Donald Trump has been elected president again, and he will be in charge for four more years. Trump often fights with other countries, including some BRICS members like South Africa, China, and India. He uses tariffs, sanctions, and threats against them.
Because of these growing problems, the world needs a new financial system. The U.S. and the G7 countries should not control it. BRICS seems to be the best choice for this change.
BRICS is a group of countries that work together. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa started it. Since then, five more countries have joined: Iran, Indonesia, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. The group is now called BRICS+. Saudi Arabia said it would join but hasn't done it yet. Uganda became a partner country on January 1, 2025.
BRICS has nine partner countries, and many more want to join. The world really needs a different way to handle money, and BRICS can provide that. The World Bank and IMF say that BRICS makes up 27 percent of the world's GDP, which is about $31.7 trillion. BRICS also has 47 percent of the world's people, which is about 3.8 billion. The countries in BRICS produce almost 44 percent of the world's oil.
The first countries to start BRICS did it because they thought the World Bank and IMF weren't fair to developing countries. They wanted a different way to do things so they wouldn't have to rely on the U.S. dollar as much. The U.S. has used the dollar as a weapon by imposing sanctions on countries.
When a country has sanctions, it can't sell things to the U.S. and its friends, which means it doesn't have enough dollars. This hurts its economy because it doesn't have another group of countries to trade with. Some sanctions last a very long time, like the ones on Iraq and Iran.
BRICS helps countries avoid this problem. They can trade with each other using their own money instead of dollars. This means they don't have to do what the West says anymore. They can still do business without needing the West's money.
This makes BRICS attractive to rich countries like Saudi Arabia. They sell oil and make trillions of dollars but can only invest in the U.S. and its friends. BRICS lets these countries invest in other places that might grow faster.
As a partner country, Uganda can officially trade with BRICS, but it can't make decisions until it becomes a full member. Uganda can still make suggestions, and BRICS will listen and think about them. This makes the group popular because it's fair.
Uganda will benefit from BRICS in many ways. It can trade more with other BRICS countries. In fact, 65 percent of BRICS trade happens between members. Also, if Uganda has money problems, BRICS has an agreement called the Contingency Reserve Arrangement (CRA) to help out. This is different from the IMF and World Bank, which are controlled by the U.S. and have strict rules for their loans.
The BRICS bank, called the New Development Bank, works together with countries and respects their policies. This is not like the World Bank and IMF. Being part of BRICS will help Uganda sell more things to more countries, especially China and India, which buy the most from Uganda.
An economist named Dr. Isaac Shinyekwa said that when the World Bank and IMF were started in 1945, some countries like India and China weren't as important as they are now. He said that BRICS is offering something new and that Uganda will benefit from better cooperation, technology, innovation, investment, influence, and infrastructure from BRICS countries.
Dr. Shinyekwa also said that Uganda would benefit from cultural and educational exchanges with BRICS countries and receive money to invest from China and other BRICS members.
He pointed out that Uganda will benefit from the new payment system BRICS wants to create. This system would let countries pay for things without using U.S. dollars. They might even be able to trade by exchanging valuable resources instead of money.
Dr. Shinyekwa argues that Uganda will benefit from the changes in international rules that BRICS is pushing for. One example is the World Trade Organization's appeals system, which settles disputes between countries. The U.S. has stopped this system from working by refusing to send people to be on the committee.
He says that the WTO has become a broken system that needs to be fixed. Uganda can help make these changes by partnering with the BRICS.
Dr. Shinyekwa also says that Uganda joining BRICS might anger the West, which might impose sanctions on Uganda. But he thinks Uganda must take the risk and make choices that will benefit the country.
If 27 percent of the world's economy stops using U.S. dollars, it will cause problems for the U.S. and its friends. Fewer dollars will move around, forcing changes in the World Bank and IMF, which are controlled by the U.S. and the European Union. These groups won't be in charge of all the money in the world anymore because BRICS is becoming more important.
BRICS has said it doesn't want to create new money to replace the U.S. dollar. But that hasn't stopped President Trump from threatening to impose 100 percent tariffs on BRICS countries that "play with the dollar."
What happens next will show whether these threats will slow BRICS down or make them want to create a different financial system even faster.
Because of these growing problems, the world needs a new financial system. The U.S. and the G7 countries should not control it. BRICS seems to be the best choice for this change.
BRICS is a group of countries that work together. Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa started it. Since then, five more countries have joined: Iran, Indonesia, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. The group is now called BRICS+. Saudi Arabia said it would join but hasn't done it yet. Uganda became a partner country on January 1, 2025.
BRICS has nine partner countries, and many more want to join. The world really needs a different way to handle money, and BRICS can provide that. The World Bank and IMF say that BRICS makes up 27 percent of the world's GDP, which is about $31.7 trillion. BRICS also has 47 percent of the world's people, which is about 3.8 billion. The countries in BRICS produce almost 44 percent of the world's oil.
The first countries to start BRICS did it because they thought the World Bank and IMF weren't fair to developing countries. They wanted a different way to do things so they wouldn't have to rely on the U.S. dollar as much. The U.S. has used the dollar as a weapon by imposing sanctions on countries.
When a country has sanctions, it can't sell things to the U.S. and its friends, which means it doesn't have enough dollars. This hurts its economy because it doesn't have another group of countries to trade with. Some sanctions last a very long time, like the ones on Iraq and Iran.
BRICS helps countries avoid this problem. They can trade with each other using their own money instead of dollars. This means they don't have to do what the West says anymore. They can still do business without needing the West's money.
This makes BRICS attractive to rich countries like Saudi Arabia. They sell oil and make trillions of dollars but can only invest in the U.S. and its friends. BRICS lets these countries invest in other places that might grow faster.
As a partner country, Uganda can officially trade with BRICS, but it can't make decisions until it becomes a full member. Uganda can still make suggestions, and BRICS will listen and think about them. This makes the group popular because it's fair.
Uganda will benefit from BRICS in many ways. It can trade more with other BRICS countries. In fact, 65 percent of BRICS trade happens between members. Also, if Uganda has money problems, BRICS has an agreement called the Contingency Reserve Arrangement (CRA) to help out. This is different from the IMF and World Bank, which are controlled by the U.S. and have strict rules for their loans.
The BRICS bank, called the New Development Bank, works together with countries and respects their policies. This is not like the World Bank and IMF. Being part of BRICS will help Uganda sell more things to more countries, especially China and India, which buy the most from Uganda.
An economist named Dr. Isaac Shinyekwa said that when the World Bank and IMF were started in 1945, some countries like India and China weren't as important as they are now. He said that BRICS is offering something new and that Uganda will benefit from better cooperation, technology, innovation, investment, influence, and infrastructure from BRICS countries.
Dr. Shinyekwa also said that Uganda would benefit from cultural and educational exchanges with BRICS countries and receive money to invest from China and other BRICS members.
He pointed out that Uganda will benefit from the new payment system BRICS wants to create. This system would let countries pay for things without using U.S. dollars. They might even be able to trade by exchanging valuable resources instead of money.
Dr. Shinyekwa argues that Uganda will benefit from the changes in international rules that BRICS is pushing for. One example is the World Trade Organization's appeals system, which settles disputes between countries. The U.S. has stopped this system from working by refusing to send people to be on the committee.
He says that the WTO has become a broken system that needs to be fixed. Uganda can help make these changes by partnering with the BRICS.
Dr. Shinyekwa also says that Uganda joining BRICS might anger the West, which might impose sanctions on Uganda. But he thinks Uganda must take the risk and make choices that will benefit the country.
If 27 percent of the world's economy stops using U.S. dollars, it will cause problems for the U.S. and its friends. Fewer dollars will move around, forcing changes in the World Bank and IMF, which are controlled by the U.S. and the European Union. These groups won't be in charge of all the money in the world anymore because BRICS is becoming more important.
BRICS has said it doesn't want to create new money to replace the U.S. dollar. But that hasn't stopped President Trump from threatening to impose 100 percent tariffs on BRICS countries that "play with the dollar."
What happens next will show whether these threats will slow BRICS down or make them want to create a different financial system even faster.
