Nigeria and 12 other nations have been admitted as partner nations to the BRICS bloc of nations, following the decision taken during the three-day BRICS Summit which ended on Thursday in Kazan, Russia.
The other partner-countries to the BRICS are Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
According to information circulated on some of the decisions taken at the forum, the announcement of Nigeria and other countries as partners to the BRICS is aimed at strengthening the BRICS’ economic ties with emerging economies and foster international cooperation.
BRICS, which originally composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, primarily focuses on promoting trade, investment, and development among key emerging markets.
While countries like Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE gained full membership in January 2024, Nigeria was admitted as a partner nation due to increase in foreign capital inflows from BRICS nations into the country
Data on investment inflows to the country showed that foreign capital investments from the BRICS to Nigeria surged by 189% in the first half of 2024, totalling $1.27 billion and represented a substantial rise from the $438.72 million recorded during the same period in 2023.
Analysts believe that Nigeria’s inclusion in BRICS is expected to boost its multilateral trade and investment prospects with the other member-countries, thereby further integrating the nation into the global economy as it continues to strengthen its partnership with other emerging markets in the bloc.
