South Africa will work with BRICS partners to advance the African agenda for economic growth, development and integration and to advocate for the Global South, says President Cyril Ramaphosa.
South Africa is the 2023 chair of the BRICS grouping (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and will host a summit of BRICS and African leaders in Durban this August.
President Ramaphosa told parliament he is inviting a number of African leaders to the summit. The aim was to unlock mutually beneficial opportunities for increased trade, investment and infrastructure development.
“We are focusing, in particular, on opportunities that will generate economic growth on the continent, particularly through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and infrastructure.”
He believed that there were great opportunities for BRICS countries to participate in infrastructure development and the AfCFTA by locating production and services activities on the continent and partnering with local companies and entrepreneurs.
Image: Leaders of Russia, China, Brazil, South Africa and India at the last in-person BRICS Summit held in Brazil in 2019. Photo: Alan Santos/PR
