BRICS bringing new resources to health and development as other donors lag

So-called BRICS countries, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, are injecting new resources, momentum and innovation into efforts to improve health in the poorest countries around the world, according to a report released on the eve of the 2012 BRICS Summit in New Delhi, India. Coming as many traditional donors reduce or slow their spending, the report explores the expanding influence of the BRICS on global health and development.

While all five countries have been engaged in foreign assistance for decades, the report finds that the size and scope of their efforts have grown rapidly along with their economies. Although G7 donors still provide far more total assistance, the report estimates that the average annual growth in the BRICS’ foreign assistance spending between 2005 and 2010 was more than ten times higher than that of the G7.

"As global economic developments re-configure the quantum of international assistance, the world is looking to emerging economies like the BRICS for new resources and innovations to improve health in less-developed countries,” said Sachin Pilot, India’s Minister of State of Communication and Information Technology, noting: “The BRICS champion models of cooperation anchored in their own domestic experiences, uniquely positioning them to provide health interventions and technologies tailored to resource-poor settings.”