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00:00 I want to talk a bit more about all of this with me now.
00:02 Let's bring in Erin Bates, who's in Johannesburg.
00:04 Erin, the BRICS meeting this year is focusing on Africa.
00:08 Tell us a bit more about that.
00:09 We have Mr. Angelo Ocelade, who is the head of Middle East and Africa.
00:13 Yes, well, the appetite amongst African nations to potentially join BRICS is squarely on the
00:19 table.
00:20 President Cyril Ramaphosa hinting at that and the expansion of the membership of this
00:25 BRICS bloc in a closed discussion this evening during a dinner.
00:29 He, along with all those representatives you named, said to appear from four o'clock this
00:33 afternoon when they speak at the opening of the business address proper.
00:39 But that's not to say there haven't already been talks about business, including free
00:43 and fair trade on Africa and trying to loosen up the regulatory frameworks along with certain
00:49 tariffs in order to entice and appetize investors from the BRICS group into continental engagements.
00:58 Erin, the BRICS alliance has really grown in stature, it's grown in importance over
01:03 the years.
01:04 And as you were mentioning, there are now dozens of countries that are hoping to join
01:07 the bloc.
01:08 Certainly are, and it's not just in Africa.
01:13 The likes of Indonesia, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, all making it clear that they're interested
01:18 in joining.
01:19 Morocco, on the other hand, has made it clear that it's not formally seeking to join the
01:24 BRICS bloc.
01:25 There has been some debate about whether or not there should be certain parameters around
01:30 potentially growing that membership or simply getting the numbers up in order to beef up
01:36 the clout of this bloc in terms of geopolitical issues.
01:40 One of the debates is whether or not the coming days in Johannesburg are going to be merely
01:45 a talk shop or a trade floor.
01:48 And with the focus on business today ahead of the appearance of those global leaders,
01:53 there certainly is a lot of talk about business and investment on the continent and also in
01:58 certain cases, investing in development projects and waiving certain debts.
02:04 President Cyril Ramaphosa in his engagement and greeting to President Xi Jinping earlier
02:09 in Pretoria, talking about the favors or sort of waivers granted by China to African states
02:16 in light of COVID-19.
02:18 Also emphasizing the warm friendship between the two countries and President Xi at one
02:23 point toward the end, talking about this being a historic moment for a new way forward for
02:29 these two countries.
02:30 Erin, thank you for that.
02:31 That's Erin Bates there reporting from Johannesburg, where the BRICS leaders will be gathering
02:36 later today.
02:36 [BLANK_AUDIO]