Plenary Session «BRICS: Opportunities for Growth and Development»

On June 3, a plenary session “BRICS: Opportunities for Growth and Development”, moderated by Anna Nesterova, Global Chairperson of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance, Founder of the Watchmaking Manufactury “Palekh Watch” was held at the sidelines of the BRICS Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum.

We are a platform for dialogue between women entrepreneurs from ten countries, whose primary task is to increase the share and role of women entrepreneurs in the development of trade and investment cooperation. Currently, the share of women in the BRICS countries is 23% of the total number of entrepreneurs. Our task is to achieve a balance and increase our presence in business to 50%,” said Anna Nesterova, speaking about the work of the BRICS Women’s Business Alliance.

The meeting was attended by the BRICS Women‘s Business Alliance National Chairpersons from Brazil, China, South Africa, Egypt and Ethiopia, as well as the representatives of the business community and government agencies of Iran, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

The general partner of the BRICS Women’s Entrepreneurship Forum is Sberbank.

During the discussion, the guests shared their ideas and proposals for developing business cooperation within BRICS, taking into account the new expanded format of the association.

Chief Executive of Kokozu International, Board Chair of Africa Women’s Bank, and Executive Director of Kampara Group Holdings, Chairperson of South African Chapter of the Alliance, Lebogang Zulu, about the current situation and emerging difficulties in cooperation in the financial sector, as well as about her vision on possible formats of interaction between the BRICS countries in the new conditions.

Monica Monteiro, Institutional Director of Band Pay TV, President of the Council of the National Forum for Women Entrepreneurs within the scope of the National Confederation of Industry of Brazil, Chairperson of the Brazilian Chapter of the Alliance, highlighted agriculture, technology and innovation, creative industries and healthcare as promising areas of cooperation.
“We need to develop new forms of cooperation, where women will play a greater role,” emphasized Monica Monteiro.

Executive Vice President of Chief Strategy Officer of China Investment Corporation, Chairperson of the Chinese National Chapter of the Alliance, Zhao Haiying, speaking about the cooperation opportunities opening up for the BRICS countries in the new format, emphasized that countries need to consider BRICS in the context of the global economy.

“There are several trends in the global economy that need to be remembered and not forgotten. One of these trends is the development of artificial intelligence technology, new energy, green energy, and all this must be considered in a general global context when we talk about BRICS. And of course, it is necessary to think about what is the basis for the development of the role of women in our activities,” noted Zhao Haiying.

Continuing the discussion, Managing Director of Qalaa Holdings, Managing Director of Grandview Investment Holdings, Chairperson of the Egyptian Chapter of the Alliance, Marianne Ghali, spoke about the mechanisms for investing projects in Egypt.
“We are exploring the opportunities that lie ahead of us and we see Egypt as a great place to invest.
Egypt has opportunities for investors. We offer special trade conditions, we create hubs for investments which provide the opportunity for free trade at low tariffs with preferential quotas and access to new markets,” noted Marianne Ghali.