Nizhny Novgorod Hosts 8th BRICS Industry Ministers’ Meeting

The 8th BRICS Industry Ministers’ Meeting took place in Nizhny Novgorod on 16 August 2024. The meeting was attended by Russian Minister of Industry and Trade Anton Alikhanov, Ethiopian Minister of Industry Melaku Alebel, Acting Brazilian Minister of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services Marcio Rosa, UAE Undersecretary of the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology Omar Suwaina Alsuwaidi, Chinese Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xin Guobin, Iranian Deputy Minister of Industry, Mines, and Trade Mohammad Mousavi, Economic Adviser on Industrial Policy of the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry Agrim Kaushal, Acting Deputy Director for Industrial Development of the South African Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Competition Thandi Simise, Egyptian Deputy Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Russia Ahmed Riad, Member of the Board (Minister) for Industry and Agriculture of the Eurasian Economic Commission Goar Barseghyan, UNIDO Deputy Director General and Managing Director of the Directorate for Technical Cooperation and Sustainable Industrial Development Zou Ciyong, and Nizhny Novgorod Region Governor Gleb Nikitin.

The meeting was held in an expanded format for the first time, which provided additional opportunities for a constructive dialogue about all issues on the international industrial agenda.

“The expansion of BRICS is a natural process in the establishment of a new multipolar world order. Today, the countries of our group account for almost 34% of the globe’s territory and more than 45% of the world’s population. According to the World Bank, in 2023, BRICS made a 36% contribution to global GDP in purchasing power parity, while the share of G7 countries decreased to 29%. Our mutual trade is actively developing. Russia’s total trade turnover with BRICS countries in 2023, i.e., even before the association expanded, grew by almost 28% and approached the mark of USD 300 billion,” Alikhanov said.

Cooperation as part of the BRICS New Industrial Revolution Partnership is a promising area of collaboration among BRICS countries. Agreements have been reached on the substantive preparation of initiatives in the chemical industry, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, the mining sector and metallurgy, and smart manufacturing and robotics.

“It’s worth noting a number of other formats of our cooperation. In particular, the initiative to create a BRICS Industrial Competence Centre based on UNIDO. This work has been underway for several years. Today, we are already at the finish line. The necessary documentation has been drafted and a special project team has been formed within UNIDO, which will be responsible for the centre’s activities. Russia, China, and India have already officially confirmed their readiness to issue the first tranches to finance joint work,” Alikhanov said.

In addition, the heads of the attending delegations visited the expositions of the BRICS Forum of Creative Territories and Manufacturers of High-Tech Industrial Products. The stand of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade presented the Promobot M13 six-axis collaborative manipulator, the X4+KZ innovative energy-saving transformer, Geropharm insulins, the latest generation RC10 collaborative robot, and others.

The Roscongress Foundation manages the events of Russia’s BRICS Chairship.