Xi's insightful remarks shed light on BRICS

XIAMEN -- China's actions following the insightful remarks made by President Xi Jinping on the BRICS mechanism have contributed to global governance reform, academics have said.

At the ninth BRICS summit, which will be held from Sunday to Tuesday in China's southeastern coastal city of Xiamen, leaders from the BRICS countries are expected to discuss ways to strengthen partnerships and confront global uncertainties, such as de-globalization, protectionism and unilateralism.

"BRICS cooperation is an innovation, which transcends the old pattern of political and military alliances and pursues partnerships," said Zhu Jiejin, deputy director with the Center for BRICS Studies at Shanghai-based Fudan University.

As BRICS ushers in another decade of development this year, it has become a key force in boosting economic growth, global governance reform and international peace and stability.

FIRST DECADE, STRONG START

BRICS consists of five emerging economies -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- and has grown into a highly influential international group.

"BRICS has evolved from a mere notion to a comprehensive and multi-dimensional partnership framework, with substantial achievements in financial cooperation, trade and investment cooperation and the synergy of development strategies," said Wang Lei, director of the BRICS Cooperation Center of Beijing Normal University.

During his keynote speech at the fifth BRICS summit in Durban, South Africa, in 2013, Xi said that China would continue to strengthen cooperation with other BRICS countries in order to make economic growth of BRICS countries more robust, with cooperation better-structured and more productive.

"This will bring tangible benefits to people of all countries and make greater contribution to world peace and development," Xi said.

Since then, cooperation has significantly contributed to economic growth among the group's members. The five countries accounted for 23 percent of the 2016 global economy, almost double their share in 2006. They have been the source of more than half of global growth in the last ten years.

The establishment of the BRICS New Development Bank and the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement also paved the way for future cooperation.

After ten years of development, BRICS has entered a new stage featuring economic cooperation, political and security cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges.