The socioeconomic dimensions of BRICS: a comparative analysis over three decades 1990 to 2020

Abstract

BRICS countries are not only striving to gain more political and economic clouts in the developing world but are also influencing global governance. However, each one is facing its own economic concerns and challenges. For instance, India has been witnessing a severe economic slowdown, while Brazil is maintaining a low growth rate along with persistent high inflation and unemployment problems. South Africa has been mired with low growth rate, rising youth unemployment, high debt and inequality. China has been suffering from a sluggish growth on account of the trade war with the US, and Russia has massively suffered from US and EU sanctions. Despite these problems, they are trying to lay a robust foundation of cooperation with the countries in the Global South amid their rising discontent over perceived Western dominance of the global institutions. With this background, our main focus here is to comprehend socioeconomic dimensions from a comparative assessment to develop an understanding and visualize their relative developmental positions over the last three decades (1990 to 2020). Analyzing the data, the study clearly observes visible diversities within them. While China’s socioeconomic dimensions have improved remarkably, followed by India, South Africa could achieve relatively only with minimal success. It demonstrates that certain BRICS countries while achieving significant strides in their socioeconomic development outcomes, others are encumbered and struggling with challenges over the last three decades (1990 to 2020) without witnessing similar success and yet to overcome those challenges. The uneven economic progress of economies needs to be addressed by individual economies by laying down efficient economic policies, which have been falling short of the average progress in any economic development parameters if their economic and social cooperation needs to be strengthened towards achieving higher economic progress by mutually benefitting from their stronger socioeconomic ties and simultaneously exert greater influence in the world stage.