India pushes Global South climate priorities as BRICS prepares 2026 summit
India will host the 18th BRICS Summit and has placed climate action, green finance, energy transition and sustainable development at the core of the 2026 agenda. The bloc aims to address affordable energy, adaptation, critical-mineral supply chains and finance for developing economies. Recent ministerial meetings in Gurugram and New Delhi produced communiqués on smart grids, resilient energy systems and forest-fire response. Prime Minister Modi emphasized that climate finance and technology must move beyond token gestures. The challenge is turning these commitments into affordable resources for the Global South.
As the chair of the upcoming 18th BRICS Summit, India is shaping a climate agenda that foregrounds the needs of the Global South, focusing on energy transition, climate resilience, critical-mineral supply chains and climate finance. The BRICS grouping, now expanded to 11 members and ten partners, seeks to link affordable, reliable energy with adaptation measures and technology transfer for developing economies. Recent gatherings of BRICS energy and environment ministers in Gurugram and New Delhi produced joint communiqués, launched a Digital Centre of Excellence for smart grids, and released knowledge compendiums on best practices.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has warned that without tangible finance and technology, climate talks remain hollow, calling on developed nations to provide low-cost, concessional funding. Brazil’s BRICS presidency highlighted a goal of mobilising $1.3 trillion for developing-country climate finance by 2035, while the New Development Bank is expected to play a larger role. The summit will test whether BRICS can convert these pledges into practical mechanisms that deliver affordable capital, resilient infrastructure and technology to the Global South.
How this story developed
- Sep 4 India Hosts 2026 BRICS Leaders Summit with Global Leaders in New Delhi
- Sep 9 A bilateral meeting between Modi and Putin has been added to the summit agenda.
- Sep 9 India is positioning the summit as a development‑oriented bridge and has set aside the idea of a shared BRICS currency.
- Sep 10 India’s chairmanship delivered 20 sector‑specific agreements on SMEs, startups and supply‑chain resilience.
- Sep 10 Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to attend the summit, marking his first visit to India since 2019.
- Sep 10 India deploys roughly 25,000 security personnel and implements traffic diversions ahead of the summit.
- Sep 11 Delhi traffic to be rerouted from 2 pm to 8:30 pm on Friday for the BRICS summit.
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