There was a time when South Africa’s place in the BRICS bloc looked purely symbolic a polite nod to the African continent’s presence in a club dominated by giants. But as the world’s political and economic tectonic plates continue to shift, Pretoria has transformed that symbolism into strategy. With the bloc’s expansion and the growing momentum behind “de-dollarization,” South Africa now finds itself playing an unlikely role: the smooth-talking broker in a noisy world of competing empires.
At the recent BRICS Summit in Johannesburg, President Cyril Ramaphosa stood before a backdrop of flags representing not just Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa but also the bloc’s newest entrants: Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. It was a moment that confirmed what Pretoria had been quietly working toward for months: an expanded alliance that stretches from the Cape of Good Hope to the Persian Gulf and the Nile Delta. The BRICS map now covers more than 40% of the world’s population and roughly a third of global GDP. For South Africa, it’s a diplomatic jackpot a chance to punch far above its economic weight and host the emerging world’s most ambitious experiment in multipolarity.
Critics often scoff at BRICS as a “talk shop” a bloc more famous for communiqués than concrete policies. Yet, in recent months, that perception has begun to change. The group’s development bank, headquartered in Shanghai but currently led by former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff, has ramped up its lending in local currencies. Talk of a common settlement mechanism a financial framework that could one day rival the dollar has gained serious traction. And while these moves remain more symbolic than structural, they signal something unmistakable: the world’s non-Western economies are tired of playing by rules they didn’t write.
For South Africa, steering these conversations has been a delicate balancing act. It is the bloc’s smallest economy, still struggling with power shortages, unemployment, and stagnant growth. Yet diplomatically, it has positioned itself as the bridge-builder the one member trusted to speak to everyone. When Russia’s war in Ukraine splintered international consensus, Pretoria hosted peace envoys from both Kyiv and Moscow. When the West accused BRICS of harboring anti-American ambitions, South Africa reminded everyone that “multipolarity doesn’t mean hostility.” And when the bloc debated new membership, it was South African negotiators who helped reconcile Chinese ambition with Indian caution.
Behind the smiles and handshakes, however, lies a serious calculation. The country’s foreign policy establishment understands that global influence can no longer rely on sheer economic might it must come from agility and credibility. “Pretoria doesn’t have the GDP of Beijing or the military clout of Moscow,” says political analyst Ralph Mathekga. “What it has is diplomatic muscle and it’s flexing it better than anyone expected.”
That muscle was on full display when Ramaphosa announced that South Africa would lead efforts to coordinate African participation in BRICS initiatives, especially around energy and food security. The idea is to turn the bloc into a platform for addressing the continent’s real pain points infrastructure, climate adaptation, and trade equity. By bringing Egypt and Ethiopia into the fold, BRICS gains the Suez Canal and the Nile Basin; by including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, it anchors itself in the oil heartland. In that sense, South Africa’s mediation was less about symbolism and more about design ensuring Africa’s voice wasn’t drowned out in a chorus of superpowers.
Western capitals are watching uneasily. Washington has downplayed the expansion, insisting BRICS lacks the cohesion to challenge the G7 or the IMF. Brussels mutters about “strategic posturing.” But inside Africa, the narrative feels different. Here, BRICS represents not a threat but an alternative a path toward greater autonomy in trade, investment, and technology. Chinese-built railways, Indian pharmaceutical ventures, and Russian grain deals are already reshaping the continent’s economic landscape. South Africa’s challenge is to ensure that this new connectivity doesn’t become a new dependency.
There are risks, of course. The bloc’s members are an awkward mix of democracies and autocracies, reformers and revisionists. Decision-making is slow, coordination clumsy, and national interests often collide. South Africa itself has been criticized for cozying up to Russia and China while maintaining deep trade ties with the West. But Pretoria’s diplomats argue that this balancing act is precisely the point: the world has moved past binary loyalties. “We can trade with America and still cooperate with China,” Ramaphosa told reporters at the summit. “That’s not contradiction that’s sovereignty.”
Economically, BRICS’ promise for South Africa lies in investment and diversification. The New Development Bank has already pledged billions for renewable energy projects, infrastructure upgrades, and digital transformation. These are not small favors for a country grappling with load-shedding and fiscal pressure. If Pretoria can leverage BRICS membership to attract long-term funding and technology transfer, it could turn global politics into domestic gain.
But the deeper impact may be psychological. For decades, South Africa’s diplomacy was shaped by the need to “fit in” to please investors, reassure partners, and act as Africa’s respectable interlocutor in Western-dominated institutions. BRICS has given it a different vocabulary one of assertiveness and self-definition. It no longer needs to be the continent’s “moral voice” alone; it can now be its negotiator-in-chief.
As the summit closed, a journalist asked Ramaphosa whether BRICS would ever replace the G7. He smiled. “It’s not about replacing anyone,” he said. “It’s about making space for everyone.” It was a clever answer — one that captured both the charm and the contradictions of South Africa’s foreign policy.
In a world busy choosing sides, Pretoria has found power in staying in the middle the middle of conversations, conflicts, and continents. The world may be multipolar, but for now, South Africa is making sure it’s also multilingual speaking softly, carrying no stick, but somehow keeping everyone listening.
