New Delhi: External affairs minister S Jaishankar, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal and commerce secretary Rajesh Agrawal are among the speakers at the BRICS Business Forum that got underway in New Delhi on Friday morning.
This event, one of the most important ones at the BRICS Summit 2026, has brought together business and government leaders from member countries.
Opening the business summit, BRICS Business Council Chair Jai Shroff said India’s BRICS chairmanship has been guided by four priorities – resilience, innovation, cooperation and sustainability – which are equally relevant to the private sector.
“India’s BRICS chairmanship under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been built around four priorities: Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability. These are important priorities for the government, but equally relevant for business,” Shroff said, according to ANI.
He also called for viewing BRICS as an integrated economic network rather than simply a grouping of large markets.
“We should not be looking at BRICS as a group of large markets but as an economic network where our strengths can reinforce one another. A resource in one BRICS economy can support manufacturing in another. A technology developed in one market can find scale in another. Capital can find projects and business can find new partners and customers across our economy,” Shroff said.
The BRICS Business Forum is the group’s main platform for engagement between the private sector and policymakers. It is held annually in the country hosting the BRICS Summit and brings together business representatives, ministers and heads of state to discuss issues including trade, investment, finance, technology and sustainable development.
It also provides a platform for the BRICS Business Council to present recommendations to policymakers. Its discussions and recommendations can feed into the broader economic agenda of the grouping, including efforts to boost intra-BRICS trade and investment, strengthen digital economy cooperation, support MSMEs, improve standards coordination and build integrated value chains.
During the main BRICS Summit, scheduled to begin on September 12, leaders are expected to take stock of initiatives under India’s presidency and discuss ways to further deepen the strategic partnership among BRICS countries.
India’s BRICS chairship has placed emphasis on cooperation in areas including trade, digital technology, finance, energy security and reform of global governance institutions.
The key issues expected to figure in the summit discussions include strengthening global supply chains, integrating cross-border payment systems, increasing the use of national currencies in trade, supporting MSMEs, digital trade and artificial intelligence, as reported by News18.
Energy security, climate resilience and development finance are also expected to feature prominently, along with discussions on expanding the role of the New Development Bank and pushing for reforms in multilateral financial and political institutions.