Johannesburg — Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged closer cooperation between India, Brazil, and South Africa, calling on the IBSA grouping to deliver a strong message of unity at a time of growing global division. The remarks were made during a trilateral meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on the sidelines of the G20 Summit.
Modi stressed that there must be “no double standards on terrorism”, urging coordinated action among the three democracies. He proposed formalising a National Security Advisers–level dialogue to strengthen cooperation on security challenges.
The Prime Minister outlined several new initiatives for the grouping, including the creation of an IBSA Fund for Climate-Resilient Agriculture and an IBSA Digital Innovation Alliance. The digital initiative would facilitate the sharing of public digital platforms such as India’s UPI, CoWIN, cybersecurity frameworks, and women-led technology programmes. Modi suggested the alliance could be launched at the AI Impact Summit scheduled in India next year.
“IBSA is not just a grouping of three nations—it unites three continents, three major democracies, and three major economies,” Modi said. He noted that the meeting comes after four consecutive G20 presidencies led by Global South countries, calling it both “historic and timely.”
Modi highlighted that all three IBSA countries have held the G20 presidency over the last three years, advancing shared priorities including human-centric development, multilateral reform, and sustainable growth. He said the responsibility now lies in strengthening these collective achievements.
Calling for renewed momentum on UN Security Council reform, Modi pointed out that none of the IBSA countries hold a permanent seat, despite representing significant global populations and economies. “Current global institutions no longer reflect today’s world. Reform is no longer an option but a necessity,” he said.
Modi also praised the existing IBSA Fund, which has supported around 50 development projects across 40 countries in sectors including education, health, women’s empowerment, and solar energy. He said expanding the fund to include climate-resilient agriculture would reinforce the grouping’s commitment to global development.
Separately, Modi met South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to review bilateral relations. The two leaders discussed expanding cooperation in AI, digital public infrastructure, and critical minerals. According to India’s Ministry of External Affairs, both sides welcomed the growing presence of Indian companies in South Africa and agreed to encourage investments in infrastructure, innovation, mining, technology, and start-ups. (Source: IndianExpress)
