NEW SOUTH–SOUTH CO-OPERATION AND THE BRICS NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK

The BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) is presented as a milestone in global financial governance designed to bridge the massive infrastructure financing gap in developing countries. Unlike traditional multilateral development banks controlled by developed nations, the NDB is based on 'new South–South co-operation,' emphasizing equal partnership and market-oriented operations. The author proposes five institutional design principles for the NDB: fair governance, market-based operation, non-intervention with high standards, localisation, and acting as a constructive supplement to existing institutions like the World Bank.

• Developing countries face a significant annual infrastructure financing gap of approximately $1,000 billion, calculated as the difference between annual capital needs of $1,800 billion and existing investments of $800 billion.
• South African President Jacob Zuma stated in 2013 that the infrastructure financing gap specifically for BRICS countries would reach $4,500 billion over the following five years.
• The NDB differs from traditional multilateral development banks in three ways: it uses financing sources from major developing economies, focuses specifically on infrastructure development rather than general poverty reduction, and employs market-oriented mechanisms to avoid the 'donor–recipient' patterns and rigorous loan conditions typical of North–South co-operation.
• The NDB implements an innovative governance structure where stock rights are divided equally among the BRICS countries, regardless of their respective proportions of global GDP.
• To ensure operational efficiency and avoid political deadlock caused by equal discourse power, the author recommends a market-based operation model that grants senior management autonomy and discretion.
• The NDB should balance the principle of non-intervention in the development paths of borrowing countries with the inclusion of strict, feasible high-standard safeguard clauses to prevent corruption and environmental or human rights violations.
• The NDB is intended to be a 'constructive supplement' to the existing international financial architecture, potentially co-financing projects with the World Bank rather than competing with it.

APA

JIEJIN, Z. (2015). NEW SOUTH–SOUTH CO-OPERATION AND THE BRICS NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/BRICS-Insights-2.pdf

Chicago

JIEJIN, ZHU. NEW SOUTH–SOUTH CO-OPERATION AND THE BRICS NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2015. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/BRICS-Insights-2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=JIEJIN |first1=ZHU |title=NEW SOUTH–SOUTH CO-OPERATION AND THE BRICS NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=2015 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/BRICS-Insights-2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{jiejin2015new, author = {JIEJIN, ZHU}, title = {{NEW SOUTH–SOUTH CO-OPERATION AND THE BRICS NEW DEVELOPMENT BANK}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2015}, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/BRICS-Insights-2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }