Beijing – – September 16, 2026 -- The New Development Bank (NDB), the BRICS-backed lender championed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, has approved 139 projects worth roughly $43 billion by the end of 2025, funding renewable energy, transport infrastructure, affordable housing and clean water access across emerging markets.
Xi Jinping Joins New Delhi Summit as BRICS Marks 20 Years
Xi will attend the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13 at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, under the theme 'Building Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation, and Sustainability.' The gathering marks two decades of BRICS cooperation and arrives as Global South economies push for more self-reliant development models.
Industrial Capacity Center Targets Technology Transfer and Business Matchmaking
Beijing has established the BRICS Industrial Capacity China Center to serve as a dedicated platform for industrial cooperation, technology transfer and cross-border business matchmaking. Indonesian scholar Siti Mutiah Setiawati said the Global Development Initiative and BRICS cooperation have reinforced each other over the past five years, translating shared development goals into measurable outcomes for emerging economies.
Grain Exchange Proposal Targets 42% of World's Agricultural Land
BRICS members control roughly 42% of global agricultural land and grain production, according to figures cited following the bloc's Agriculture Ministers' Meeting in June 2026. Members prioritized food security, agricultural trade and climate-resilient farming at that meeting, and a proposed BRICS Grain Exchange is positioned to stabilize global food supply chains against price shocks and climate-driven disruptions.
2025 AI Governance Statement Pushes Developing Nations Into Rule-Making Role
The bloc's 2025 BRICS Statement on AI Governance calls for an inclusive digital ecosystem that shifts developing countries from passive technology consumers to active rule-makers in frontier tech policy. B. R. Deepak, a professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, said China's Global Governance Initiative offers a framework for BRICS to push governance reform that strengthens the UN-centered system and makes it more representative.
Stefan Ossenkoepper, a researcher at Germany's Schiller Institute, said the philosophy behind BRICS cooperation aligns with Xi's four global initiatives -- development, security, civilization and governance -- creating a collective mechanism for win-win development among Global South economies.