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•No it’s our principled democratic belief –Shettima
By Omodele Adigun
As Egypt, Ethiopia and four other countries are admitted into the exclusive club of BRICS membership, devaluation of the nation’s currency has been blamed for its inability utilise the unique opportunity to join the league of developing states that has Russia, India, China, Brasil and South Africa as founding members.
This comes as Vice President Kashim Shettima, disagreed with the notion but attributed it to lack of interest and current administration’s democratic principles.
Shettima’s statement came shortly after BRICS, announced the admission of six new members– Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE- into the economic alliance.
Representing Nigeria at the alliance’s summit in South- Africa last week, Shettima stated on Friday that the question of Nigeria’s absence from the group did not arise since the country had never submitted an application for BRICS membership.
“Our decision not to pursue BRICS membership at this time is largely influenced by the principled democratic beliefs of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who emphasizes consensus building,” he said in an interview with newsmen during the summit.
Shettima explained that there were numerous factors to consider, requiring consultations with the economic advisory council, Federal Executive Council, and even the National Assembly, before making a well-informed decision about joining BRICS.
However, the details provided by the data analytics company showed that the BRICS nations have a combined GDP of $27.649 trillion, with China taking almost 60 percent at $19.37 trillion.
The other partner nations, in no particular order, are Brazil at $2.08 trillion, Russia at $2.06 trillion, India at $3.74 trillion, and South Africa at $399 billion. Their combined total makes up over 30 percent of the global economy.
Reacting on Twitter, Nigerians bemoan the absence of their beloved country in this comity of nations. Below are some of their lamentations
Remi Adekoya, a lecturer of Political Science at the University of York, England, with more than 20000 followers, reacted that he was rather surprised at the missed opportunity.
He, however, didn’t fault the exclusion of Nigeria because, according to him, the rapid fall in the naira, Nigeria’s currency, would have reduced the international value of our economy.
He tweeted, “Interesting. Egypt is now Africa’s 2nd-largest economy with a $387bln GDP, behind South Africa’s $399bln. Nigeria used to be Africa’s largest economy. But at current rate of 773 naira to $1, Nigeria’s 198 trillion-naira GDP makes it a $255bln economy, a distant 3rd in Africa.”
He tweeted, “This makes sense to me given the drama with the naira. Although if confirmed by the IMF next month, this would mark one of the more stunning economic reversals in recent times. South Africa: $399 billion Egypt: $387 billion Nigeria: $250-$300 billion range.
