Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu arrived in New Delhi on Thursday to attend the 18th BRICS Summit, scheduled to be held on September 12-13.
Upon her arrival, the Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister was warmly received by senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
Nigeria joined the expanded BRICS framework as a partner country, with its formal admission announced by Brazil during its 2025 BRICS chairship. As Africa’s most populous country and one of the continent’s leading economies, Nigeria’s participation brings significant representation from the African continent and strengthens the grouping’s engagement with the Global South.
Nigeria’s growing role in South-South cooperation also aligns with several of the priorities being pursued under India’s 2026 BRICS chairship.
The arrival of the Nigerian minister comes amid the movement of several senior leaders and representatives to the national capital ahead of the high-level summit.
Earlier, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Maria Theresa P Lazaro arrived in New Delhi to attend the summit.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also arrived in the national capital ahead of the BRICS Summit and was received by Union Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh at the airport.
Other senior Russian representatives, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, also arrived in New Delhi earlier in the day.
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) President Zou Jiayi arrived in the national capital to participate in the summit as well.
Meanwhile, Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira arrived in New Delhi on Wednesday. Vieira is representing Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the summit, as the Brazilian leader remains in Brazil for his election campaign.
India is hosting the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12-13 as part of its 2026 BRICS chairship.
India’s chairship is guided by the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”, with development, sustainability and innovation forming key areas of focus.
BRICS has emerged as an important platform for coordination among major emerging economies and for advancing the interests and priorities of the Global South in multilateral institutions.
The grouping’s agenda spans a wide range of areas, including development, finance, technology, trade and people-to-people exchanges.
The expanded BRICS grouping currently comprises 11 countries — Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.
Collectively, BRICS members account for around 49.5 per cent of the global population, 40 per cent of global GDP and 26 per cent of global trade, according to background information on India’s 2026 chairship.
India’s BRICS presidency comes at a time of increasing global economic fragmentation, technological disruption, geopolitical uncertainty, climate-related challenges and resource pressures.
The expanded grouping provides a platform for cooperation in areas such as development, climate action, technology, energy and financial resilience, while also contributing to discussions on reforming global institutions.
For India, the 2026 chairship is focused on translating the expanded representation of BRICS into meaningful cooperation and tangible outcomes, while building consensus among its diverse members and strengthening the effectiveness of existing mechanisms.
(ANI)
