The two-day summit of BRICS in New Delhi concluded with increased participation of African countries in deliberations of global governance, trade, development, and the future of the Global South. The summit held in New Delhi on September 12-13 witnessed the participation of expanded BRICS members and partner countries, and adoption of the New Delhi Declaration for greater cooperation with developing economies.
For Africa, the conclusion of the summit was not about any monetary benefits, but about gaining greater clout in an increasingly influential political and economic grouping.
South Africa Strived to Secure a Greater Say for the Global South
South Africa continued to represent the main anchor of Africa within BRICS and advocated its long-standing calls for global institution reforms.
BRICS also focused on having a more representative international system with greater inclusion of developing countries in global decision-making processes. The issues are quite important for African countries that are looking for ways to increase their influence at such international organizations as IMF, the World Bank and the United Nations.
Thus, for Pretoria, BRICS is a useful tool in making a case for Africa being a more economically and demographically significant continent that needs more political influence.
Egypt Gains More Influence between Africa and the Middle East
The role of Egypt was strengthened because of the country’s presence as one of BRICS African members but at the same time a significant Middle Eastern economy.
Its involvement gives Cairo an opportunity to promote dialogue on trade, logistics, energy and development while at the same time connecting African interests with other interests of BRICS member states.
The New Delhi summit also came at the time when BRICS was looking to engage in a dialogue with developing and emerging economies, providing Egypt with even more channels to conduct its business.
Space for Development Diplomacy for Ethiopia
Addis Ababa was also a full member of BRICS entering the summit and having an additional venue to advance its development interests concerning infrastructure, technology and economic cooperation.
In turn, India’s BRICS agenda until 2026 paid special attention to resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability, such initiatives as digital agriculture, supply chain cooperation and innovation. Such topics will be of particular interest for Ethiopia as it tries to attract investments and technology partners to promote economic transformation.
The advantage that Ethiopia gained from its participation in the BRICS summit was thus mainly strategic – access to a network of emerging economies and discussions of development problems outside Western-dominated fora.
Benefit for Nigeria due to its Partner Country Status
Nigeria had a different status at the summit. It was not a full member of BRICS, but was a partner country along with other countries such as Uganda, Malaysia, Thailand and Uzbekistan.
Being a partner country, it received a chance to become part of the BRICS community without being a full-fledged member. In addition, the New Delhi Declaration emphasized the role of partner countries and their engagement in joint initiatives.
This means there are possibilities to engage in trade, investment, technology, and development collaborations while also maintaining ties with other global blocs.
What BRICS 2026 means for Africa
The bigger picture of BRICS 2026 is that Africa has a range of entry points into the Global South organization that is growing in importance.
South Africa, Egypt, and Ethiopia are full members of BRICS while Nigeria and Uganda are involved as partner countries. The structure ensures that different African governments have varying degrees of involvement in BRICS activities.
The BRICS summit held in New Delhi did not instantly change the economic fortunes of Africa but improved its diplomatic standing within an organization that makes up a significant portion of the world’s population and economic might.
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