SHANGHAI, August 17. /TASS/. The future development of Africa is largely connected with the BRICS mechanism (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), and the African countries hope for cooperation with this association on various issues, including the debt problem, Nyu Haibin, the director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies told TASS on Thursday.

"I believe that the main expectations from this summit are related to the fact that it will once again be held on the African continent. The BRICS countries, within the framework of the cooperation mechanism, have always attached importance and priority to Africa in their work," the expert said, recalling that it was South Africa that was the first country that started the expansion of the association, thus letting it become more representative globally.

In his opinion, Africa is now increasingly attracting the attention of the international community in terms of its economic and political affairs. This concerns especially the debt problem of African countries, which is a matter of concern, Nyu pointed out.

"In fact, everyone, including the African countries, is pinning hopes on the BRICS countries in terms of their stance on the debt problem and on how they can contribute to easing Africa's debt. Since the BRICS countries are now the main trading partners of African countries as well as a source of investment, they are more relevant to Africa's development. That is, the future lies with them. Africa now relies more than before on the BRICS countries for sustainable development," Nyu believes.

According to the expert, the BRICS countries’ view of Africa's debt problem is different from that of the US and Europe.

"They (BRICS countries - TASS) can offer other and better options of addressing the debt issue," he believes. The expert also mentioned the New Development Bank created by the BRICS countries as an important tool capable of contributing to Africa's development. The projects it funds have already gone beyond the bounds of the association’s member states.

"Therefore, I think Africa will become a very important area for cooperation within the BRICS mechanism," he said.

Summit in South Africa

The South Africa-chaired BRICS summit will be held in Johannesburg on August 22-24. According to the South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor, the BRICS leaders will discuss the expansion of the organization. She added that 23 countries had submitted formal applications to join the organization.