The 18th BRICS Summit, held in New Delhi on 12-13 September 2026, concluded with the adoption of the New Delhi Declaration, a 140-point document covering economic, financial, political, technological and development cooperation.
The summit’s outcome is significant for Africa because the declaration explicitly supports greater African representation in global institutions and recognises African countries’ aspirations for a stronger voice in the UN Security Council.
For Tanzania, the practical areas we should focus on are trade and investment, local-currency payments, infrastructure, agriculture, digital technology, tourism and access to BRICS-related financial mechanisms.
One point needs to be mentioned here: Tanzania is not a BRICS member or official partner, as Uganda is, but it engages with BRICS as an observer and maintains extensive bilateral economic and diplomatic relations with BRICS countries.
From a developmental standpoint, this distinction is significant. Tanzania does not need to become a BRICS member to benefit from opportunities created by the grouping. What matters is whether it can turn its observer status, diplomatic relationships and bilateral partnerships into investment, technology transfer, export markets, infrastructure financing and industrialisation opportunities.
I personally see four main areas on which Tanzania should focus.
First, there is a need to recognise that BRICS countries collectively possess substantial capital, technology and markets. The declaration encourages investment, technical cooperation and the development of productive capacities in higher-value segments of manufacturing and production. Tanzania could, therefore, target BRICS investors in agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, mineral processing, textiles, energy, machinery and other manufacturing industries.
Second, BRICS could support Tanzania’s industrialisation and value-addition efforts. The declaration specifically calls for developing countries to participate more extensively in higher-value global production chains and promotes technology transfer and productive capacity. This is highly relevant to Tanzania, which exports significant quantities of primary commodities. Partnerships could be sought to process, package and manufacture products domestically, generating employment, foreign exchange earnings and government revenue.
Third, improved access to finance could support infrastructure development. The summit reaffirmed the role of the New Development Bank in financing infrastructure and economic integration, and encouraged it to expand local-currency financing and resource mobilisation. Tanzania could explore greater use of such financing for ongoing Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) projects, the Bagamoyo Port project, scaling up energy generation, and developing water and urban infrastructure.
Fourth, emerging BRICS payment arrangements could facilitate trade. The summit encouraged ongoing technical work on cross-border payment interoperability and trade settlement using BRICS national currencies. For Tanzania, greater use of local currencies could reduce some foreign-exchange conversion costs. However, my view is that Tanzania should treat this as an emerging opportunity rather than as a replacement for existing international payment systems.
Finally, Tanzania should approach BRICS not merely as a diplomatic grouping, but as a platform for development partnerships. The greatest benefits will only be realised if Tanzania presents bankable projects, actively courts BRICS investors, negotiates technology and skills transfer, promotes local value addition and links BRICS opportunities to its industrialisation strategy.
In this way, the New Delhi outcomes could contribute to Tanzania’s transition from a commodity-exporting economy towards a more diversified, technology-driven and value-adding economy.
