The ILO and the BRICS

The BRICS group represents an important forum for cooperation of emerging economies and developing countries, playing an increasingly critical role in shaping the global economic and social landscape. 

The BRICS includes 11 countries: Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Arab Emirates.

The ILO serves as a key knowledge and technical partner to the BRICS. The ILO provides evidence-based technical inputs to BRICS discussions on policies that promote full, productive, and freely chosen employment and decent work. It contributes through in-depth labour, economic, and social analysis, providing policy recommendations that promote inclusive and sustainable development across member countries.

The ILO is involved in cooperation projects with BRICS member states, particularly through South-South and triangular cooperation, to promote the decent work agenda. This partnership is strategically vital: BRICS countries account for a significant share of the global workforce and economic output, enabling the ILO to amplify its impact by advancing international labour standards and fostering a global consensus on equitable, inclusive, and sustainable development models.

The ILO actively supports to several cooperation platforms within BRICS labour policy:

• The Employment Working Group (EWG): A formal technical forum where representatives from BRICS member countries meet to discuss labour and employment issues on topics determined annually by the host country. With ILO support, the EWG prepares draft Ministers’ declarations, facilitates discussions, shares global best practices, and provides technical secretariat services.
• The Labour and Employment Ministers’ Meeting (LEMM): A high-level political forum where labour ministers adopt joint declarations and endorse shared priorities on employment, social protection, and inclusive development, which are directly informed by the technical groundwork laid by the ILO and the EWG.
• The BRICS Network of Research Institutes: A network that brings together research institutions from BRICS member countries to exchange knowledge and provide evidence-based policy inputs. The ILO plays an active role in providing technical support and fostering collaboration within the Network. Each year, the Labour Research Institute of the host country organizes meetings and leads the preparation of reports on selected topics, which feed into the Ministers’ Meeting with policy recommendations.
• The BRICS Productive Ecosystems Platform: A collaborative initiative proposed under the South African Presidency to support BRICS member states in developing and implementing inclusive and sustainable policies that enhance productivity, promote decent work, and foster productive employment. The ILO supports this platform through the RBTC-SSTC project, conducting productivity ecosystem studies in Brazil, China, and South Africa.

ILO and the 2025 BRICS Presidency

Brazil holds the BRICS Presidency in 2025, under the overarching theme of “Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance.” The five presidential priorities are facilitating trade and investment, regulating artificial intelligence, addressing climate change, strengthening public health cooperation, and bolstering BRICS’ internal institutional frameworks.

The BRICS 2025 Brazil Presidency has set two main priorities for the Employment Working Group:

• Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work
• Impacts of Climate Change on Work and a Just Transition

These discussions culminated in the adoption of a joint declaration at the 2025 LEMM, with the ILO playing a central role in supporting research, policy dialogue, and consensus-building.

• Brazil
• China
• Egypt
• Ethiopia
• India
• Indonesia
• Iran
• Russian Federation
• South Africa
• United Arab Emirates

Contact [email protected] for more information