BRICS Think Tanks Discuss Governance Solutions

Seminar on Governance explores how BRICS countries’ influence will continue to grow in the future

“After a decade of efforts， BRICS cooperation has realized fruitful achievements， and BRICS countries have become an increasingly close community of shared interests and actions along the road forward together，” said Huang Kunming， executive vice minister of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China （CPC） Central Committee， in his keynote speech at the BRICS Seminar on Governance held on Aug. 17， 2017， in Quanzhou， southeastern China’s Fujian Province. Huang added that each of the five BRICS countries has adopted governance systems and policies suitable for their respective domestic conditions， walked their own unique development paths and accumulated their own precious experiences on governance.

The seminar， hosted by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and co-organized by the Chinese Academy of Governance and China International Publishing Group （CIPG）， was themed on “Openness， Inclusiveness， Mutual Benefit and Win-Win： Working Together to Build a Community of Shared Future for Mankind.” Participants came from BRICS member countries — Brazil， Russia， India， China and South Africa — as well as other developing countries such as Tanzania， Ethiopia and Mexico.

Fruitful Achievements of Pragmatic Cooperation

BRICS countries come from four continents and are important representatives of diverse human civilization. They have explored development paths compatible to their respective history， cultural context and domestic situation.

“Despite their different domestic situations and development modes， BRICS countries have achieved development through pragmatic cooperation，” said Shen Yi， director of the Center for BRICS Studies at Fudan University. “Over the past 10 years， BRICS members have not only realized rapid development domestically and mutually， but also fueled the development of their respective regions. Particularly， BRICS countries have played a significant role in addressing the global financial crisis， thus drawing worldwide attention with their development strength.”

Boris Guseletov， a senior research fellow at the Institute of Europe under the Russian Academy of Sciences， pointed out that in the past decade， BRICS members have strengthened financial and technological support for low-income countries through South-South cooperation and built a new type of economic cooperation.

“Over the past decade， BRICS countries have considerably expanded scopes of cooperation，” remarked Professor Swaran Singh Jaswal from the School of International Studies of Jawaharlal Nehru University. “We need to further deepen cultural exchange and create a sense of belonging among people of BRICS countries.” He also said that given the existing cooperation mechanisms under the framework of BRICS such as film festivals， sport events， educational cooperation frameworks and media and youth exchange mechanisms， such top-down communication will consolidate BRICS cooperation.

Chinese Experience Wins Applause

“President Xi Jinping has vowed China’s commitment to actively participating in global governance and adopting effective measures to make contributions to world peace and prosperity，” noted Robert Lawrence Kuhn， chairman of the Kuhn Foundation. “As the world considers global governance structures， China’s experience can make a vital contribution.” Kuhn added that he believes that the governance mode introduced by Chinese President Xi Jinping will provide a good example for BRICS members and other countries.

“To realize economic growth in the future， BRICS countries need to overcome infrastructure setbacks，” explained Ronnie Lins， CEO of the Center China-Brazil： Research and Business （CCB）. As a strong supporter for the BRICS mechanism， he added， China can give full play to its advantageous infrastructure and help other BRICS members improve their infrastructure， thus stimulating economic growth and employment and improving people’s livelihoods.

Director of the China Studies Center in Kazakhstan， noted that the new global governance mode proposed by China is based on Eastern values and equal dialogue， and that as an engine for global economic growth， the Belt and Road Initiative is expected to promote communication and coordination between developing and developed countries and facilitate policy， infrastructure， financial， trade and people-to-people connectivity.

Moving Forward Together

During the seminar， CIPG signed a memorandum of understanding on academic research and communication with the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences， the CCB， the Institute of Chinese Studies in Delhi， India and The Thinker magazine of South Africa， respectively. Ma Jiantang， executive vice president of the Chinese Academy of Governance， Tuo Zhen， vice minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee， and CIPG President Zhang Fuhai attended the signing ceremony. Wang Gangyi， vice president of CIPG， signed cooperation agreements with the heads of those cooperative BRICS agencies.

The seminar passed the Quanzhou Consensus of the BRICS Seminar on Governance， which includes four key points： First， BRICS countries should prioritize development. Through exploring new growth points and adhering to the concept of inclusive growth， we need to guarantee people’s livelihoods， reduce poverty-stricken population， and consolidate social security networks， thus benefiting not only our own countries but also people around the world. Second， BRICS countries should carry out mutually beneficial cooperation. We need to strengthen coordination and cooperation and jointly build a value chain of shared benefits and a market of integrated interests， so as to build an even closer economic partnership and expand our development horizons through collective efforts. Third， BRICS countries should actively participate in global governance. We need to constantly reform international economic rules， intensify coordination and dialogue on major international and regional issues， safeguard a fair and just world order， and increasingly strengthen the representation and voice of emerging markets and developing countries in global governance. Fourth， BRICS countries should strengthen mutual learning between different civilizations. BRICS countries’ experiences in state governance are valuable achievements of human civilization， as are the experiences of all other emerging markets and developing countries. We need to make governance experience exchange an integral part of cultural exchange， deepen mutual understanding， learn from one another and constantly expand our circle of friends， so as to provide intellectual support for healthier development of various countries.

Over the past decade， BRICS members have set a good example for South-South cooperation between countries with different development modes. China has made active contributions to coordinating dialogue and solving differences. In the coming decade， based on cooperation in areas like politics， economics， finance， science， technology and agriculture， BRICS countries will carry out dialogue and exchange in even more fields and exert a deeper influence on the world.