BRICS Expands Green and Economic Cooperation for Global South

The BRICS grouping has expanded its cooperation framework to foster both environmental sustainability and economic resilience for nations in the Global South. Over the last decade, the group shifted from policy dialogue to result-oriented actions, establishing a ministerial meeting mechanism in 2015 and launching the Partnership for Urban Environmental Sustainability Initiative. Following its 2024 expansion, the group created the Contact Group on Climate Change and Sustainable Development to coordinate carbon markets and climate finance.

Economic efforts have evolved toward creating development-chain resilience, moving beyond supply chain security to support independent long-term growth. This strategy includes trade diversification, the use of local currencies to mitigate exchange-rate volatility, and infrastructure projects like the International North-South Transport Corridor. The New Development Bank supported these goals by approving 141 projects totaling $44 billion as of June 2026.

To bridge the technology gap, the group established the BRICS Network University and the China-BRICS Artificial Intelligence Development and Cooperation Center. These initiatives aim to transition Global South economies from exporting low-value resources to capturing domestic value through industrial upgrading. As China prepares for the BRICS rotating presidency in 2027, the group intends to strengthen policy coordination within the UN and G20 to increase the influence of developing nations in global governance institutions, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization.