Evandro Menezes de Carvalho Photo: Courtesy of Carvalho

Editor's Note:

“Promoting sustainable development,” “opposing unilateral trade measures,” and “upholding multilateralism” have emerged as some of the key words at the just-concluded 17th BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The international community closely watched the summit, viewing the expanded BRICS as gaining greater weight and influence, and believing that the enlarged grouping will be better positioned to uphold multilateralism and push for improving global governance.

The world today is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century, presenting both opportunities and challenges for emerging markets and developing countries. In the article “the Role of the BRICS in Building a Global Community of Shared Future” included in volume III of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China, President Xi noted, “We BRICS countries need to keep abreast of the historical trend, seize development opportunities, jointly meet challenges, and play a constructive role in building a new model of international relations and a global community of shared future.”

In October 2024, at the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, President Xi delivered a speech, emphasizing “It is for our shared pursuit and for the overarching trend of peace and development that we BRICS countries have come together.” “The more tumultuous our times become, the more we must stand firm at the forefront, exhibiting tenacity, demonstrating the audacity to pioneer and displaying the wisdom to adapt. We must work together to build BRICS into a primary channel for strengthening solidarity and cooperation among Global South nations and a vanguard for advancing global governance reform.” 

In the eighth installment of the special series "Decoding the Book of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China," the Global Times, along with People's Daily Overseas Edition, explores the theme: "Combining the great strength of the Global South to build together a community with a shared future for mankind." We continue to invite Chinese and foreign scholars, translators of Xi's works, practitioners with firsthand experience, and international readers to discuss China's theoretical innovations and practical contributions within the BRICS framework and Global South cooperation, and to collectively answer the question of our times: "How does the Chinese model and wisdom empower multilateralism, global governance and sci-tech and innovation cooperation among the Global South?"

In the seventh article of the "Scholars' Perspectives" column, Global Times talked to Evandro Menezes de Carvalho (Carvalho), professor of international law at the Federal Fluminense University, Brazil.


GT: Volume II of Xi Jinping: The Governance of China includes President Xi's speech at the BRICS Xiamen Summit in 2017. He stressed that "we should speak with one voice and jointly present our approaches to issues concerning international peace and development. This meets the expectation of the international community, and will help safeguard our common interests." This year's BRICS Summit was held in Brazil. With the expansion of the BRICS, the pie of common interests is getting bigger. In your opinion, what are the common interests of the BRICS countries?

Carvalho: The common interests of BRICS countries lie in the reform of international organizations, particularly the IMF and World Bank. More recently, they have also come to support reforms of the WTO and WHO as necessary. 

There is a dimension that is rarely discussed when advocating for the reform of global governance: the need to reform the very international order. In other words, it is not just about adjusting decision-making mechanisms within these organizations to grant BRICS countries the relevance they deserve; it's also about rethinking some of the values and norms of conduct that have influenced diplomatic practices in ways closely tied to Western worldviews.


GT: At the "BRICS Plus" leaders' dialogue in Kazan last year, President Xi pointed out that the collective rise of the Global South is a distinctive feature of the great transformation across the world. In recent years, the BRICS countries have absorbed new members. How does this expansion enhance the collective voice of the Global South in international affairs? 

Carvalho: Undoubtedly, the expansion of BRICS represents the strengthening of the Global South. It represents a group of countries that, although not yet reaching levels of development comparable to those of developed countries in terms of GDP per capita, dare to pursue an independent foreign policy path without submission to hegemonic interests. 

Nonetheless, perhaps expressions like "Peoples of Multipolarity," "Emerging Geopolitical Pluricenter," or "Alliance of Decolonial Civilizations" would better emphasize a strong critique of the colonial legacy and its persistence in global structures, reflecting the cultural and political diversity of these countries as their greatest and most valuable asset in facing today's challenges.

In the current context, it is not only a matter of seeking initiatives to promote the socioeconomic development of these countries but also of determining how to deal with an increasingly militarily aggressive and exclusionary West. The strengthening of the Global South should signify the emergence of new possibilities for living in the world. In fact, it has buried much of the cultural richness of non-Western peoples. The Global South has the important task of unearthing these cultures and giving them new life. It represents a rebirth of a world promise where the wealth of peoples is rooted in their own culture.


GT: President Xi mentioned at the "BRICS Plus" leaders' dialogue in Kazan that peace and development still faces severe challenges, and the road to prosperity for the Global South will not be straight. In your opinion, is the Global South represented by the BRICS trying to build a global governance model different from the Western-led one? If so, what are the core principles and potential influence of this model?

Carvalho: First and foremost, BRICS must effectively create financial mechanisms not dependent on the dollar, since the US has already shown all signs that it will manipulate its monetary policy solely for its own national interests. Second, they should invest in initiatives that improve people's living conditions, no matter how small these improvements may seem.

Last, I propose that, beyond analyzing the reduction of economic inequality, the educational development of the BRICS peoples should be one of the main criteria for evaluating the quality of governance systems in BRICS countries. While the West insists on using its concept of "democracy" as a benchmark to evaluate governance models, I would use education. A country with a well-developed and accessible educational system for its people is proof of the socioeconomic and political success of its governance system. A people with a high level of educational attainment knows exactly what it wants for its country.


GT: In his speech, President Xi also said that standing at the forefront of the Global South, we should use our collective wisdom and strength, and stand up to our responsibility for building a community with a shared future for mankind. In your opinion, what kind of responsibility has China demonstrated in enhancing the voice of the Global South and building a community with a shared future for mankind?

Carvalho: From the "silent majority" to a large group with emerging prominence, the Global South is taking the center stage of the world with an unstoppable momentum, playing a vital role in promoting the progress of human civilization. The world today is undergoing major changes unseen in a century - to use a term often said by President Xi, and the collective rise of developing countries has become an irreversible historical trend. The common move of the Global South countries toward modernization is a groundbreaking event in world history and an unprecedented feat in the process of human civilization. This process breaks the myth that modernization is equal to Westernization and opens up a new path for mankind to modernize.

The more complex and changeable the international situation is, the more the countries of the Global South must adhere to independence, solidarity and cooperation. China is committed to deepening South-South cooperation, promoting the development of the global governance system in a more just and reasonable direction, and taking the lead in promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. In recent years, the pragmatic cooperation of the Global South countries in the fields of infrastructure construction, digital economy, green energy, etc. has continued to deepen. The BRICS cooperation mechanism has successfully expanded, and the New Development Bank has flourished. These are all vivid examples of solidarity and cooperation among the Global South.

China has always prioritized the development of the Global South and rooted itself in the Global South, injecting inexhaustible impetus into the development and revitalization of the Global South with tangible cooperation results. China is always a member of the Global South. Solidarity and cooperation with fellow developing countries are the unshakable foundation of China's foreign relations - this is China's commitment, which is also translated into concrete actions. 

Under the leadership of President Xi, China has always shared a common destiny with other developing countries. China's development experience, scientific and technological advancements, talent training and other resources continue to empower the Global South, collectively contributing to the era of building a community with a shared future for mankind. A united and self-reliant Global South will undoubtedly inject greater certainty into world peace and development, making significant contributions to the cause of human progress.


GT: You mentioned China's technology to empower the Global South. What do you think of China's practice of using the concept of inclusiveness to promote global science and technology development?

Carvalho: This practice demonstrates that China is putting into action its proposal for a world in which technological and scientific development serves the benefit of humanity. Specifically, it should promote both the material and immaterial development of peoples, without compromising the necessary incentives for innovation environments. This represents a new paradigm that the West does not accept. For the West, everything must be made to benefit the most powerful people, companies or countries. 

China has demonstrated through actions that scientific and technological development should not be a zero-sum game, but rather a common wealth of all mankind. In Africa, over the past 25 years, China has built over 100,000 kilometers of roads, nearly 100 ports and over 10,000 kilometers of railways. In Brazil, under the China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite program, six satellites have already been developed through the initiative, marking a major technological advance for Brazil.

As an old Chinese saying goes, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." On the road to building a community with a shared future for mankind, China's efforts will continue to progress further.