sustainable development presided over by the nation’s Minister of the Environment.
Russia
Russia has undergone many changes since the collapse of socialism. It is now market based, participating in the global economy. Russia, however, has been depending heavily on the exploitation of its natural resources like oil, and hence its economic efficiency has suffered. In the BRICS group, Russia has the second lowest GDP after South Africa. Russia’s carbon dioxide emissions remain high as well. Russia has experienced growth in manufacturing industries and services, but still continues to remain vulnerable to global oil price fluctuations. Russia is also exposed to local and regional strife that often attracts international sanctions. On the social efficiency score, Russia is ranked second after Brazil. A large part of this social development is a remnant inherited from the socialist past — especially in the areas of education and health. Russia has had a relatively high per capita GDP and strong growth in wages and incomes. However, there remain disagreements about the source of this recent growth: whether it is from a strong economic base of industrialization, or whether it was due to the rising prices of oil and natural gas.
Russia is no longer a superpower and its economy has been slowing down in the recent past, primarily due to the sanctions against the nation imposed by EU as well as USA after the Ukraine crisis and the annexation of Crimea. Environmental problems like the melting of the permafrost and the sudden drought that decimated the wheat crop in 2010 and sent global wheat prices soaring are somewhat in line with the kind of problems faced by the other BRICS nations. However, political challenges are much more complex than those faced by the others in BRICS. Russia has also cracked down on NGOs doing work for social upliftment and environmental protection, treating them as foreign agents if they received international grants.
However, some good news still emerges out of Russia on the purely environmental front. Russia houses some of the world’s most important fisheries. The Walleye Pollock Fishery in the Sea of Okhotsk has earned the Marine Stewardship Council Sustainability Certification, and the cod fishery in the Barents Sea is being considered as a model of international cooperation. Forestry is another area that makes Russia particularly vulnerable to environmental degradation. About 45% of land in Russia contains 22% of the world’s total forest cover. Of this, 33 million hectares of forests have earned the Forestry Stewardship Certification for responsible forest management.
South Africa
South Africa is the smallest of the BRICS nations. On the economic efficiency front, it is quite modest with a mean efficiency of 66%. It was only quite recently that the nation embarked on a comprehensive policy plan to promote inclusive growth, infrastructure, food security, education, rural development, and improved public services especially in the area of health. South Africa is yet to emerge from its history of violence and oppression. As far as environmental efficiency is concerned, South Africa ranks at the top. Since industrial activity is low and level of inputs is the lowest among the BRICS nations, it has the lowest carbon dioxide emissions. In the social efficiency index, its performance is not good. It has the lowest life expectancy at birth within this group at 51.4 years. Health problems widely prevalent in this nation also contribute to a low social efficiency index. These problems not only pertain to violence but also to high incidence of HIV and tuberculosis. South Africa also suffers from very high unemployment rates.
Given South Africa’s natural resources and scenic beauty, tourism is a major industry, and ecotourism has become a focus area of business. The industry drives economic growth and job creation. The nation attracts more than 10 million tourists annually. The problem is to ensure that while this industry grows, congestion and pollution created by tourists do not erode the quality of the natural environment and the extent of biodiversity. South Africa’s coast is also a valuable resource for the economy. Coastal ecosystems provide natural erosion control and waste management. The economy’s coastal and marine resources are under threat mainly because of excessive urbanization around the major coastal ports and heavy shipping traffic. Fishing is another major activity in South Africa. However, over-harvesting has led to an increased stress on marine life.
There is some good news too. The Cape Town City Council in partnership with a non-profit development organization South South North, developed a low-income energy-efficient housing project in Kuyasa. The housing project focused on energy efficient lighting, insulated ceilings, and solar-powered water heaters. The development project is a model that can be imitated in other countries. It has been recognized by the United Nations as a gold standard clean development project. There are less than 50 such projects in the world. There are over 1.5 million low-income houses in South Africa with this design.
Is BRICS Important at All?
Thus far, we have argued that two important aspects of BRICS and sustainable development. The first was that sustainable development is a global issue and the ultimate success or failure of sustainable development depends on a global consensus on a feasible plan that has to be implemented by all. Each nation or region on the other hand has a role to play too. National problems vary from region to region and from country to country. These specific problems have to be tackled locally or at the national level. However, national-level policies must be consistent with globally arrived at solutions and pathways. The second aspect discussed has been the fact that BRICS represent a wide and diverse set of nations covering four continents. Each nation has its own problems. Degrees of success on the broad measures of sustainability vary within BRICS. So do the policy framework and priorities. The only overarching feature of BRICS that might be considered important would be its size and growth potential which would, in the foreseeable future, make it a formidable block with global economic and political influence. The first feature is a matter of fact and evidence. The second feature of size leading to influence and importance is a matter of conjecture and forecast. The answer to the second question will remain contested, but a quick look at the history of BRICS might give us a better clue about the future.
The global sustainable agenda was born in 1992 at the Earth Summit. Two questions emerged from the summit: how to make sustainable development a reality, and who would provide the leadership? The contemporary UN agenda for meeting the sustainable development goals (SDGs) is a reflection of the Earth Summit outcomes. Today’s answers require actionable targets and a new mindset for those actions. Sustainability issues have more often than not been cast in two distinct sets of problems: one for the mature market economies already enjoying a high material standard of living and the other for the poor developing nations of the world with large-scale poverty and unemployment. The BRICS nations provide a midway solution to this dichotomy. The five nations together constitute a block which is neither very poor nor very rich, but growing at impressive rates.
BRICS can be considered to have the political potential as a coalition to provide leadership on sustainable development on a global scale (Papa, 2017). The wide diversity of these nations also allows new and distinct lessons to be learnt about solutions and making things work toward desired targets and priorities. The sheer geo-political weight of this group can help mobilize a diverse set of agents and organizations. Yet, the small number of governments involved can make consensus-building easier. Since the first BRIC summit in 2009, with South Africa joining the following year, the group has made some common progress in terms of cooperation and consensus. BRICS has established several common institutions, including a New Development Bank (NDB) with authorized capital of US $100 billion for infrastructure, and sustainable development projects (Kweitel, 2017).
The BRICS group has established strategic and political dialogue within itself and conducts joint programs through its institutions. The biggest contribution BRICS has been making is that it is setting the common goals for sustainable development for all, not only developing, nations. In this sense, it is providing the global leadership it was supposed to. BRICS has also increased its cooperation with the UN, UNESCO, WHO, and UNIDO. This would help build knowledge as well as share experiences about success stories and best practices.
