RIO DE JANEIRO, May 26. /TASS/. The government of Brazil views the New Development Bank of the BRICS group of nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) as a promising alternative to traditional financial institutions, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has said.

"We want the BRICS bank to strengthen as an alternative financial [instrument], and we will reinforce our cooperation with the African Development Bank," he said at a meeting with ambassadors from African countries.

In his opinion, traditional international financial and banking institutions ignore the needs of developing nations and are not suitable for them, because many of those countries are being "strangled by overwhelming debt burdens."

The agreement on establishing the BRICS New Development Bank was reached on July 15, 2014 in Brazil’s Fortaleza. The bank’s starting capital was set at $100 bln. The Shanghai-headquartered bank has been set up to finance infrastructure projects and projects for sustainable development of BRICS and other developing countries. The bank previously received international credit ratings of "AA +" from Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings, which allow it to effectively attract long-term funding in international and local capital markets. Over the years, the bank has approved almost 100 projects totaling $32.8 billion in support of such areas as transport, water supply, clean energy, digital and social infrastructure, and urban construction.

In 2021, the bank approved the accession of Bangladesh, Egypt, UAE and Uruguay.