Modi proposes '3Rs' roadmap for global governance reform at BRICS

The brief

Context

India hosted the 18th BRICS Summit at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on September 12, 2026, under its chairship of the grouping. In his opening address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pressed for a fundamental overhaul of global governance structures, arguing that the Global South is the worst hit by crises yet is absent from decision-making forums. He proposed a three-part roadmap built on Representation, Responsiveness and Rule-making, and said reform of the UN Security Council could no longer be postponed. BRICS, originally an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, was itself created because the founding economies found the existing multilateral order inadequate.

Key facts

• The 18th BRICS Summit opened at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, on Saturday, September 12, 2026, under India's chairmanship.
• Modi outlined a three-point roadmap for global governance reform: Representation, Responsiveness and Rule-making.
• More than 350 meetings were organised under India's chairship, with member country delegations welcomed in nearly 30 Indian cities.
• Modi said reform of the UN Security Council "can no longer be postponed" and negotiations must be linked to a definite timeframe and clear outcomes.
• Modi said: "Today, the Global South stands in the front row of global crises but in the back row of decision-making."
• He called for converting the "pyramid of privilege" into a "platform of partnership", and the Global South from "rule-taker" to "rule-shaper".
• On financial institutions, he said voting power, leadership positions and policy priorities should be realigned to reflect current economic realities.
• The New Delhi Declaration was adopted, after which the summit moved to its second and final day of sessions.

Timeline

1. July 2018At the Johannesburg BRICS Summit, marking the grouping's tenth anniversary, Modi first articulated the vision of "reformed multilateralism".
2. July 2025At the Rio de Janeiro BRICS Summit, Modi called for comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council, IMF, World Bank and WTO as twentieth-century institutions.
3. September 12, 2026Modi declares the 18th BRICS Summit open at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, and proposes the 3Rs roadmap; New Delhi Declaration adopted.
4. After September 12, 2026Summit proceeds to its second and final day of scheduled sessions in New Delhi.

Who has a stake

• India (as BRICS chair) — Seeks to convert its people-centric chairship, with 350-plus meetings across nearly 30 cities, into momentum for "reformed multilateralism".
• BRICS member countries — Asked to back a collective push for representation in the UNSC, financial institutions and emerging-technology rule-making.
• Global South / developing economies — Bear the brunt of global crises but are excluded from decision-making forums; seek voice, stake and human-centric decisions.
• United Nations Security Council — Target of demands for text-based negotiations with a defined timeline and measurable outcomes instead of open-ended talks.
• International financial institutions (IMF, World Bank) — Face calls to realign voting power, leadership posts and policy priorities to present-day economic realities.
• World Trade Organization — Named at Rio 2025 among twentieth-century institutions India says lack capacity to address twenty-first-century challenges.

Why it matters

The demand shifts the reform debate from a general grievance to a procedural ask: a fixed timeframe and measurable outcomes for UN Security Council negotiations that have run for years at the General Assembly without an endpoint. It also widens the agenda beyond the UNSC to voting shares in financial institutions and to who writes the rules for emerging technologies, an area where frameworks are being set now.