BRICS Focus

I am sincerely delighted to welcome everyone to the BRICS Business Forum.
I would like to note the wide representation of participants in this hall. We have leading business representatives from every country in the BRICS group. Your companies have been successfully cooperating for a long time, implementing impressive joint projects across a variety of domains: industry and energy, transport and infrastructure, agriculture and the digital economy.
I would like to note, in particular, that this forum is attended by business leaders from countries that became full participants on January 1, 2024. These are our colleagues and friends from Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
I would like to emphasise that as the current chair of BRICS, Russia strives to facilitate integration of new members into all cooperation mechanisms. We saw that representatives from the new BRICS countries were warmly received in the Business Council, and they, too, became actively involved in its work.

by Kirtan Bhana

The year is 2024, and the BRICS Plus Summit in Kazan, Russia, begins tomorrow. As the world gears up for this significant event, there’s a palpable sense of excitement in the air. After all, this summit isn't just another high-profile gathering of world leaders, it has the potential to reshape the global landscape in ways we’ve never seen before. With China at the forefront of modernization, and the inclusion of dynamic nations like Egypt, Ethiopia, and Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, BRICS is ushering in a fresh era, one that could finally shift us away from the exhausted "War Economy" mentality towards something far more fruitful.

In the aftermath of political conflicts, the scars left behind are deep, often hardest to bear for women, children, and marginalized communities. Women, in particular, have been disproportionately affected by war and violence, whether as victims of displacement, abuse, or structural inequalities exacerbated by colonialism and slavery. Beyond the physical and emotional tolls of conflict, another layer of harm often remains—economic exploitation by multinational corporations, driven by shareholder value at the cost of human suffering. 

 

Moscow (VNA) – Vietnam's participation at the expanded BRICS (BRICS+) Summit will send out the country’s message of supporting the role of multilateral cooperation forums and mechanisms which operate on the basis of respect for the UN Charter and in accordance with international law, Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Dang Minh Khoi has said.
In an interview granted to Vietnam News Agency on the thresholds of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s trip to Russia for the event from October 23-24, the diplomat further said this will promote the voice and representation of developing countries in global governance as well as in solving common challenges, contributing to building a multipolar and equitable world order, and to peace, stability and development in the region and the world over.

On a beautiful Spring day in Pretoria the Korean Cultural Centre played host to the 4367th National Day and 76th Armed Forces Day celebrations of the Republic of Korea. In his remarks Ambassador Dong-han Yang noted that this year is especially meaningful as it marks the 30th anniversary of South Africa’s democratic dispensation, and the two countries celebrated the 30th anniversary of their diplomatic relations in 2022.  

 

The High Commission of Singapore in collaboration with BLVCK BLOCK presented an art exhibition, Compression, curated by Singapore and Singapore-based artists. Taking reference from the structural term, compression pillar, which bears the weight of a structure. Compression was a micro-exhibition that explored the intricate relationship between identity and the concept of home, examining how these elements are shaped, confined, and re-defined through the act of compression. The larger exhibition, Stable Attraction, takes place on 19-27 October at Constitution Hill, Johannesburg.

In August 2024, the MIAGI Orchestra embarked on its seventh European tour under the motto ‘Searching the African Footprint’ and played in renowned concert halls such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, and the Young Euro Classic Festival at the Konzerthaus in Berlin.
Music is a Great Investment, ‘MIAGI’, is a South African non-profit organisation founded in 2001. MIAGI's goal is to promote social cohesion and new perspectives in South Africa and worldwide through diverse musical education programmes for children and young people.

The Yunus Emre Institute in Johannesburg hosted a vibrant, colourful celebration showcasing the cultural heritage of Türkiye and South Africa.  Abdulaziz Yiğit, Director at the Institute welcomed the diversity of guests to the venue which has over the years hosted a variety of events to expose South Africans to the richness of Turkish culture.

 

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