ABSTRACT
The emergence of informal multilateral institutions claiming a major role in defining the global governance agenda has created alternatives for providing common goods. The calculus approach fits the analysis of summit institutions bringing together states from a wide range of civilizations, continents and economic development. Institutionalization does not automatically translate into actorness or enhanced implementation, but does contribute to shaping the identity of the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS). The BRICS agenda reflects the group's mission and values. With the evolution and institutionalization of the BRICS, the distribution of the global governance functions of deliberation, direction setting, decision making, delivery and the development of global governance in its discourse is changing. In the absence of any self-accountability mechanisms, a shared sense of urgency for collective and coordinated actions remained the main catalyst for BRICS compliance performance. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.
