Interview: BRICS brings Global South together in a turbulent world, says South Africa’s BRICS ambassador

By Xinhua

JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) — The 15th BRICS Summit has brought together the Global South to ensure its voice is heard in a world defined by power imbalances, said South Africa’s BRICS ambassador Anil Sooklal.

“We live in a very divided, highly polarized world community. And the Global South continues to be marginalized, unfortunately,” Sooklal told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Hosted by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, the 15th BRICS Summit has garnered global attention not seen in years. Sooklal said the group’s world vision is crucial for a prosperous world economy and greater democratic international relations.

“It’s for the first time in recent geopolitics that you have such a collective and a powerful body representing the voice of the Global South,” said the ambassador.

President Ramaphosa has invited nearly 70 leaders from across Africa, Latin America and Asia, among other regions, to South Africa. He said that the world awaits the possible expansion of BRICS while some 40 countries from the Global South have expressed interest in joining the group.

“We are not averse to working with the (Global) North. But the power imbalances between the North and the South need to be readdressed,” Sooklal explained.

People walk near the venue of the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Aug. 20, 2023. (Xinhua/Zhang Yudong)

The bloc currently accounts for nearly 42 percent of the global population, while the Global South is 85 percent. “We are the majority, but we are treated as the minority. And this is what we are trying to address through BRICS,” he added.

Another central focus of the summit is the greater use of local currencies among the bloc and the possibility of a BRICS currency.

“What we want is a diversified global monetary system, our own payment systems, which would not be held hostage to one or two currencies through which we must trade to our detriment,” he explained.

He expects the summit to strengthen the interaction between Africa and BRICS while shoring up Global South influence.

“BRICS is about partnership. It’s about cooperation. It’s about working together. And I think this gives us an opportunity to strengthen the interaction between Africa and BRICS,” he said.

“I hope the summit could bring a promising future of fairness and prosperity for the Global South,” Sooklal noted.

BRICS is an acronym for five emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. South Africa assumed the BRICS presidency on Jan. 1, 2023, taking over from China.■