Johannesburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday suggested creating a BRICS Space Exploration Consortium to work in areas like space research, and weather monitoring while addressing the 15th BRICS Summit in South Africa’s biggest city Johannesburg.

PM Modi said, “I would like to put forward some suggestions for further broadening our close cooperation. The first is cooperation in the field of space. We are already working on the BRICS satellite constellation.

“Taking it a step further, we can consider creating a BRICS Space Exploration Consortium. Under this, we can work for global good in areas like space research, and weather monitoring.”

The BRICS countries can also work together for cooperation in education, skill development and technology, Modi said.

“To make BRICS a future-ready organization, we have to make our societies future-ready. Technology will play an important role in this,” he noted.

He said India has developed a Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA) platform to provide education to the children of remote and rural areas, Atal tinkering labs, Bhashini, an AI-based language platform, is being used in India to remove language barriers, using technology to eliminate the bottlenecks education, skill development and technology.

Modi also mentioned the CoWIN platform developed by India for Covid-19 vaccination.

Public service delivery is being revolutionized through Digital Public Infrastructure i.e., India Stack, he added.

India has overcome many difficulties with unique solutions that have been developed and tested to prove effective despite the country’s diversity. “Diversity is a great strength of India. The solution to any problem in India comes out at the test of this diversity. That's why these solutions can be easily implemented in any corner of the world.”

In this context, India will be happy to share all these platforms developed in India with BRICS partners, he said.

Making his third suggestion, Modi said the BRICS countries can do skills mapping together to identify each other's strengths. “Through this, we can complement each other in the journey of development.”

Modi also pitched for cooperation between the member nations as many big cats of different species are found in all the five countries of BRICS.

“Under the International Big Cat Alliance, we can make joint efforts for their protection,” he said

The PM also suggested the creation of a repository of traditional medicines. “My fifth suggestion is about traditional medicine. We all have ecosystems of traditional medicine in our countries,” he said.

Modi said India heartily welcomes the special importance given to the countries of the Global South in BRICS, under the chairmanship of South Africa, adding that this is not only the expectation of the present time, but also the need.

“India has given top priority to this topic under its G-20 presidency. Our effort is to move forward together with all the countries on the motto of ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’. 125 countries participated in the Voice of Global South summit held in January this year, sharing their concerns and priorities,” Modi said.

He said India has proposed the inclusion of the African Union in G-20 as a permanent member and hoped that the BRICS countries would support this proposal. “We have also proposed to give permanent membership of G-20 to the African Union. I am sure all the BRICS partners are also together in the G20. And all will support our proposal. Giving special place to all these efforts in BRICS will increase the self-confidence of the countries of the Global South.”

He underscored that India fully supports the expansion of the BRICS membership and welcomes moving forward with consensus on this.

“In 2016, during India's chairmanship, we defined BRICS as Building Responsive, Inclusive, and Collective Solutions. After seven years, we can say that BRICS will be – Breaking barriers, Revitalizing economies, Inspiring Innovation, Creating opportunities, and Shaping the future. Together with all the BRICS partners, we will continue to contribute actively in making this new definition meaningful,” he said, concluding his address.

Established in 2009, BRICS comprises Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. It is a major alliance of emerging economies on the global stage, serving as a platform for member countries to collaborate on economic, political, and developmental matters. With a focus on increasing influence and representation in international affairs, BRICS plays a crucial role in shaping discussions on issues such as sustainable development, financial stability, and multilateralism.

The group's annual summits provide an opportunity for leaders to exchange views, bolster diplomatic ties, and advance common interests, contributing to a multipolar world order.