BRICS as a Platform for Economic Sustainability
来源：thenationonlineng.net;发表于:2024-04-17;人气指数:37
Wednesday, April
17, 2024
BRICS as a Platform for Economic
Sustainability
By Baba Yusuf
“With each new day in Africa, a gazelle
wakes up knowing he must outrun the fastest lion or perish. At the same time, a
lion stirs and stretches, knowing he must outrun the fastest gazelle or starve.
It is no different for the human race. Whether you consider yourself a gazelle
or a lion, you simply have to run faster than others to survive.” ― Mohammed
bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Monarch of Dubai and Prime Minister of United Arab
Emirate (UAE)…
BRICS is an intergovernmental
organisation comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The
aforementioned Countries are the fastest-growing world economies, It is worthy
of note that China is the second largest economy in the world. The objective of
this organization is for strategic partnership and cooperation on investment
opportunities, coordinating multilateral policies guided by the principles of
non-interference, equality, and mutual benefit. BRICS was founded in 2009 and
has since expanded in membership, regional, international, and intercontinental
spread, and influence. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia (though arguably
so), and the United Arab Emirates officially joined BRICs on the 1st of
January, 2024. BRICS currently has 10-member nations, and according to
Bloomberg, about 34 new Countries have expressed interest in joining BRICS. One
of the key objectives of the BRICS group is to dominate the world economy by
2050.
Therefore, it is cheery news to me and a
lot of other Nigerians when Nigeria’s Honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar stated that Nigeria is currently considering the
possibility of joining BRICS and that Nigeria has not given up the ambition of
becoming a permanent member of the Security Council of the United Nations. The
Minister made the assertions during his official visit to Russia around the 6th
of March, 2024.
The BRICS strategy is certainly working
as the BRICS countries include major world powers, such as China and Russia,
and countries that are major powers on their continent, such as South Africa
and Brazil. The group currently has a combined population of 3.5 billion i.e.
45% of the world’s population. It has a combined economy of over $ 28 trillion
which is about 28% of the global economy. BRICS countries will also be
producing about 44% of the world’s crude oil.
The Russia-Ukraine war has further
divided the world economically with consolation of the BRICS nations as a
counter-measure to the globally dollarized economy which is slowly but steadily
posing a threat to the US Dollar and certainly the US economy in the mid to
long term – it is just a matter of time.
To de-risk and diversify nigeria’s
economy
Our current economic situation requires
that we diversify our options and de-risk our economy from the “choking effect”
of the US Dollar. While it is true that the US Dollar will remain a globally
dominant currency of trade, the current global socio-economic and political
realities clearly call for forward-thinking countries to diversify their
options of investment and trade; the growing membership of BRICS is the
platform of that diversification. The earlier Nigeria key into it the better
for our battered economy. Let the process begin so that Nigeria will not be
left behind as a sovereign nation.
In my opinion, BIRCS should be one of
the pillars of our international relations and economic diversification
strategy. It will not just give Nigeria the freedom of choice and options but
it will also give Nigeria leverage in our international relations and economic
expansion and diversification initiatives.
I commend the administration of
President Tinubu for clearing the accumulated backlog of $7Billion FOREX of
over $ billion that accumulated during the Buhari administration which was part
of our economic woes by escalating inflation, even resulting in some diplomatic
rows with the likes of the United Arab Emirates, etc. It took the current
administration through the Central Bank of Nigeria, nine (9) months to
ingeniously clear the backlog.
Consequently, I am of the strong opinion
that going forward, BRICS is an opportunity for Nigeria to be emancipated from
the shackles of US Dollars, and will certainly free and hedge Nigeria’s economy
from the straight jacket situation with the US Dollars in terms of trade,
investment, and international relations.
As the giant of Africa, Nigeria’s
membership in the BRICS is long overdue. Let us not delay too much as we did
with the AfCFTA membership, especially given the fact that we have to lay the
foundation, the pillars and building blocks, and frameworks, the time is now
before we start running against time. Given our currently dire economic
situation, we should explore all available viable options to receive our
economy and position it in a growth and development trajectory.
Points for Nigeria to note
•Top global oil producers like Saudi
Arabia, Russia, Iran, and United Arab Emirates are already members of BRICS
with Saudi Arabia as the 2nd largest world oil producer behind the United
States of America, Russia ranked 3rd, China is 6th, Brazil is 7th, the UAE is
ranked 8th and Iran is 9th, i.e. 6 of the 10 top global oil producers are in
BRICS. This implies that BRICS member countries currently control almost 50% of
the world’s oil production. With Oil and Gas still remaining the critical
economic driver, and it will remain so for a long time, it is essential that
Nigeria seize the moment to be part of this increasingly important group.
•New data from the National Bureau of
Statistics (NBS) showed that FDI in the country fell by 33 percent in 2022.
This is more worrisome due to the fact that the trajectory has been dwindling
since 2015, as foreign direct investment (FDI) to Nigeria has plunged to
$468.91 million, the lowest in at least nine years, according to official data.
This has been having dire consequences on socio-economic growth. BRICS is a
veritable platform for attracting significant FDIs.
•The way forward for Nigeria, is to as a
matter of priority improve and upscale our competitiveness in terms of our
critical infrastructure i.e., intermodal transportation network; power;
logistics and supply chain platforms i.e. the airports and the entire aviation
value chain; seaports and the entire maritime value chain, land borders;
products value addition and processing. We also need to improve the state of
our not-so-competitive manufacturing and industrial sectors that are struggling
under multiple global socio-economic variables, it is a major red flag. Joining
BRICS will surely support Nigeria in this regard
Foreign policy and geopolitics
Global and sub-regional peace and
economics will continue to be impacted by geo-politics. Geo-politics is
significantly influenced by the foreign policy direction of the United States
of America and its allies and the reactionary foreign policies or initiatives
by China, Russia, and other Countries.
Certainly, the Russia- Ukraine Imbroglio
has ravaged the global economy almost resulting in a global recession with
devastating impacts on food security, supply chain disruptions, oil supply and
pricing, energy supply to Europe, and the resultant effect of the cost of
living crisis, etc.
In the case of Russia, President
Vladimir Putin is not likely to shift ground but rather refine his mid to
long-term strategy because so far, his strategy has been working more for him
than the US and EU strategy for Ukraine. If the Russia-Ukraine imbroglio
continues unabated without a change in the political strategy disposition, it
will continue to impact negatively on global and national economies. Based on
the aforementioned, Nigeria’s over-arching national strategy has to change
especially with regard to the economy, foreign policy, Trade, and Investment
with foreign policy as a nexus for international Trade
Global economic gloom
• According to the World Bank; the
current global economic trajectory is not looking good based on geopolitics,
and climate change which has impacted food security, infrastructure, human
capital, etc.
• The second half of 2024 will be the
slowest half-decade of GDP growth in 30 years!
• Escalating geopolitical tensions could
create fresh risks for the world economy. “Meanwhile, the medium-term outlook
has darkened for many developing economies amid slowing growth in most major
economies, sluggish global trade, and the tightest financial conditions in
decades.”
• Cost of borrowing for developing
economies—especially those with poor credit ratings—are likely to remain high
with global interest rates stuck at four-decade highs in inflation-adjusted
terms.
• Global growth is projected to slow for
the third year in a row—from 2.6% last year to 2.4% in 2024, almost
three-quarters of a percentage point below the average of the 2010s. Developing
economies are projected to grow just 3.9%, more than one percentage point below
the average of the previous decade.
Conclusion
What should remain etched in our minds
as Nigerians, especially the current administration under the leadership of
President Tinubu is the fact that based on the aforementioned realities and
projections; it will be a good de-risking economic strategy for Nigeria to be
part of BRICS as a “shock absorber” for sustainable economic growth in an
increasingly polarised world.
The Nation
Source: thenationonlineng.net