Zhang Shenglei: BRICS to enter 2nd Golden Decade with ’BRICS Plus’
2017年9月8日
BRICS to enter 2nd Golden Decade with ’BRICS Plus’ [By Zhai Haijun / China.org.cn]
It is a beautiful season now in Xiamen, and that is reflected in the encouraging discussions taking place there at the 9th BRICS summit.
President Xi Jinping and the leaders of the other four member states have discussed issues related to deepening their partnership and building a brighter future. The five emerging economies are committed to further strengthening their cooperation mechanism and making greater efforts to improve global governance.
Rome was not built in one day. What the BRICS spirit denotes is the pursuit of common values among the five member states since they joined together 10 years ago. This is resonated with and benefited not only the people of the five countries but also the wider world.
President Xi once described the BRICS spirit as “equality, innovation, win-win cooperation in seeking common ground while reserving differences,” which has become a major modality of cooperation.
In the past 10 years, the areas of cooperation have gradually expanded. BRICS has undergone a transformation from an investment theory to international practice, and has become a vibrant force in global economic governance.
During this period, members’ combined GDP has grown by 179 percent, and the trade volume 94 percent, with their proportion in the world economy rising from 12 percent to 23 percent. Foreign investment has grown from 7 percent to 12 percent; and the contribution to the world economy now exceeds 50 percent; 3 billion people’s living condition has been improved.
The data is the best proof of the effectiveness and significance of the BRICS cooperative mechanism, and also highlights the rising of international status of the five countries. They represent the rapid development of emerging markets and developing countries, which is transforming the global political and economic structure.
During the past decade, BRICS countries have chosen to put pragmatic cooperation first, and thus promoted mutual development. The five member states display their complementary advantages, have strengthened their ties of interest, and constructed an all-round, multi-layer cooperative framework.
During the period, the group has established a series of developing strategies and cooperative projects, in particular the establishment of development banks and contingency storage, which provide the financing support for BRICS infrastructure construction and sustainable development, as well as being conducive to improving global economic governance and constructing an international financial safety net.
Today’s world is still under the shadow of the global financial crisis. Western countries claim to support the “trade liberalization” policy, but are stuck into the political trap. Under such circumstances, China has learnt from the past experience and is now promoting the “BRICS Plus” model.
During this meeting in Xiamen, discussions have been held on South-South cooperation, international development and cooperation plans. This will surely help to increase the number of BRICS partners.
The BRICS cooperative mechanism marks a departure from the West-led international relations system, and offers a possible way for the developing countries to engage in economic cooperation and mutual development.
Zhang Shenglei, a non-resident researcher of the Center for China and Globalization(CCG), Doctor in Social and Cultural Institution of Macao University of Science and Technology. 
From People’s Daily Online, 2017-9-6
