How Does BRICS Enable Vision 2030’s Potentials?

There’s a quote that say “Mountains are made from small stones”, to state that great achievements are consist of many small efforts, whether in economy, career, or even on a personal level. The mountains of the American economy were built from the stones of the "American Dream" of small and medium enterprises. The European Union's economic mountains were built from the stones of gradual economic integration since the Schumann Declaration of 1950, which established the principle of European monetary cooperation to develop the concept of cooperation until it became an integrated economic union with a unified currency as we know it now.

Today, we are witnessing the Expansion of the BRICS mountain with new stones of different countries, different politically at times (Egypt and Ethiopia) and culturally at times (the Arabs and Iran) and at other times different to agree on the borders’ lines (China and India). Still, they gathered on the common interest, the interest of approximately 42% of the world's population and 23% of global GDP.

BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries are constantly receiving requests to join the group recently, especially after the economic recession that followed Corona and the Ukrainian war. The dominance of the dollar has become annoying to many governments. It affects the well-being of billions of people. Still, the BRICS group has only accepted those who they believe they have strategic interests with them, whether as a location, market, or natural resources (this was made clear with the accession of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, UAE, Iran, Argentina, and Ethiopia).

If we look forward, BRICS may be a first step for common markets, free zones, and tax exemptions between its countries. In the most optimistic scenario, we may see a unified currency like the euro.

Therefore, Saudi Arabia's accession to the BRICS group constitutes an important step in strengthening the economic relations between the Kingdom and the member states of the group. This accession will open new horizons for trade, investment, energy, industry, and technology cooperation.

The goals of the BRICS group are mainly consistent with the purposes of the kingdom's Vision 2030, as the Kingdom's Vision 2030 aims to diversify the Saudi economy and make it less dependent on oil. It also aims to promote innovation and technology in the Kingdom, and the BRICS group provides a platform for Saudi Arabia to achieve these goals. The group includes many countries that have experience in the field of innovation and technology.

It is expected that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's accession to the BRICS group will contribute to the promotion of economic projects in various sectors in the Kingdom, as the group will help attract foreign investments to the Kingdom, which will be directly reflected in the performance of the macroeconomy in general.

The following is a presentation of some of the opportunities that the kingdom can seize after officially joining the BRICS, starting from January 1, 2024:

? Economic Cooperation: The GDP of the BRICS countries is estimated at more than 29 trillion USD (after the accession of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, Iran, Argentina, and Ethiopia). This means that Saudi Arabia can benefit from economic cooperation with these countries.

? Investment: The BRICS countries (the main ones) are significant investors in emerging markets, and this means that Saudi Arabia can attract more foreign investments from these countries.

? Technology Transfer: The BRICS countries are pioneers in the technology field, which gives the Kingdom an opportunity to benefit from the technical and industrial expertise of the BRICS countries.

? Access to Markets: The BRICS countries enjoy the nature of large and growing markets that have not yet reached saturation, which enables the Kingdom to access these markets more deeply after joining the BRICS.

In a nutshell, the world has not and will not be what it was before Corona and the Ukrainian war. The future is for a multipolar world; BRICS, EU and USA (and its neighbors), and on our way to achieving the kingdom's Vision 2030 under the leadership of HRH Prince Muhammad bin Salman, we will undoubtedly meet choices amid a lot of uncertainty . Yet, our confidence lies in the vision of our leaders and their ability - which has become evident - to adapt to the geopolitical and economic conditions without retreating an inch in the way of achieving Vision 2030.

Below Graph shows 20 years growth of BRICS FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) Inwards between members, try and imagine now the new Super Power we have gained along with all Giga Projects Progressing in Saudi Arabia and the economical cycle of all these inflows

Excited to see the impact, what about you?

Mazen A. Elyas