Founded in 2013 during the 5th BRICS Summit in Durban, South Africa, the BRICS Business Council was designed as an independent and permanent business venue to develop trade and investment ties between the member states and promote closer interaction between BRICS business communities and government stakeholders.

Beyond bringing together BRICS’ internationally oriented companies, the Council analyzes intra-BRICS trade and investment dynamics to detect challenges hampering cooperation between the Group’s business communities and present policy recommendations to member states’ governments to better address those issues. Specific initiatives in the policy recommendations, if approved by BRICS leadership, could be submitted to the national authorities of member states to be scrutinized and possibly implemented.

The drafted recommendations and the results of the Council’s working groups’ activities are integrated into the annual report submitted to BRICS leaders during the Group’s Summit. Thus, the business communities’ concerns and priorities can be elevated to BRICS leadership and later transformed into instructions to BRICS national governments contributing to the BRICS agenda-setting and decision-making.

For more implications for the BRICS Business Council, see our memo below.