Unified currency for BRICS mooted

There has been an ongoing debate among experts and leaders across the globe on whether the BRICS countries should develop a unified currency to facilitate trade among the member states.

This is despite the announcement last month that a unified currency for BRICS will not be on the agenda of the BRICS summit in South Africa.

Patrick Bond, a professor at the University of Johannesburg Department of Sociology, expressed disappointment with the announcement, saying the world is desperate for an alternative to the dollar.

"The ridiculous reliance that we have on the dollar has to end and it's tragic that BRICS is not going to be in a position where political will is sufficient to fight US dollar hegemony," he said.

The US dollar has been dominating since the collapse of the Bretton Woods System in 1971.