Brics bank will aid non-members too
• Support for public and private partnerships in Africa is envisaged
The New Development Bank, a joint initiative by Brics member states, intends to provide finance to all, including nonmember states, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Luwellyn Landers said. /
The New Development Bank, a joint initiative by Brics member states, intends to provide finance to all, including nonmember states, Luwellyn Landers, Deputy Minister of International Relations and Co-operation, said on Monday.
Landers said that in fulfillment of its purpose, the bank intended to support public and private partnerships through loans, guarantees, equity participation and other financial instruments, while its Africa office would consider projects on the continent.
He was speaking at a media briefing on Monday on the state of readiness of SA to host the 10th summit of Brics heads of state from Wednesday to Friday.
The summit is preceded by a state visit by Chinese president Xi Jinping on Tuesday.
SA chairs the Brics bloc, with Brazil taking over in 2019.
Heads of state will meet on Thursday and meet with other leaders from developing economies and regional organisations on Friday.
Landers said many of the international guests were in the country and had been holding meetings since July 19. He confirmed that Brazil’s President Michel Temer, China’s Xi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin would attend.
Brics had also invited Gabon President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Senegal President Macky Sall, Uganda President Yoweri Museveni, Togo President Faure Gnassingbe, Rwanda President Paul Kagame and heads of state from the Southern African Development Community.
The bloc had also reached out to fellow developing and emerging market economies and had invited Group of 20 head and Argentina President Mauricio Macri, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Jamaica Prime Minister Andrew Holness, among others.
Among other recommendations, SA is proposing the establishment of a working group on peacekeeping, a vaccine research centre and a Brics gender and women’s forum.
“We believe that these proposals will go a long way in consolidating partnerships between partners as we enter the second decade,” he added.
International Relations and Co-operation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu said: “We are in a state of readiness. We are confident that it will be a resounding success. We’ve put in everything in place that should be in place. We are very proud of the amount of work that has been put in.”
On Monday the local chapter of the Civil Brics Forum, a grouping of civic organisations, held a media briefing in which it criticised the granting of loans to Transnet and Eskom by the New Development Bank, which gave Transnet $200m after $180m granted in 2016.
National chairman Owen Ndidi said: “We felt that should not be the path the bank should take because much funds have been used and unaccounted for by those two entities.”