Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defended closer ties with African countries during his speech at the BRICS Business Forum on Tuesday in Johannesburg.
The BRICS group is composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa; the world’s largest emerging economies.
The bloc already is home to 40% of the world’s population and responsible for more than 30% of global economic output, and more than 20 nations have applied to join, according to South African officials, including Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
“Brazil is back on the continent it should never have left. Africa offers vast opportunities and enormous potential for growth,” said the Brazilian President.
Source: Africa News
