The Bolivian government had officially communicated its willingness to join BRICS as a first step in a "long" but "correct" process, according to Foreign Minister Rogelio Mayta.
The statement comes as a number of other countries, including African ones, also expressed their desire to join the club. Among them are Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Indonesia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and others.
La Paz's move is viewed as "highly strategic" by
Gabriel Villalba, analyst and director of the Center for Geopolitical Studies of Our America (CENAC), who noted that
BRICS could provide Bolivia with "new allies in this multipolar world that can face the attacks of the US."
The analyst highlighted that Bolivia has built new relationship paradigms at the regional and global level, particularly since the administration of Ex-President Evo Morales (2006-2019) and the establishment of the Constitution in 2009. According to his point of view, the South American country opened up to new world associations based on the basic principle of
non-intervention in internal affairs.Villalba has also highlighted BRICS' decision to start giving rise to their economic and financial transactions in their own currencies and that is in line with the “
Bolivianization process” — giving greater relevance to the
Bolivian currency in an attempt to move away from the greenback.
In this sense, Bolivia joining this new scenario "is extremely encouraging" for the expert.
Bolivia is not the only one interested in joining the BRICS group. South America is brimming with interest on this score as can be seen with
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, recently announcing that his country officially applied for BRICS membership, while the Argentine government also formally requested its inclusion in the club in September 2022.
Earlier, South African Ambassador to Moscow Mzuvukile Jeff Maqetuka told Sputnik in an interview that all five BRICS countries welcome the expansion of the bloc, but that it is necessary to determine the modalities of admitting new members and that this issue should be decided collectively.
Villalba is upbeat about Latin American countries' pursuit of joining the club that concentrates more than 31.5% of world GDP. Additionally, he highlights South America is abundant with riches for instance, the continent has the largest
lithium reserves on the planet, and the largest reserves of fresh water and diversity.
Bolivia also enjoys vibrant economic growth. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) indicated that, between 2009 and 2019, the country had an average economic growth rate of 4.9% in its GDP.
"Bolivia stands out for its persistent economic growth, it is the country with the highest perpetual growth in Latin America. This has to do with its strategic policy but also with its political decision to nationalize hydrocarbons," explained the expert, who added that before the profits were mostly taken by transnational companies.
Egypt and
Ethiopia are among the last countries in Africa that have officially applied for membership from the African continent.
The upcoming BRICS Summit in Johannesburg on August 22-24 is expected to be attended by the leaders of China, India, Brazil, South Africa. Russian President Vladimir Putin will join the event online.
The issue of BRICS expansion is expected to be on the summit's agenda. Since BRICS announced plans to expand the organization and become more inclusive, more than 40 countries have expressed interest in joining the group, according to Anil Sooklal, South Africa's ambassador-at-large for Asia and BRICS and the country's BRICS sherpa.
Bolivia will participate in the 15th Summit of the BRICS group and according to South African Deputy Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Parks Tau, all 54 African counties have been invited to the forthcoming BRICS Summit.