BRICS: Bolivia Becomes Group’s Official Partner

Bolivia took advantage of the unique opportunity opened on January 1, 2025 by BRICS and immediately joined the influential international group as a co-member country (official partner). In a special speech, Bolivian President Luis Arce (pictured) praised the country’s entry into the BRICS group: “As of January 1, 2025, our multinational state of Bolivia officially joins as a co-member country of BRICS. BRICS is an important international organization that represents almost 45% of the world’s population,” Arce said during a meeting with local and international media.

“This membership,” Arce emphasized, “not only opens new doors for our country, but also confirms us on the path of expansion and diversification of commercial relations in a dynamic market.” According to the head of state, BRICS membership will open unprecedented opportunities for Bolivia in many key sectors such as energy, international trade, high technology, industrial production, and sustainable finance. “In a world full of uncertainty related to the transition to a new global order, being a member of the bloc allows us to diversify and protect our assets, becoming a significant player within the investment platform in emerging economies with huge potential,” Arce said.

As the La Paz press reminds us, “this was Bolivia’s second appearance in a high-level international context.” At the end of 2024, the country became an integral part of the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR), a zone of commercial integration among Latin American countries that also includes Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil, which became acting president of BRICS on January 1. Brazil’s annual presidency will focus on cooperation and solidarity among the countries of the Global South, the search for alternatives to the dollar, the creation of a multipolar global order, and fundamental reform of international organizations, including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization.

Originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (the countries whose initials form the group’s acronym), as of January 2024, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, and Egypt have also become part of the international organization, while Saudi Arabia’s membership status is yet to be confirmed. Moreover, after Javier Milei was elected president, Argentina withdrew its application for membership.

At the annual BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia, October 5-6, 2024, 13 countries around the world were invited to become official partners of the group. Nine countries – Thailand, Bolivia, Belarus, Cuba, Indonesia, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Uganda, and Uzbekistan – immediately formalized their membership, while official responses are pending from Nigeria, Turkey, Vietnam, and Algeria. As the BRICS Internet portal reminds, “as partners – or associated states – representatives of these countries can participate in the meetings of foreign ministers scheduled during the year, as well as in the annual summits of the group’s leaders.” During the ceremony handing over the annual BRICS presidency to Brazil, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that “only thirty-four countries in the world have submitted an expression of interest in joining the group, which represents an instance capable of competing with other supranational organizations, starting with the G7, in choosing topics on the global agenda and possible solutions.” BRICS is working to consolidate a multipolar world and create even greater opportunities for economic and strategic exchange among member countries, many from the Global South.