This year marks 20 years of BRICS, with India set to host the grouping’s leaders’ summit this weekend. The anniversary offers an opportune moment to assess BRICS’ growing importance at a time when the effectiveness of global governance and the credibility of multilateralism are under increasing scrutiny. More importantly, the grouping’s expanding economic weight gives it an opportunity to contribute to a more balanced and inclusive global development architecture.

 

BRICS has acquired growing geopolitical significance as the international system moves from a predominantly west-led order towards a more multipolar one. Its expansion from five members to 11, alongside 10 partner countries, has strengthened its position as the largest South-South grouping. The enlargement reflects the aspirations of emerging and developing economies seeking a more equitable voice in global governance and a greater role in shaping the international economic architecture commensurate with their growing economic weight.

 

BRICS has become an important pillar of the emerging global economic order, reflecting the rising contribution of developing and emerging economies. The grouping now accounts for around 27% of global GDP. Its per capita GDP is approximately US$6,758 in purchasing power parity terms, while its GDP growth averaged about 6.2% over 2003–24 (UNCTAD, 2026). These figures point to a significant shift in the geographical distribution of global economic activity. Yet economic weight does not automatically translate into institutional power.

 

The evolution of BRICS trade demonstrates the potential of South-South economic cooperation. Intra-BRICS trade in goods increased more than 13-fold, from $84.2 billion in 2003 to $1.17 trillion in 2024 on the export side, growing at an average annual rate of 13.3%. This was significantly faster than the growth of global trade, at 5.7%, and South-South trade, at 9.5%, over the same period (UNCTAD, 2026). However, the scale of intra-BRICS trade remains modest relative to the grouping’s economic size and trading capacity. It accounts for only about 5% of world trade and 20% of South-South trade. 

 

BRICS does not seek to replace the existing multilateral system. Its broader significance lies in changing the distribution of influence within that system and creating greater policy space for the Global South. This is where its institutional initiatives assume importance. The New Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) represent attempts to complement existing financial mechanisms and provide developing economies with additional options.

 

The NDB has the potential to become one of BRICS’ most consequential instruments for the Global South. Its next phase should focus on mobilising additional resources, expanding local-currency lending, diversifying funding sources and increasing co-financing with other multilateral development banks. Most importantly, it should remain member-led and demand-driven, responding to the development priorities of borrowing countries rather than imposing a uniform model.

 

BRICS’ influence can also extend beyond finance and trade. Cooperation on technology, digital payments, local-currency financing, supply-chain resilience and skills development could help members reduce vulnerabilities and strengthen their collective bargaining power in shaping international economic rules.

 

The relevance of BRICS increasingly extends to broader development challenges facing the Global South. The grouping has, for instance, sought to strengthen women’s participation in economic transformation through entrepreneurship, financial inclusion and digital empowerment, including through platforms such as the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance.

 

Supply-chain disruptions have similarly exposed the vulnerabilities of developing economies and highlighted the need for more resilient and diversified production networks. Initiatives such as the BRICS Logistics Supply-Chain Cooperation Framework and cooperation on global value chains under the GVC Action Plan 2026–30 seek to strengthen logistics resilience, promote knowledge sharing, enhance value-chain cooperation and support economic diversification.

 

These initiatives point towards a broader conception of South-South cooperation – one that moves beyond trade towards building productive capacity, resilience and inclusive growth. 

 

The larger question facing BRICS is the future of multilateralism itself. The world is now more interconnected, complex and multipolar than when many of the institutions governing international relations were established. For emerging and developing economies, reform is not simply about securing greater representation; it is about ensuring that global institutions remain capable of addressing contemporary economic, social and environmental challenges.

 

This gives BRICS both an opportunity and a responsibility. Its members can push for reforms that make international institutions more representative, responsive and accountable, while simultaneously demonstrating that stronger South-South cooperation can produce practical development outcomes.

 

The long-term relevance of BRICS will not lie in replacing the existing global economic architecture. Its value lies in helping make that architecture more diversified, representative and responsive; strengthening South-South cooperation; expanding development finance; and giving emerging economies a stronger collective voice in global economic governance.

 

The next stage of BRICS must therefore move beyond declarations towards implementation. Its growing economic weight provides considerable leverage, but influence will depend on how effectively that weight can be translated into collective action, deeper economic and development cooperation and institutional reforms.

 

Twenty years after its emergence, BRICS stands at a crossroad. A more multipolar world is already taking shape. The question is whether BRICS can help make that world more democratic, inclusive and equitable.