation

• Establishment of the BRICS MSME Cooperation Portal, along with a Dialogue on MSME Finance and a Workplan on the Internationalisation of MSMEs.
• Creation of the BRICS Incubator Network to connect incubators, national nodal agencies and startups across member countries.
• Proposal for a BRICS Startup Innovation Fund to support early and growth-stage startups.
• Development of the BRICS Science and Research Repository as a platform for scientific knowledge storage and sharing.

Trade, Logistics and Global Value Chains

• Adoption of the BRICS Logistics Supply-Chain Cooperation Framework to improve transport logistics resilience, connectivity and sustainability.
• Advancement of cooperation on global value chains through the GVC Action Plan 2026–2030, including a Technical Council and Joint Study.
• In-principle approval of the BRICS Agreement on Cooperation and Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters to promote trade facilitation, lower transaction costs and address illicit trade.
• An MoU on cooperation in standardisation to strengthen quality infrastructure, technical cooperation and reduce technical barriers to trade.

Youth and Sports

• Adoption of the BRICS Youth Cooperation Framework 2026 to provide continuity and structure to cooperation under the BRICS Youth Track.
• Institutionalisation of sport technology cooperation through a new Working Group for sharing research, technical knowledge and best practices.

Overall, the outcomes of ministerial meetings under India’s 2026 BRICS Chairship reflect an emphasis on practical cooperation, innovation, inclusive growth, sustainable development and strengthening the voice of the Global South.

Conclusion

India’s 2026 BRICS Chairship highlights the grouping focus on practical cooperation, inclusive growth and the Global South, while strengthening BRICS as a platform for a more representative and inclusive global order.

UPSC Prelims and Mains Practice Question

Consider the following statements regarding BRICS:

1. The expansion of BRICS has increased its representation of the Global South but may also make consensus-building more complex due to the diversity of members’ economic and geopolitical interests.
2. The Partner Country category enables wider engagement with BRICS without granting full membership to participating countries.
3. BRICS cooperation is limited to economic and financial issues.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (a) 1 and 2 only

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