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The 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi put development, innovation and global governance reform high on the agenda as the grouping marked 20 years of cooperation. Following the summit, Justin Yifu Lin, dean of the Institute of New Structural Economics at Peking University and former chief economist of the World Bank, spoke with First Voice in an exclusive interview, sharing his views on the development of the Global South, China-India relations, industrial upgrading and the future of BRICS cooperation.  

First Voice: President Xi Jinping has called on BRICS countries to be "a pioneer of our times" in advancing innovation-driven development, upholding peace and stability, facilitating mutual learning between civilizations, and reforming and improving global governance. In your view, what is the central significance of this "four pioneers" vision, and how can BRICS countries translate it into concrete action?

Lin: The "four pioneers" reflect the new reality of our changing world, where the economic weight of the Global South is rising. The expanded 11-member BRICS has a combined GDP already larger than the G7 when measured by purchasing power parity (PPP). If we include BRICS partner countries, their aggregate share of global GDP measured by PPP is even larger. The existing global governance system was formed under the leadership of the Global North and remains unfair to Global South nations. The "four pioneers" form an integrated whole. Innovation provides the driving force for growth. Peace and stability make development possible. Mutual learning between civilizations ends the old one-way model in which knowledge flowed only from the North to the South and enables peer-to-peer learning among Global South countries. Reforming global governance helps make these objectives achievable. Change will not be easy. But as a core part of the Global South, BRICS needs to take pioneering action and push forward such reform for a better global system.

First Voice: Many developing countries see BRICS as a platform for reforming the international economic and financial system. How effective can BRICS be in increasing the voice and representation of the Global South in multilateral institutions?

Lin: The distribution of voting power in major multilateral institutions is very unfair today. Some countries hold disproportionate voting weight even though their real-world economic standing has declined. BRICS cannot change these arrangements on its own. But development is fundamentally the solution to most challenges facing the Global South. When the Global South achieves inclusive and sustainable development, it will also create market opportunities for the Global North. What we need is greater voice, representation and voting power for Global South nations. Change will not come easily, yet with collective political will, we can find ways forward. Reforms can start with institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Working together, BRICS members can push for changes that reflect the shifting global economic reality.

First Voice: In New Structural Economics, you have argued that countries can upgrade their endowment structures by developing industries in line with the comparative advantages determined by their factor endowments. From your perspective, how can BRICS members cooperate to promote industrial upgrading while taking advantage of their different economic strengths, resources and stages of development?

Lin: Under New Structural Economics, factor endowments shape each country's comparative advantages. In BRICS cooperation, we should respect each member's different stages of development and endowments conditions. If each country follows its comparative advantages, it will export goods it can produce competitively and import goods in which it lacks competitiveness. By this way, trade will tend to be balanced in each country, and all sides can gain from globalization. BRICS can serve as a platform to share development lessons from the Global South, instead of accepting one-size-fits-all ideas imposed from outside. Drawing on their respective strengths, BRICS members can achieve collective industrial upgrading and faster growth.

First Voice: China and India are the two largest developing countries and major members of the Global South. How could improved China-India relations contribute to the stability, cohesion and effectiveness of an expanded BRICS mechanism?

Lin: China and India are at different stages of development, which creates strong economic complementarities. China's per capita GDP stands at nearly $14,000, while India's is roughly $2,800. China has accumulated capital, skills and improved infrastructure. India has a large, young and relatively well-educated labor force, as well as strengths in the digital economy. As China moves up the industrial ladder, certain labor-intensive sectors will lose their comparative advantage, opening space for India to step in. India can leverage its latecomer advantage to accelerate technological innovation and industrial upgrading. As the two largest economies within BRICS, if China and India can cooperate well, they can become anchors and driving forces for the bloc. Better bilateral ties will strengthen the cohesion of the expanded BRICS, and together we can push toward a fairer global governance system.

First Voice: China's development strategy now places greater emphasis on high-quality development. Which elements of China's development experience are transferable to other BRICS countries, and which depend specifically on China's own conditions?

Lin: High-quality development has five dimensions: innovation-driven growth, coordinated development, green development, opening up and shared prosperity. The most transferable principle is to pursue development consistent with a country's comparative advantages as determined by its factor endowments. Industries built on comparative advantages generate resources to address regional gaps, support the green transition and create jobs so people can share the benefits of growth. This principle applies to all BRICS countries. Specific policies, institutional arrangements and implementation paths, however, cannot be copied directly. They are shaped by China's unique historical context, domestic conditions and population scale. Each country should apply the core principle in light of its own national realities, instead of mechanically adopting China's specific measures.

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