By Merlyn Mwanza
President Hakainde Hichilema has told the ongoing BRICS summit in South Africa that there must be a system that ensures investment in value addition where resources are exploited from.
South Africa is currently hosting the BRICS Summit, which consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and has now invited Argentina, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Ethiopia, meaning that the group will now consist of countries which produce 80 percent of the world oil production, with 46 percent of the world population and 36 percent of economic control.
Speaking during his allotted time, President Hichilema who is among the other African heads of states and other international leaders invited to the summit, said Africa, Asia and South America, which make up the global south must consciously agree that relationships must be structured in a manner that allows enhancement of domestic growth of those that will be associated with the BRICS.
“And also using BRICS, Mr chair, correct the relationships that were structured wrongly with the old order. That old order which we are talking about reforming. We now have an opportunity under the BRICS to enter in those relationships in a reformed manner that ensures that when we exploit resources we must invest in value addition in the countries where those resources are located,” President Hichilema said. “It benefits the investors, collective basket of investors. It creates opportunities for our young African population and invariably develops opportunity to stabilise political, civil stability which is important.”
President Hichilema said the globe has an opportunity once again under the BRICS platform to work together to realise enormous opportunities within the global south that will deliver mutual benefits for all the countries, continent and globe.
He called for mutual partnerships in technology that will deliver value for all the economies, saying global success cannot be talked about in isolation.
“You can’t call global success when other countries are left behind,” said President Hichilema.
South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa, emphasized on what the other leaders have talked about, that of finding trading in local currencies or finding other currencies to trade in outside the US dominated Dollar, which gives that country and the west a lot of control over the political and financial architecture of the world.
