India’s 2026 BRICS presidency has highlighted that the concerns of developing countries should not be treated as peripheral to global governance, and has made a positive contribution to the development agenda of the Global South, a new report notes.
The presidency has brought practical contributions, including India’s experience with digital public infrastructure and the need for development finance. Over the past decade, New Delhi has built a digital ecosystem that has changed how millions of Indians access payments, banking and public services. Aadhaar, UPI and the broader India Stack have become key examples of how digital systems can be designed for mass adoption.
Finance is another area where India’s BRICS engagement carries wider significance. The New Development Bank, established by BRICS in 2015, was created to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects in member countries. Its founding members committed equal initial capital, giving the institution a structure distinct from the voting arrangements of traditional Bretton Woods institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF. The bank’s importance lies in the fact that it creates an additional source of development finance at a time when infrastructure requirements across the Global South remain enormous.
India has been one of the bank’s principal beneficiaries. NDB financing has supported projects in India, including the Madhya Pradesh Major District Roads Project, which was approved to improve road connectivity and transport infrastructure. Yet the larger question remains whether BRICS finance can reach beyond major infrastructure. India’s emphasis on MSMEs, investment cooperation and local‑currency financing is relevant here, as small businesses are often more exposed to credit constraints and currency volatility than large corporations. Easier access to finance could make a difference to employment, entrepreneurship and local economic activity.
The article also highlights that India’s BRICS presidency has sought to place health, agriculture, sustainability and innovation on the agenda, all of which are closely tied to the resilience of societies.
