ABSTRACT
Covid-19, a global pandemic that surfaced towards the end of 2019 in China soon swept the entire globe with unprecedented consequences affecting society, economy, governments, health care systems to each and every aspect of human life. Given the speed of its spread and the mayhem it has caused across the globe, there has been a need for concerted collaborative effort to fight the common enemy-the virus. The pandemic not only posed extraordinary challenges and uncertainties for the nations and its leaders, it also offered them an opportunity to explore ways and means through cooperation and collaboration in tiding over the crisis. It is in this backdrop, this chapter examines the origin and spread of Covid-19 in BRICS member states, its impact on the economy of these countries, the challenges they face as well as their government’s response to it. I also argue that the US withdrawal from taking a lead role in the fight against the pandemic provided an opportunity to BRICS to take the lead role. The chapter also highlights the areas of collaborations and points of dissension among the multilateral group in handling the pandemic. I conclude that BRICS nations have not only proactively cooperated and collaborated in the fight against the pandemic, they have reached out to hotspots across the globe to support them to tide over the crisis. However, the battle against the virus seems to be long and protracted, therefore, the BRICS member states need to expedite implementation of the projects and decisions agreed upon to mitigate its impact on their economies.
