Africa Desk Politics: Nigeria, South Africa, and Egypt Plot BRICS+ Future – A New Economic Order?

By Wasse Marlvine

Africa’s Economic Powerhouses Redefining Global Alliances

Nigeria, South Africa, and Egypt—three of Africa’s largest economies—are deep in discussions about their role within BRICS+, the expanded bloc challenging Western economic dominance. With Africa’s economies still chained to IMF loans and Western trade policies, these nations are looking to forge stronger ties with emerging global powers and reduce reliance on the West.

At the core of these talks? De-dollarization, trade independence, and self-sufficiency.

Breaking Free from the Western Grip?

For decades, African economies have been shaped (and often strangled) by IMF conditions, exploitative trade deals, and resource plundering. But now, with the expansion of BRICS—including powerhouses like China, Russia, India, Brazil, and new African members—there’s a real push to create alternative financial systems and trade networks.

Key issues on the table:

• A BRICS currency? Talks of reducing dependence on the US dollar and settling trade in local currencies are gaining traction.

• Alternative lending sources – Can BRICS replace the IMF as a lender that actually supports Africa’s growth instead of trapping it in debt?

• Infrastructure investments – Will BRICS+ nations commit to building African industries, roads, and energy grids instead of just extracting raw materials?

South Africa Leads, Egypt Expands, Nigeria Decides

Each of these three nations has a unique stake in BRICS+:

• South Africa has been in BRICS the longest and wants to strengthen intra-African trade within the bloc.

• Egypt, a new member, is looking for investment opportunities and wants to position itself as Africa’s economic gateway.

• Nigeria, still outside BRICS, faces pressure to either join or forge strategic partnerships as it seeks to diversify its economy beyond oil.

Will This Finally Be Africa’s Economic Breakthrough?

Western institutions have kept Africa on a short financial leash for decades, dictating economic policies that often benefit foreign interests more than the continent itself. But BRICS+ offers an alternative—one that could finally put Africa at the negotiating table instead of on the menu.

The question now: Will African nations use this opportunity to develop their own industries, trade systems, and financial independence, or will they simply replace Western dependence with a new set of economic overlords?

AfriScoop will keep an eye on how this power shift plays out.