Nigeria officially accepted as BRICS Partner Country

Brazil, which currently holds the rotating presidency of BRICS, announced that Nigeria as officially acquired the status of the group’s partner country.

“The Brazilian government announces today, January 17, 2025, the official accession of Nigeria as a partner country of the group,” the Brazilian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Brazil believes that BRICS and Nigeria share similar objectives.

Like BRICS, Nigeria advocates for increased collaboration among Global South nations and seeks to reform international organizations.

“As the 6th largest population in the world and the 1st on the African continent, as well as one of the largest economies in Africa, Nigeria has converging interests with the other members of the group,” Brazil’s Foreign Ministry, known as Itamaraty, stated.

Nigeria’s inclusion places it among eight other nations with similar partner status in regions such as Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Asia.

Brazil took over BRICS presidency from Russia on January 1.

At a BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia in October, it was decided to establish a category of BRICS partner countries.

The first countries to become partners were Belarus, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan.

Indonesia was also initially named as a BRICS partner, but on January 6, Brazil announced that the Asian country had been given a status of full member.

The BRICS group of emerging economies has welcomed 2024 by officially adding five developing nations.

In 2024, the BRICS economic alliance has flourished. In what was undoubtedly a year of growth, the bloc fast-tracked a host of initiatives.

Those range from its de-dollarization plans to its first-ever expansion bid. The latter of which is finally set to be made official.

The BRICS alliance has welcomed 2024 by officially adding five expansion nations to its ranks.

Specifically, it introduced Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iran, Egypt, and Ethiopia to be the first countries to constitute expansion since South Africa was added more than a decade ago.

The expansion is set to have massive geopolitical ramifications, as they could be hugely important to its multipolar goals.

MP/