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Addis Ababa – Ethiopia, one of Africa’s most dynamic economies, has asked to join the BRICS. This was stated by the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry. The term Bric was coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in 2001 to describe the rise of Brazil, Russia, India and China. The BRIC powers held their first summit in 2009 in Russia. South Africa joined in 2010, changing the acronym to BRICS. The BRICS countries now represent over 40% of the world‘s population and about 26% of the global economy.
“We expect the BRICS to give us a positive response to the membership application,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Meles Alem told reporters. Ethiopia will continue to work with international institutions so that they can protect its interests, he said.
The Horn of Africa nation has the second-largest population in Africa, but its economy ranks only 59th in the world according to the International Monetary Fund and is less than half the size of the smallest BRICS member, South Africa. South Africa will host the next summit in August.
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