By Spy Uganda
Kampala: Uganda has officially become the first East African nation to join BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa), a move that marks a major shift in its international trade and investment opportunities.
Uganda, along with 12 other nations was announced as a new partner country at the BRICS Summit held on October 24, 2024, in Kazan, Russia.
“We welcome THIRTEEN new partner countries; Vietnam, Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Turkey, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Uganda, and Uzbekistan,” said BRICS confirmed.
The inclusion of Uganda in this influential alliance is expected to strengthen its economic ties with major emerging economies, opening doors for greater foreign investment, expanded trade partnerships and access to advanced technologies.
By joining BRICS, Uganda positions itself to benefit from the bloc’s collective economic power, which represents 40% of the world’s population and accounts for 26.2% of global GDP.
The expansion of BRICS which now includes countries such as Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the UAE, offers Uganda a platform for deeper integration into the global economy and reduced dependency on Western financial systems.
https://x.com/BRICSinfo/status/1849188857620918642
With this strategic move, Uganda could see accelerated economic growth and stronger resilience in the face of global financial shifts, particularly as BRICS explores alternatives to the U.S. dollar in international trade.
Speaking at the summit, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the U.S. dollar is still the most important tool in global finance, but its use as a political weapon undermines trust in the currency.
He said BRICS’ GDP is significantly higher than the G7 countries. The BRICS countries account for 35% of global GDP, while the G7 only represents 30%, according to reports.
During the ongoing summit, Putin also proposed a plan to create a BRICS-based grain exchange.
“A number of BRICS countries are among the world’s largest producers of grain, vegetables, and oilseeds. We propose opening a BRICS grain exchange, which would facilitate the formation of fair and predictable price indicators for products and raw materials, taking into account their special role in ensuring food security,” Putin said.
Meanwhile, his Chinese counterpart President Xi Jinping emphasized the need for fairness, justice, and resisting external pressure.
“We choose our development paths independently, jointly defend our right to development, and march in tandem toward modernization,” Xi said and also tasked BRICS members to build the multilateral mechanism into a major venue of solidarity and cooperation for the Global South and a vanguard force for global governance reform.
Furthermore, he urged BRICS members to build BRICS for peace and act as guardians of common security and to uphold the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting and no provocation by any party, to work for de-escalation of the Ukraine crisis as soon as possible.
BRICS, originally comprising Brazil, Russia, India, and China, was established in 2009 as a cooperation platform for emerging economies, with South Africa joining in 2010. The bloc has since expanded to include Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates.
BRICS represents about 40 per cent of the global population and accounts for a cumulative gross domestic product (GDP) of US$26.6 trillion, or 26.2 per cent of the world’s GDP, nearly matching the economic strength of the Group of Seven (G7). (US$1 = RM4.34).
The G7 is an informal grouping of seven of the world’s advanced economies, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.
