Ghana is preparing to formally apply for membership of BRICS as the government seeks to broaden the country’s international partnerships and create new opportunities for investment, industrialisation and economic growth.
Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa announced the decision on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, at a joint press briefing in Accra with India’s External Affairs Minister, Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who was on an official visit to Ghana.
Ablakwa disclosed that Cabinet had approved Ghana’s decision to submit a formal application to the bloc, setting the stage for the country to begin the process of seeking membership.
BRICS was originally formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China, with South Africa joining the grouping in 2011. Its membership has since expanded to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia.
The grouping provides a platform for cooperation among emerging and developing economies on economic, political and global governance issues.
Explaining Ghana’s interest in the bloc, Ablakwa said the proposed membership forms part of the government’s broader efforts to diversify the country’s international partnerships and attract investment that can support job creation and industrial development.
He stressed that seeking closer ties with BRICS would not mean Ghana was abandoning its existing relationships with institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
Rather, he underscored that Ghana needed to expand its network of international partners and create additional opportunities to advance its development priorities.
“We are not going to walk away from our traditional partners who value that relationship, but we must have new friends,” Mr Ablakwa said.
The Minister identified India, Brazil and China as key partners with which Ghana already maintains diplomatic, trade and investment relations.
He pointed to the expansion of Ghana-India trade, which he said had increased from about US$3 billion in 2024 to approximately US$7 billion.
He also linked Ghana’s interest in BRICS to the government’s objective of securing greater value from the country’s natural resources through local processing and industrialisation.
He noted that Ghana wanted to move away from a dependence on exporting raw materials and instead build partnerships that would support value addition and greater control over the country’s resources.
“We want resource sovereignty where we can be treated as equal partners. We don’t want a situation where we continue to export raw materials. We want to add value to the natural resources that we have,” he said.
India has welcomed Ghana’s aspiration, with Dr Jaishankar expressing support for the country’s development objectives while noting that any decision on Ghana’s admission would have to be considered by the wider BRICS membership.
Ghana’s announcement marks the beginning of an application process rather than an immediate entry into the bloc.
The government will first have to formally submit its application and engage existing BRICS members as it seeks support for its bid.
BRICS has continued to expand in recent years, including through the creation of a partner-country category that allows countries to deepen their engagement with the grouping without becoming full members.
For Ghana, the proposed application represents an effort to widen its diplomatic and economic options, particularly by strengthening cooperation with emerging economies and countries of the Global South.
Any eventual admission will depend on the consideration and agreement of existing BRICS members.
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Hussein Habibata Maltiti
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