S. African president leaves for BRICS summit in Russia

South African President Jacob Zuma is leading a big delegation to the 7th BRICS Summit in Russia, the presidency said on Tuesday.

The summit will be hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, from July 8 to 9 in Ufa, Russia, under the theme "BRICS Partnership - a Powerful Factor of Global Development."

The government said South Africa is well prepared for the summit.

Last month, the South African National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces ratified the New Development Bank (NDB) agreement and treaty, and necessary Instruments of Ratification and Acceptance have also been signed.

It is expected that during the summit, the leaders will receive feedback following their meeting on the margins of the G20 Summit in Brisbane on November 15, 2014, at which they asked their finance ministers to designate the president and vice-presidents of the NDB, in advance of the next summit.

The leaders also tasked the finance ministers and central bank governors with ensuring that, by this summit, the Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) Working Group concludes the procedural rules and operational guidelines of the Governing Council and Standing Committee of the CRA, and to conclude an Inter-Central Bank Agreement.

The leaders will also be informed of the status of ratification process within each BRICS country of the NDB Agreement and CRA Treaty.

The first meeting of the Board of Governors of the NDB will take place in Moscow prior to the 7th BRICS Summit, and the Board is expected to report to the BRICS leaders on the steps taken to operate the NDB.

The leaders are expected to adopt the key summit outcome documents, namely the Ufa Declaration and the Ufa Action Plan, which will reflect the views of BRICS member states on a number of international issues. Endi