Union Minister for Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi said on Thursday that BRICS cooperation extends far beyond economic collaboration and now encompasses critical areas such as counter-terrorism, climate change, food and energy security, trade, technology and digital governance.
He was speaking at the inauguration of the fifth summit of Heads of National Standards Bodies (NSBs) of the BRICS member nations, being held in Bengaluru under India's presidency. The two-day summit, themed "Cooperation in Standardisation under BRICS", has brought together heads of National Standards Bodies from all 11 BRICS member countries -- Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
"It is a matter of great pride that Bengaluru is hosting the heads of National Standards Bodies from all 11 BRICS nations. India is privileged to chair this important meeting on behalf of all member countries," Union Minister Joshi said. The Union Minister also announced that India will host the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi later this year.
India has previously hosted BRICS summits in 2012, 2016 and 2021. The summit assumes significance as member nations are expected to finalise and sign an agreement aimed at establishing a formal framework for cooperation among BRICS National Standards Bodies.
The proposed framework is expected to facilitate information sharing, technical collaboration and capacity building among member states. Highlighting the evolution of BRICS cooperation, Union Minister Joshi noted that collaboration in the field of standardisation began in 2022.
The first NSB meeting was held in China, followed by South Africa in 2023, Russia in 2024 and Brazil in 2025, with India hosting the fifth edition in Bengaluru this year. "BRICS today represents nearly 49.5 per cent of the world's population, accounts for around 40 per cent of global GDP and contributes nearly 26 per cent of global trade.
However, BRICS cooperation is not limited to economic matters alone," the Union Minister said. He added that the grouping has emerged as a powerful alliance of like-minded nations working together on a wide range of global challenges, including reforms to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), agriculture, labour, finance, and emerging technologies.
Union Minister Joshi said India's national standards body, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), has upheld quality and standardisation for nearly eight decades without compromising on excellence and has played a pivotal role in facilitating commerce and industry in the country.
During the summit, BIS will make a presentation on India's approach to standardisation in Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies, focusing on safe, ethical, transparent, interoperable and trustworthy AI systems, while also addressing issues related to accountability and risk management.
"Greater cooperation in standardisation among BRICS countries will facilitate smoother trade and commerce, strengthen global competitiveness and help align international standards," Union Minister Joshi added. The Bengaluru summit is expected to further strengthen institutional ties among BRICS nations and reinforce their collective commitment to shaping global standards in an increasingly interconnected world.