It was an exceptional privilege to chair an invitation-only roundtable discussion with Jim O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley, during the recent AIM Summit in Dubai.
From his years at Goldman Sachs, where he first coined the term BRICS, to his time as UK Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, Lord O’Neill has consistently bridged the worlds of markets and strategy with rare insight. Few economists have left such a lasting imprint on how we understand global growth.
Our discussion revisited the BRICS concept and it was fascinating to hear his comments on how the original idea has developed in a world that has outgrown the simplicity of the old North–South divide. We explored whether the BRICS+ expansion enhances the bloc’s global credibility or risks diluting the clarity of purpose of the original five. We also discussed the extent to which BRICS has now become more a political signal than an economic driver and whether the ideas underlying the BRICS concept remain relevant or if we now need a new framework altogether to interpret global power and growth.
We also looked beyond BRICS to ASEAN’s dynamism, Africa’s promise and the GCC’s rapidly increasing role in global finance and investment. Our conversation concluded with reflections on how the next two decades are likely to bring both significant risks and remarkable opportunities and where the brightest prospects may emerge amid the shifting alliances and accelerating technological change.
My sincerest thanks to Lord O’Neill for his generosity in sharing many most important insights. His reflections reminded us that, while the post World War II global order may well be fragmenting, it is also evolving in purpose. This will create space for fresh leadership and new alliances. It may well also lead ultimately to more representative global governance.
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