South African President Cyril Ramaphosa arrived in New Delhi, India, on Friday, September 11, 2026, to participate in the 18th BRICS Summit. The meeting, which will take place from September 12–13, 2026, at Bharat Mandapam, is being hosted by India under its BRICS chairship. This year’s summit is centred on the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Security.”

The summit is expected to bring together leaders from BRICS member and partner countries, along with other invited countries and representatives.

According to Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya, President Ramaphosa will speak at the BRICS Business Forum, where discussions will focus on important areas such as trade and supply chains, agriculture, women’s participation in development, the digital economy and innovation. The forum will include BRICS leaders, business leaders, investors and entrepreneurs and is aimed at strengthening cooperation between businesses while contributing to the group’s economic priorities.

On Saturday, September 12, Ramaphosa will also take part in the India-South Africa Business Leadership Roundtable. The meeting will seek to strengthen trade and investment between South Africa and India, while attracting more Indian investment into important sectors such as pharmaceuticals, infrastructure, critical minerals and electric-vehicle battery production.

Later that day, Ramaphosa will join other BRICS leaders for a closed-door discussion on “Inclusive Global Governance and Strengthening Multilateralism.” The discussion will examine ways of making global institutions more representative and effective, particularly through reforms to the United Nations, international financial institutions and the global trading system.

On Sunday, September 13, Ramaphosa is expected to address the summit’s open session involving BRICS and invited leaders. His speech, under the theme “Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability: Shaping the Future for Inclusive Global Growth,” will focus on the priorities of India’s BRICS chairship.

South Africa intends to use the summit to promote its economic and diplomatic interests. These include increasing trade and investment among BRICS countries, supporting industrialisation and value addition, and attracting more funding for African infrastructure projects that support the objectives of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).