BRICS BUSINESS COUNCIL LAUNCHED

Business communities of five BRICS countries - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa have launched the BRICS Business Council, a key institution expected to drive private sector investments among the five member countries.
 

The BRICS Business Council's objectives include the strengthening of trade relations, promotion of business relations, technology transfer, and cooperation in the areas of skills development development, banking, the green economy, manufacturing and industrialization.

Three sectors are being targeted, namely manufacturing, services and agriculture e.g. agriculture and agroprocessing, energy, sustainable development, infrastructure, mining, pharmaceuticals and information and communication technology.

The BRICS Business Council will have five members from each member country and will be supported by experts in various fields. It will meet twice a year and the chairmanship will rotate every year in alignment with the political leadership.

BRICS countries have set a target of US $500 billion by 2015 for trade between them, nearly two times the 2011 figure of US $275 billion.