BRICS is attracting countries that aim to steer away from a system controlled by superpowers and adopt a model of international relations based on mututal partnership, South Africa's minister of public works and infrastructure told Sputnik.
"[The] majority of the countries in the world are yearning for a platform where they could cooperate at a mutual level without being dominated by the so-called superpowers. And that's why many people are eager to join BRICS," Minister Sihle Zikalala said on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg.
Commenting on the BRICS+ initiative, Zikalala said that the expanded body comes to include more countries interested in the new framework that is an alternative to "the unipolar world," which in turn will help usher change in the current global dynamics of economic relations and power.
Discussing trade, the minister said that his country considers itself a "gateway" to African markets.
"We are of the view that South Africa is a gateway to Africa. And therefore if you come to South Africa or you trade with South Africa, it becomes possible to enter the African market. We have recently adopted the Africa Free Trade Zone, which allows that if the company is based in Africa, you can trade in the continent. And we believe that South Africa is an anchor of that platform."
He also stressed the need to conduct bilateral trade among bloc members using local currencies, or eventually create a unified BRICS note.
The 15th summit, scheduled from August 22 to 24, brings together the emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Collectively, these nations represent over 40 percent of the world's population and around 23% of its GDP. Around 50 leaders from non-memeber countries are also attending.
The three-day leaders summit, themed "BRICS and Africa," eyes presenting a number of world-impacting projects as part of plans to shift the global political scene from Western centuries-long hegemony.
Countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran submitted applications to join BRICS, and countries that showed interest include Argentina, the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Egypt, Bahrain, Indonesia, and Bangladesh.