Open Dialogue: how the countries of the Global South are changing the world economy

---

The expert session within the Open Dialogue project took place on 5 September at the branch of the National Centre RUSSIA in the Primorye region. The discussion on the transformation of trade and connectivity in the new reality brought together leading international experts. The event continued the themes of the first Open Dialogue "The Future of the World. New Platform for Global Growth", held in Moscow in April 2025.

Gulshan Sachdeva, Professor at the School of International Studies of Jawaharlal Nehru University, stated at the Open Dialogue that today’s countries of the Global Majority are no longer the "Third World" but new powerful centres of political, economic, and intellectual development.

"If we are talking about the Global Majority and the Global South, the situation today is completely different. We have grown strategically, economically, technologically, and even intellectually. These countries are now dominating and are set to dominate in trade, investment, technology, climate issues, and more. Even if you look only at BRICS, the GDP is already growing at 4% today, and by 2030 this share will exceed 50%," said Gulshan Sachdeva.

Technological innovations (digital payments, AI) demonstrate the potential of the Global Majority. But the key challenge, the Professor stressed, is to build a joint architecture and infrastructure of connectivity without Western dominance.

He also noted that the use of institutions, trade mechanisms, and currencies as "weapons" undermines a stable world order. According to Gulshan Sachdeva, alternative solutions are needed within BRICS and beyond.

Western partners still maintain a sense of impunity and the role of the only decisive players, said Victoria Panova, Head of the BRICS Expert Council – Russia, Vice-Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, and Russia’s Sherpa in the Women 20. According to her, the financial levers of Western institutions — the dollar payment system, London insurance structures, and control over container shipping — effectively give them an advantage and the illusion of the right to conduct dialogue as masters.

"In this context, the role of BRICS is truly invaluable. Despite attempts by Western colleagues to pull the association apart, BRICS has proven its relevance and its ability to put forward new initiatives not only in the economic and financial sphere but also across all three pillars of interaction. Interdependence between countries remains, including with the West, the EU, and the USA, but a new, more multipolar economy is already emerging. If you look at the statistics: since the first summit, trade turnover among BRICS countries has increased 3.5 times — an objective proof that the participants are actively engaging and can contribute to mutual growth while reducing dependence on Western powers," she stressed.

The BRICS countries are creating new institutions and mechanisms that help members strengthen economic independence. One such project is the Contingent Reserve Arrangement. According to Victoria Panova, it still needs refinement but already demonstrates the association’s determination to diversify financial instruments and reduce dependence on Western structures.

"The BRICS New Development Bank has already launched practical initiatives: bonds have been issued in yuan and rand, and an issue in rupees is being prepared. Today about 30% of the bank’s operations are conducted in national currencies. An investment package of around 35 billion US dollars is aimed at reducing the infrastructure gap in the countries of the Global South and supporting their long-term development," she emphasised.

BRICS is gradually ensuring a balancing of the international architecture, not by resorting to sanctions or counter-sanctions, but through practical initiatives that help countries implement their development plans and protect the interests of their citizens, Panova added.

Participants of the Open Dialogue also discussed attracting investment into the international North–South transport and logistics corridor, BRICS+ routes, continental railway projects, as well as the challenges of international logistics and measures to strengthen ties between the EAEU, Africa, and ASEAN.

Alexei Bezborodov, Managing Partner of Infra Projects LLC, spoke on the topic "New Solutions to Enhance the Logistics Connectivity of BRICS Countries". He noted that the world has entered the era of containerisation, and the container is becoming the basic unit of global trade in non-energy sectors. The expert also stated that Russia is capable of playing a key role in BRICS transit: in particular, the infrastructure through the Trans-Siberian Railway and the North–South corridor is becoming strategically important for China and India.

"Today fragmentation, containerisation, local economic breakthroughs, and e-commerce allow us to speak of a shift in perceptions of geography, the speed of cargo movement, methods of final delivery, and options for cooperation in production. In fact, a quiet revolution is taking place in infrastructure and logistics," said Alexei Bezborodov.

At the same time, he stressed that today the development of infrastructure "consumes huge funds" in all states, and new or modernised facilities are not always durable. Often they exhaust their potential within 5–10 years.

"That is why we need to think about new principles of transportation — based on small nuclear power, new pipeline transportation of goods, new physics and energy," noted Alexei Bezborodov.

The expert stressed that a number of trade and logistics routes are successfully developing in Russia. These include the Northern Sea Route and the Trans-Arctic Transport Corridor. There is also an important project for joint investment — the North Siberian Railway, which, with the creation of additional links, could connect the Oktyabrskaya, Northern, Sverdlovsk, and West Siberian railways.

"First and foremost, we must continue to develop our standard, classic transit route from China through Kazakhstan, Russia, and Belarus to Europe. It still exists and brings income to all participants," he said.

About the Open Dialogue

The first Open Dialogue "The Future of the World. New Platform for Global Growth", aimed at creating a platform for discussion on the future of the world economy, was held at the National Centre RUSSIA in Moscow from 28 to 30 April. The Open Dialogue brought together nearly 700 essays from 102 countries. The authors included representatives of academia, business, government agencies, as well as youth and expert communities.

More than 100 guests from 48 countries, representing all continents of the world, took part in the in-person programme in Moscow. Among them were world-class experts as well as essay authors.

The most popular topic among essay authors in the competition was "Investments in Human Capital" (41%), followed by "Investments in Connectivity" (24%), "Investments in Technology" (22%), and "Investments in the Environment" (13%).

The Open Dialogue continued at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum. On 18 June, the session "Shaping a New Platform for Global Growth", organised by the National Centre RUSSIA, took place. The session was moderated by Maxim Oreshkin, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of Russia, who outlined the main challenges and priorities of the countries of the Global Majority, which are shaping the architecture of the new global order. The session also featured the presentation of the Report on the results of the Open Dialogue, prepared by the partner of the National Centre RUSSIA — the Centre for Cross-Sectoral Expertise "Third Rome". The document provides an analytical overview of global trends identified by experts and participants of the Open Dialogue from more than 100 countries.

At the request of essay authors and experts, the organising committee decided that the Open Dialogue would be held annually. Next year it will become more ambitious, with additional practical days and new opportunities for participants to engage and to get acquainted with the materials of each pitch session.

The recording of the broadcast of the expert session of the Open Dialogue in Vladivostok is available on the russia.ru website and on the official social media pages of the National Centre RUSSIA.