SACE ID: 853740E Assessment Type 2 – Outcome

How Has Joining BRICS Affected Its Member

Countries' Economic and Political Standing?
Introduction
The BRICS Union is an economic union formed by the primary members Brazil, Russia, India, China,
and South Africa. In 2003, an investment firm called Goldman Sachs predicted that in the following
forty years, the BRICS economies would overtake the G6 economies, the “G6 economies” referred to
a Western economic union (Jacobs & Van Rossem, 2014). The BRICS economies have shown
explosive growth in the years since the first official BRICS summit in 2006, but is this due to their
membership in the BRICS union or due to external factors?

What specific economic benefits have BRICS member countries

experienced since joining the organisation?
Membership in the BRICS union offers a multitude of different economic benefits. Such benefits
range from simple trade relations to the effectiveness of foreign investments. The potential benefits
associated with membership in the BRICS union vary greatly and, as such, offer a wide variety of
profits and gains.

In a study published in the journal “Economic Modelling”, the researchers tried to find a correlation
between foreign direct investment (FDI) and the accelerated growth rates of BRICS countries
compared to non-BRICS countries. The paper found that, on average, a 1% increase in FDI accounted
for a 0.012% increase in GDP for a non-BRICS country. Whereas on average, it was observed that a
1% increase in FDI accounted for a 0.062% increase in GDP for BRICS countries (Khan et al., 2023).
The paper concluded that being a member of the BRICS union attracts higher-quality FDI. The BRICS
union founded “The New Development Bank” in 2015 to finance the building of new infrastructure
and sustainable development projects (Republic of South Africa, 2023). In 2024, all members of the
BRICS union signed off on a tourism cooperation roadmap for all countries within the union,
significantly contributing to the economic growth in the tourism sector (Interfax, 2024). In 2020, all
members of the BRICS union signed off on an energy cooperation road map, which would help them
in the coordination of policies, promotion of energy trade, investments and research, as well as
technological cooperation (Conte, 2023).

When the international economics degree holder was asked, “How have the BRICS country's
economies grown over the years?” he commented on China’s implementation of economic reforms,
globalisation policies and infrastructure development and on India's explosive economic growth in its
IT sector.

The benefits of member countries of the BRICS union vary greatly. This can range from the different
roadmaps and plans they establish at their annual summits, the confidence investors have in the
BRICS union, attracting higher quality FDI, to all the different facilities the union has for funding the
projects member countries may be undertaking. There are certainly more niche and/or obscure
benefits member countries may enjoy, but determining these benefits would require more research
around the topic.
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Are the Economic Benefits of BRICS Equal Amongst All Member

Countries?
Membership in the BRICS Union has shown a clear yet complicated connection to the economic
benefits of the countries. It can be observed that such benefits are not equal among the BRICS
countries. This can be observed by observing the different economic elements that surround each
economy. Many experts in the field have also been forthcoming regarding their opinions regarding
this topic and their reason for the disparity.
Gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in current prices in BRICS countries from
2000 to 2029

Figure 1

Specific trends can be observed in a graph regarding the GDP (growth domestic
product) per capita of the BRICS countries from 2000-2029 (figure 1), published by
Figure 2
Aaron O'Neil (O'Neill, 2024). It should be noted that the BRICS Union was founded
in 2006. China experienced the most radical growth in GDP, followed by Russia,
whereas Brazil’s growth slowed significantly after 2014; India experienced almost
next to no growth in GDP, followed by Brazil. In an infographic comparing the GDP
of the BRICS economies (Figure 2), it can be observed that China still had the largest
GDP; India and Brazil were the next largest economies, followed by Russia and
South Africa (Conte, 2023). A study published in the “Journal of Policy Modeling”
regarding a “comparative analysis of the BRICs as a category of rising powers”
concluded that China and Russia are the only members of the BRICS union to find
significant economic and political power, with Russia and China becoming
permanent members of The United Nations and Russia becoming a part of the G8
(Jacobs & Van Rossem, 2014). It was said in an economic article that even though
Russia has the single most resource-rich territory in the world, its economy was still
equal to that of the UK even though they have a population three times larger and
far more territory (Profile et al., 2024).

An international economics degree holder was asked if he considered the Economic Benefits of BRICS
Equal Amongst All Member Countries? He disagreed with the statement completely, stating that the
economic enormity of China compared to the rest of the member countries would not make sense if
the statement was correct.

A common recurring element between all the addressed sources is China’s monolithic economic size.
Not only does China have the largest GDP and GDP per capita out of all the BRICS countries, but their
SACE ID: 853740E Assessment Type 2 – Outcome

economic growth, which can be observed in the graph, is by far the greatest. This explosive growth
can be observed almost immediately after joining the BRICS union. Contrastingly, South Africa
experienced roughly zero economic growth, and Russia has still yet to even begin to appropriately
exploit its own resources. Such fundamental problems with the economies of some economies,
when compared to the monolithic size and success of other economies, make it practically
impossible to believe that there is true economic equality between all member countries. Further
research would need to be conducted to determine the different reasons behind such an outcome.

How has BRICS membership impacted the political influence and

international standing of its member countries?
BRICS membership affects the complex geopolitical standing of its member countries in intricate and
varying ways. Given the member countries' diverse nature, examining each country's political clout
and global standing is crucial to establishing a deeper understanding of the everchanging
international political landscape.

The BRICS union accounts for 37.3% of the global GDP and more than 50% as much of Europe, which
has a global GDP of 14.5% (European Parliament, 2024). Enabling the Union and its member
countries to have a far more substantial influence on the political and economic global landscape. In
2014, the creation of the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement provided
the BRICS members with alternatives as opposed to Western-controlled financial institutions such as
the World Bank and IMF (Kundu, 2023). An article written and published in “The Conversation” views
the BRICS union as a direct confrontational opponent to the US (Corbin et al., 2024). This anti-US
reputation of the BRICS union may boost its favourability among other countries with similar
sentiments regarding the US. The BRICS union has long been thinking of using a new common
currency that would work as an alternative to the current dominant US dollar.

When the international economics degree holder was asked, “Do the BRICS countries have the
potential to challenge the West?” he stated that in recent years, the BRICS union has acted as a
direct opposition to the dominant Western powers in the world. The BRICS union has offered
alternative means of trade without the use of the US dollar to all its member countries.

It seems that the nature of the BRICS global image revolves around their anti-Western policies and
economic size. The BRICS union is an economic juggernaut on the global economic stage, and this
directly translates to greater political influence for member countries. They offer many alternatives
to Western-controlled institutions and Western currencies, creating valuable allies in the process.
The BRICS Union commands great international political power for these reasons. Other such
political benefits regarding the BRICS union would require vastly more in-depth research into the
different political alliances and treaties surrounding each country and the political contexts behind
them.

How does the public view the BRICS countries?

As the BRICS union continues to grow more powerful and influential, it is essential to understand
how the international community views them. The general public's opinion can help shape
diplomatic relations, economic partnerships, and geopolitical strategies worldwide. It seems that
public opinion regarding the BRICS countries’ economic strength and relations varies drastically from
community to community.

In a study published in the journal “Revista Brasileira de Política Internacional”, the opinions of the
Brazilian people regarding the BRICS countries were surveyed, and it was ultimately found that they
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held a generally positive image of all the countries (Fernandes et al., 2021). The Brazilian people
believed that the union balanced the global order. Still, they didn’t hold any anti-West sentiments,
suggesting that they view the BRICS union as a complementary force in global affairs, as opposed to
an antagonistic one. The BRICS union is frequently portrayed as the direct opposition to the Western
economic union, the G7. Such comparisons may sway the views of Western communities to hold
inherently poor opinions regarding the union. This can be seen in Western media, such as “China’s
Evil BRICS Plan” by Hindustan Times and “The BRICS are better off disbanding than expanding” by
Reuters (Hindustan Times, 2023; Dixen, 2023).

A survey was distributed throughout the local Adelaide communities, where academics, professors,
teachers, students, and the general public were surveyed on their economic and militaristic opinions
regarding the BRICS union. The results can be seen in Figure 3.

Figure 3
It would seem the general sentiments regarding the BRICS union vary and change depending on the
context and the people you ask. Countries such as Brazil view the BRICS union as a necessary
balancing force on the global stage, whereas it can be inferred that Western communities hold
generally negative views of the BRICS union. From the survey that was conducted, it can be
concluded that the public generally views Russia and China to be the dominant forces in the union.
Ideally, a larger survey directed towards the global community as a whole, with a far larger sampling
pool, with as little bias as possible and as intuitive questions as possible, would yield a far more
comprehensive answer.
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Conclusion
It can be conclusively stated that there is a direct connection between membership in the BRICS
union and its member's explosive economic growth. The economic benefits experienced by member
countries have contributed to the growth of their economies and their development, but it can be
concluded that these economic benefits aren’t enjoyed equally amongst all member countries. The
BRICS union offers many political benefits to member countries. The public opinion on the BRICS
union varies from country to country, but generally, in Western countries, they do not view the union
favourably. Member countries of the BRICS Union enjoy immense economic and political benefits,
although they may not be seen favourably by western countries.

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