BRICS facts for kids
BRICS logo during the 2025 Brazilian chairmanship
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| Named after | First five member states' initials in English |
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| Formation |
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| Founded at |
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| Type | Intergovernmental organization |
| Purpose | Political and economical |
| Fields | International politics |
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Membership
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 Brazil Russia India China South Africa Egypt Ethiopia Indonesia Iran United Arab Emirates |
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Formerly called
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BRIC |
BRICS is a group of ten countries that work together. These countries are Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates. It's like a club where governments meet to talk about important world issues.
The name 'BRIC' first came about to highlight good places for people to invest money. Over time, this group became more about politics and economics. Their governments started meeting every year in 2009. They work together on many policies, focusing on not interfering in each other's affairs, treating each other equally, and helping each other out.
The first four countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—held their first meeting in Russia in 2009. They called themselves BRIC. Later, South Africa joined the group in 2010 and attended its first meeting in 2011. More recently, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates joined in 2024. Indonesia officially became a member in early 2025. When new members join, people sometimes use the name BRICS+ to show it's a bigger group.
Some people see BRICS as an alternative to other powerful groups, like the G7. The G7 includes some of the world's biggest economies. BRICS has started its own projects, like the New Development Bank and BRICS PAY. This bank helps fund projects in member countries. BRICS has received both praise and criticism from different people around the world.
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What Makes BRICS Important?
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BRICS countries are very important in the world. China, for example, makes up about 70% of the original group's total economic output. Brazil, India, and China are among the largest countries in the world by population and land area. They also have some of the biggest economies.
The first five BRICS countries are all part of the G20, which is another group of major economies. Together, their economies are worth trillions of US dollars. This means they produce a lot of goods and services. They also hold a lot of money in foreign reserves, which are like savings for countries.
When you include all the new members, BRICS+ accounts for almost half of the world's population. This means a huge number of people live in BRICS+ countries. Their combined economic power is also very significant globally.
Who are the BRICS Members?
Countries Working with BRICS
How BRICS Grew and Expanded
There isn't a formal way to apply to join BRICS right now. For a country to be invited, all current member countries must agree. Discussions about adding new countries became more common in the early 2020s. Leaders and important officials from the BRICS countries started talking about letting more states join.
In August 2023, at a meeting in South Africa, it was announced that Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates were invited to join. They were set to become members on January 1, 2024.
However, Argentina's new government decided not to join the group in December 2023. This was because their new government had different foreign policy ideas.
On January 1, 2024, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Iran officially became part of the BRICS group. Saudi Arabia is still thinking about whether to join.
In September 2024, Turkey officially asked to join BRICS. Turkey is also a member of NATO and wants to join the European Union. Turkey's president has said that being in NATO doesn't stop them from joining other groups like BRICS.
Algeria also applied to join in 2023 but later decided not to in September 2024. This made Algeria the second country, after Argentina, to decline membership.
After the 2024 BRICS meeting, Brazil stopped Venezuela from joining. This was mainly because of problems with Venezuela's elections and other issues in the country. Venezuela then called back its ambassador from Brazil.
Since new members have joined, the group is often called BRICS+, meaning "BRICS Plus." In January 2025, Indonesia officially became a full member of BRICS.
Current Leaders of BRICS Countries
Here are the current leaders representing the BRICS member states:
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See Also
In Spanish: BRICS para niños
- Belt and Road Initiative
- BRICS Games
- Developing country
- East–West dichotomy
- Emerging power
- List of BRICS summit attendees
- List of country groupings
- List of multilateral free-trade agreements
- MIKTA
- G7
- Potential superpowers
- Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
