Pretoria - The emerging economies of India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) have agreed to greater coordination between the three countries with regard to issues around climate change, economic cooperation, sustainable development and the UN Security Council.
President Jacob Zuma, India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Brazils President Dilma Rousseff met in Pretoria on Tuesday to reflect on IBSA's eight years of existence and to find common positions on a range of global issues.
The three leaders brushed off criticism of IBSA's relevance after South Africa joined the Brics group of countries last year, which include emerging heavyweights Russia and India, and focussed on the strides that the bloc has made in the in the eight years.
"It has been a successful session as we reflected on IBSA's eight years of existence, while also looking forward to our coming 10th anniversary in 2013.
"We are brought together by the belief that countries can prosper and create a better life for their people when democracy and development work together," Zuma told the media after their talks.
The leaders pointed out that all three countries were still growing despite global economic turmoil, and they were on track to meet a goal of achieving $25 billion in trilateral trade by 2015.
Zuma said intra-IBSA trade had grown significantly since 2005, with estimates of combined trade standing at $7 billion in 2005.
"The target for 2010 was $16. 1 billion and all indications point to us significantly surpassing that amount in 2011.
"Although South Africa makes up only 8.2 percent of the combined GDP, we contributed 25 percent of IBSA trade in 2010, and in 2009 we contributed the largest share, 38 percent," he said.
But the leaders are playing it safe when it comes to the debt crisis engulfing some European countries and threatening to destabilise the euro zone.
India's Singh hoped that effective and early steps will be taken by Europe to calm the markets and prevent the economy from the double-dip recession.
Also boasting about their achievements, Brazil's Rousseff reflected on the efforts in the fight against poverty through their fund, which has earned them the UN award.
Each IBSA country contributes $1 million annually to this fund which is managed by the UNDP Special Unit for South-South Cooperation.
These projects focus on the sharing of best practices and proven experiences and include initiatives as diverse as improving agricultural techniques in remote villages, reducing urban violence in slums, or delivering safe drinking water, in countries such as Haiti, Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde, Burundi, Palestine, Cambodia and Lao PDR.
As non-permanent members of the UNSC the leaders also discussed the political situation in Syria as well as the reforms on the UN.
The three nations have recently taken coordinated actions on Syria, as they all abstained in the UNSC vote to slap sanctions on Syria.
The bloc said it would use their seat at the assembly to make a lasting impact on the need to for transformation of global governance reform.
According to the three countries, reform of the current international governance system is linked to sustainable development.
"We also reflected on the imbalance of the world we live in, as the institutions of global governance are to this day still skewed in favour of the developed North," said Zuma, adding that they would continue working to ensure the transformation of the global governance system.
The leaders also discussed trade, the international economic crisis and the G20 summit scheduled for November in the southern French city of Cannes, the upcoming COP17 as well as the economic crisis.
Singh said they would coordinate their positions in all these summits to make sure that the priorities of the developing economies and countries are reflected adequately.
They further recommitted to further exploring gaps in the bilateral and trade relations between them with business delegation from three sides meeting to discuss this.
The next summit will be held in India in 2013.
