Public Lecture on BRICS Plus Dispels Misconceptions

Public Lecture on BRICS Plus Dispels Misconceptions

A public lecture delivered by Ambassador at Large: Asia and BRICS at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Professor Anil Sooklal focused on governance perspectives and regional and global trends in relation to BRICS.

Hosted by the Discipline of Public Governance within UKZN’s School of Management, Information Technology and Governance, it was attended by more than 150 students, academics and stakeholders.

Focusing on insights from the recent 2023 BRICS summit, Sooklal shared his perspectives and highlighted areas identified by the summit as successful and those in need of improvement as reported in the mainstream media and research articles.

‘You are, of course, interested in the summit from a governance perspective given your discipline. However, it is important to understand the context within which it took place. As academics, researchers and students, it is very important that when you put pen to paper you have correct information at hand, especially if you are putting it out in the public domain,’ said Sooklal.

He added that an article he read stated that the summit had delivered on four of the five key areas identified by the South African government, but not on the key issue of dedolarisation.

‘I found this strange because a month ago I gave a lecture at Howard College on our priorities and preparations for the summit like I did at many universities throughout the country. We also had a briefing with the South African National Editors Forum (SANEF) and this question of dedolarisation came up. I said repeatedly that there was no agenda item for the 15^th BRICS Summit called dedolarisation. So, when an academic writes that we have not fulfilled on this agenda item, how could we, if it was not on the agenda?’

Sooklal added that another misconception is that South Africa does not have a BRICS strategy. He stated that having been part of the South African BRICS team since 2012, he was one of the key architects of the BRICS strategy, which was approved by Cabinet. He also addressed the issue of expansion which was the summit’s major focus.

‘Expansion is natural in any organisation. Many people ask: what comes out of BRICS? Our Business Council was launched 10 years ago in Durban. We have nine working groups speaking to all of South Africa’s development needs. Close to a dozen MoUs were signed at the Business Summit in August. We live in a grey area. I am not sure what the new global architecture will be, but the best way we can describe the current global architecture is that we are living between orders. However, what we can be sure of is that this new order will be shaped by the South,’ said Sooklal.

Speaking on behalf of the Dean and Head of the School of Management, IT and Governance, (National Research Foundation – South African Research Chairs Initiative) NRF SARChI Chair: Sustainable Local (Rural) Livelihoods, Professor Betty Mubangizi said Sooklal’s dual expertise as a diplomat and an academic will assist UKZN in its endeavour to position itself as a research centre that sheds light on the multifaceted challenges facing the country and the continent.

‘Today’s discourse is more than just timely, but exigent. We find ourselves at a cardinal nexus – on the one hand, we have technological advancements and innovations pushing the very frontiers of what’s conceivable. On the other, we grapple with stark dichotomies of affluence juxtaposed against grinding poverty and chronic indigence that beg for novel governance perspectives. The insights we received today are not just current or contemporary, but are also in many ways’ visionary. They provide a contemporary analysis of the intricate dynamics that shape BRICS nations and their roles on the global stage. We pledge to further the discourse, ensuring that the seeds of ideas sown today find fertile ground in research and that they resonate with the broader academic community.’

Watch the livestream of the public lecture on the UKZN College of Law and Management Studies Facebook page here.

Words: Thandiwe Jumo

Photograph: Supplied