Lula arrives in South Africa for BRICS meeting | Policy

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) arrived Monday (21) in South Africa to participate in the BRICS Leaders Summit. The trip across the African continent will also include visits to Angola and Sao Tome and Principe.

South Africa will host the fifteenth summit of heads of state of the bloc. In addition to Lula, Presidents Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, Xi Jinping of China and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi will also attend. Russian President Vladimir Putin will participate remotely.

According to Ambassador Eduardo Saboya, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the meeting of the two presidents will have three main axes:

• BRICS expansion – President Lula has already raised the possibility of including countries like Saudi Arabia and Argentina;
• Highlighting African issues – Lula reconnected with countries in the region;
• Discuss the use of a common currency for commercial transactions between the countries of the bloc.

On Tuesday (22), the leaders of the BRICS countries will participate in a business forum and then hold a retreat, an event attended only by relevant heads of state and government and foreign ministers. The Brazilian government said Russian chancellor Sergei Lavrov would be present.

On Wednesday (23), a summit will be held between the leaders of the bloc in two sessions.

The next day (24), an expanded meeting will be held with BRICS member states and about 40 invited countries, most of them heads of state and government of countries interested in joining the bloc, coming from Africa, South America, the Caribbean and Asia.

Learn more about the dome:

Lula will achieve the following agendas on the African continent:

• South Africa August 21-24: BRICS summit (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa);
• Angola August 25 and 26: bilateral meetings with political leaders;
• Sao Tome and Principe August 27: Summit of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP) and bilateral meetings with political leaders.

Lula will travel directly from Johannesburg, the capital of South Africa, to the Angolan capital, Luanda. Angolan President Joao Lourenco will receive the Brazilian President. The two will hold a private meeting and an extended meeting on the first day of the visit.

It is a relationship that unfolds in several segments. In addition to the meeting with President Joao Lourenco, President Lula will give a speech before the National Assembly of Angola, and he will also participate in a seminar, where he will talk about a project in the Cuneni Valley, and about a business event that should be attended by about 60 Brazilian businessmen, “said Ambassador Carlos Duarte, Secretary Africa and the Middle East in MRE.

Meeting of Portuguese Speaking Countries

On Sunday (27), the last day of the trip, Lula will head to Sao Tome, the capital of Sao Tome and Principe, to take part in the XIV Conference of Heads of State of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP).

It is an important forum for Lusophone countries to establish mutual support for other international organizations. Ambassador Carlos Duarte said that the presidency of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries will move from Angola to Sao Tome and Principe at this summit, after a strong performance in terms of economic cooperation in recent years.

The entity consists of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mozambique, Portugal, Sao Tome and Principe and East Timor as members.