ABSTRACT
One of the central areas of interest and topic of discussion among students of international political economy is the perceived multifaceted shift away from the economic, political and cultural predominance of the developed G7 countries of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy and the United States and towards the interests, values, goals and objectives of the emerging market economies of the developing world in global affairs. Within this context, special attention has been given to the accession of the so-called BRICs states – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – on the geo-economic consciousness of international relations scholars, economic policymakers and investors alike. The significance of this shift is striking because of the potential impact these ‘rising economic stars’ acting in unison will have as a powerful economic bloc in at once challenging and reshaping the global balance of power. With the BRICs projected to assume a more prominent profile on the global economic stage over the coming decades, are we witnessing a transformational shift in history when the international economy’s centre of power and its oversight decisively pivots away from the exclusive trilateral club dominated by the United States, Western Europe and Japan towards a more inclusive, multipolar and equitable world order? This chapter is segmented into four sections to assess the functional accuracy of the BRICs designation as potential player and centre of power in the structure and relations of the international economic order: the first section presents a brief overview of the historical and theoretical orientation of the BRICs as a classification as well as the geo-economic paradigm. The second section provides a SWOT analysis of the BRICs states by highlighting the key Strengths, exposing the main Weaknesses, exploring the most promising Opportunities and discussing the most pertinent Threats of the organization. The third section scrutinizes the functionality of the term as a viable analytical category. The concluding section reflects on the future of the BRICs in the global economy. This study suggest that the BRICs states concept does to a certain extent capture the reality of the global shift in economic power. The centre of geo-economic power is clearly expanding beyond the advanced industrialized world of the Global North. At the same time, their increased economic capabilities and dynamism should not be viewed as a threat to the order and stability of the international system. For while the BRICs states clearly want a bigger role in the global economy so as to be able to rewrite the rules of governance for the international economic system, they are also cognizant of the fact that they have greatly benefited from the present global economic system as currently constituted. Hence, for all their statements complaining about the imbalanced structure of the world economy and despite their publicized positions to have a greater voice in global economic affairs, the BRICs appear to want to bring about these changes as an insider power broker and not as an outside challenger – based on their behaviour and actions over the past ten years.
