Emmanuel Johnson sees Abuja’s partnership with the group as a way to boost economic growth and geopolitical influence
Nigeria’s recent accession to BRICS as a partner state is a major step towards economic revival and reducing Western influence, Emmanuel Chukwuka Johnson, chairman of the Nigeria-Russia trade and investment advisory council, has told RT in an exclusive interview.
Johnson – who was the Action Alliance Party’s vice presidential candidate in 2023 – said Nigeria’s long-running economic challenges have resisted conventional solutions, and that BRICS provides a promising opportunity.
“BRICS is a club of true friends, a club of associates” seeking to “battle with Western influence – Nigeria being a victim to what Western policies have been producing. So BRICS provides the opportunity for Nigeria. In order to revive our economy, BRICS offers a solution,” he explained.
Discussing the benefits of partnership with BRICS, Johnson emphasized the potential for Nigeria to gain a stronger global voice. BRICS gives Nigeria “the opportunity to voice its own concerns and make a tangible contribution to global politics,” he said.
Johnson also commented on the broader implications of BRICS expansion, stating that the group offers African countries “the real freedom they want, the freedom to have interaction with whomever they want, then to build their own economy and then develop their own countries.”
When asked how African nations can leverage their BRICS opportunities, Johnson highlighted the potential to increase trade and “have trade in their own currencies, not depending on a sole currency that could be used as a weapon.”
The politician said Russia and Nigeria “share so many things in common,” including family values, and that US sanctions on Moscow have not affected relations with Russia.
BRICS was established in 2009 by Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining in 2011. In 2024, the bloc extended its full membership to Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates. In addition to Nigeria, Uganda became a BRICS partner state in January 2025.
