BRICS (Syllabus: GS Paper 2– IR)

Context: The Competition Commission of India (CCI) will be hosting the 8th BRICS International Competition Conference (BRICS ICC) 2023, themed ‘New Issues in Competition Law and Policy – Dimensions, Perspectives, Challenges’.

BRICS

• It  is an acronym for the grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (included in 2010)
• Founded By: 2009.
• Headquarter: Shanghai.
• Membership: The heads of the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) gathered for the first occasion in St. Petersburg, Russia, during the G8 Outreach Summit in July 2006.

oIn December 2010, South Africa received an invitation to become a part of BRIC, leading to the adoption of the acronym BRICS for the group.

oIn August 2023, at the 15th BRICS Summit, BRICS was expanded to add Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the bloc. Full membership is scheduled to take effect on 1 January 2024.

• Significance: BRICS is a significant alliance that gathers the major growing economies.

Competition Commission of India (CCI)

• About: The commission is a quasi-judicial body which gives opinions to statutory authorities and also deals with other cases.
• Establishment: Competition law under the Competition Act, 2002.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
• Composition: One Chairperson and six Members who shall be appointed by the Central Government.