UNITED NATIONS, September 19. /TASS/. BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) is an alternative strategic platform for boosting cooperation between developing countries as traditional institutions of international economy management lose credibility, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday.

"The lack of equality and imbalances in the IMF’s and the World Bank’s management are unacceptable. <…> Amid this inertia there emerged BRICS, which is a strategic platform for promoting cooperation between developing countries," he said at the 78th session of the UN General Assembly.

The recent decision taken by the group of five countries to invite new members to cooperate in the BRICS format after the Johannesburg summit in August helps "strengthen efforts for the order that would reflect economic, geographical and political pluralism of the 21th century," the politician noted. "We are a power that works on establishing fairer global trade in the light of severe crisis of multisided institutions," he pointed out.

The decision on Argentina, Egypt, Iran, the UAE, Saudi Arabi and Ethiopia becoming full members of BRICS was taken at the BRICS summit that took place in Johannesburg under South Africa’s chairmanship in late August. The membership will take effect from January 1, 2024.