The Next Golden Decade

The Ninth BRICS Summit was held in southeast China’s coastal city Xiamen from September 3 to 5, laying a founda- tion for furthering partnership among member countries and working together to usher in the second golden decade of BRICS cooperation.

Over the past 10 years, which began with the breakout of the global finan- cial crisis in 2008, BRICS countries have surmounted various difficulties to de- velop their economies and improve their people’s livelihoods. The combined GDP of the fi ve major emerging countries has grown from 12 percent of the world total 10 years ago to the current 23 percent, and they contribute more than 50 per- cent of global economic growth. BRICS countries have become an important force to promote world economic growth, pushing forward changes in the global or- der and safeguarding international peace and stability.

As BRICS cooperation enters its second decade, Chinese President Xi Jinping has put forward proposals on jointly ushering in the second golden decade of BRICS coopera- tion. As Xi said in his address at the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum, all members should boost BRICS cooperation to create new impetus for the economic growth of the fi ve countries. BRICS countries should shoulder their responsibilities to up- hold world peace and stability and contribute to enhancing global economic governance. BRICS should increase its infl uence and build extensive partnerships.

Xi also proposed the BRICS Plus coop- eration model based on the previous years’ experience. The model has been widely welcomed by emerging economies and de- veloping countries.

The coming decade will present BRICS nations with both opportunities and challenges.

The opportunities are many. We are in a great era of development, transformation and adjustment. Although conflicts are yet to be eliminated globally, the trend toward peace and development is growing stronger. Our world today is becoming increasingly multipolar; the economy has become global- ized; there is growing cultural diversity; and society has become digitized. The law of the jungle, where the strong prey on the weak and engage in zero-sum games, is rejected, and peace, development and win-win coop- eration have become the shared aspirations of all nations.

However, BRICS countries have all encountered structural problems in the pro- cess of growth. For example, in China, some industries are plagued by overcapacity, and in Russia, serious imbalance exists between light and heavy industries. Because of these growth setbacks, some assert that the BRICS economies are losing their luster.

BRICS countries must try to seize oppor- tunities, face up to challenges and ramp up cooperation. Only in this way can they jointly create another golden decade.

China, which holds the rotating BRICS presidency this year, is willing to work to- gether with other member states to expand BRICS cooperation and deepen the partner- ship. China is ready to undertake the task to make BRICS play a more important role in driving world economic growth and creating the group’s second golden decade.

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