As the leaders from BRICS countries gather in Johannesburg, South Africa for important talks, the people on the streets have high hopes for the outcomes.
“It would be quite wonderful if we could collaborate with entrepreneurs from different countries. This way, we could learn about new technologies, especially from advanced places like China. Technology is a big deal for what I do. Right now, we work together with small businesses all over our country. If we can connect with other countries, that would be amazing,” shared Xolani Machele, who is from South Africa.
“Hosting the BRICS Summit in South Africa is exactly what we require to support the youth and combat high unemployment. From what I’ve seen in my community, most of the jobless people live in rural areas. That’s why we need countries like China to step in and help,” explained Joseph Manwele, a South African citizen.
During the summit, one of the important discussions focused on reducing tariffs. These are like taxes that can make it hard for small farmers from BRICS countries to trade their goods within South Africa. The CEO of Brand SA, Sithembile Ntombela, talked about how making the BRICS group bigger could be a solution to trade more agricultural products.
“When I think about the BRICS Bloc’s growth, it’s been really impressive. Since we started in 2010, our earnings among the member countries have gone from less than 10% to more than 30%. This shows there’s a lot of potential among these 5 BRICS countries. Now, think about how much more we could achieve by adding more countries to this bloc,” Ntombela shared.
As the summit continues, discussions on the conference floor also tackle trade barriers. These are things that can slow down how much money countries make. Some barriers include the world’s economy not growing as quickly and problems between different countries.
So, as the BRICS Summit brings leaders together, the talk is all about building a better future for South Africa and beyond.