Nigeria among 19 countries expected to join BRICS - Report

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A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Adamu Garba has said that Nigeria is among the list of countries that have expressed interest in joining the BRICS group of nations as it prepares to hold an annual summit in South Africa.

He made the revelation on his Twitter handle on Monday, April 24.

The controversial Garba made the comment as nineteen countries have expressed an interest in joining the BRICS group.

According to the reports, the emerging markets will meet in Cape Town on 2-3 June to discuss its enlargement, Anil Sooklal, South Africa's ambassador to the group, said in an interview in the city on Monday.

"What will be discussed is the expansion of Brics and the modalities of how this will happen," he said. "Thirteen countries have formally asked to join and another six have asked informally. We are getting applications to join every day."

China initiated the conversation about expansion when it was Brics chair last year, as the world's second-biggest economy tries to build diplomatic clout to counter the dominance of developed countries in the United Nations, reports Frontline.thehindu.com.

The proposed enlargement triggered concern among other members that their influence will be diluted, especially if Beijing's close allies are admitted. China's gross domestic product is more than twice the size of all four other Brics members combined.

BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa used to describe the world’s fastest-growing economies.

The economic bloc is trying to position itself as representative of the Global South, providing "an alternative model to the G7."

The G7 is an "informal forum" of heads of state of the world's most advanced economies, founded in 1975. Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Canada, and the US are members, as is the EU.