Brics must chart the course of global reform to ensure that the Global South has a greater say in decision-making and the existing “pyramid of privilege” in global governance makes way for a “platform of partnership”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while addressing the Brics Summit on Saturday amid growing geopolitical fragmentation.
He made the remarks at the opening session of the summit being held at a time when the global economy is grappling with the fallout of the conflicts in West Asia and Ukraine war, and the US administration’s trade and tariff policies. Among the Brics leaders attending the summit are Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, and the leaders of partner countries such as Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Modi unveiled a 10-point roadmap for global governance reform under the Brics framework and proposed a “Seafarers’ Emergency Support Network” to safeguard mariners facing heightened risks due to regional conflicts.
The main focus of Modi’s address was on reform of global governance and ways to strengthen Brics.
Countries that drive global economic growth should play an appropriate role in shaping global economic governance,” he said. Modi said Brics has reached a “coming of age” and established a distinct identity on the global stage. “Similarly, voting power, leadership positions and policy priorities within financial institutions must align with today’s economic realities.
With Brics emerging as a key bloc over the past two decades, Modi called for a “new and ambitious agenda” for the grouping for the next 20 years to address pressing global challenges. “The current structure of global governance resembles a pyramid: power and decision-making are concentrated at the top, while the lower tiers consist of nations that are affected by these decisions but unable to shape them,” he said. In the context of representation, Modi said the reform of the UN Security Council cannot be postponed any longer and negotiations for this must be brought under a definite timeframe with clear outcomes.
