'Rule-Takers To Rule-Makers': PM Modi's 10 Proposals at BRICS Demand Urgent UNSC Reset

Addressing world leaders at the 20th anniversary BRICS Summit in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a fundamental overhaul of global governance, declaring that the Global South must transform from ‘rule-takers to rule-makers’.

Emphasising that humanity comes first for India and that mutual cooperation remains its priority, PM Modi said that the two-decade milestone heralds a new era of maturity and responsibility for the bloc. He urged member nations to translate internal consensus into concrete outcomes on the international stage. To ensure institutional momentum is unaffected by the annual rotation of the chairship, the Prime Minister proposed a Troika-backed continuity system alongside a secure digital repository to track decisions, deadlines, and implementation statuses.

Critiquing the current architecture of global governance as a ‘pyramid of privilege’ where decision-making power is concentrated at the top while developing nations bear the brunt of global crises, PM Modi urged leaders to transform it into a ‘platform of partnership’. He presented a vision to jointly draft a BRICS reform roadmap built on three core pillars: representation, responsiveness, and rule-making.

PM Modi's 10 Proposals At BRICS

1. UN Security Council Reform: UNSC restructuring can no longer be postponed and must be linked to a specific timeframe with clear outcomes.
2. Time-Bound Tax Negotiations: Tax-based negotiations must be tied strictly to a fixed schedule.
3. Decisive Voting Rights: Nations driving global economic growth must hold the right to shape global economic governance and financial decision-making.
4. Action-Oriented Response: Multilateral frameworks must emphasize collective response, speed, skill, and measurable impact.
5. Restoring Global Faith: International institutions must deliver effective solutions to rebuild humanity's trust in multilateralism.
6. Seafarer Emergency Support Network: A dedicated system connecting maritime officers and diplomatic missions to protect commercial mariners.
7. Comprehensive Distress Assistance: The seafarer network will streamline distress alerts, medical aid, family notifications, and emergency evacuations.
8. Equal Participation: The Global South must be guaranteed equal participation in all international governance structures.
9. Rule-Making in Emerging Technologies: Rules governing AI, cyberspace, outer space, biotechnology, and critical technologies must be shaped with future opportunities in mind.
10. Global South Transformation: Developing nations must pivot from being passive rule-takers to active rule-shapers on the global stage.ule-takers to active rule-shapers on the global stage.

Institutional Reforms and Maritime Safety

Expanding on the pillar of representation, PM Modi stressed that international financial institutions must align their voting structures, leadership roles, and policy priorities with contemporary economic realities. On responsiveness, he introduced the ‘Seafarer Emergency Support Network’ to assist commercial mariners during crises by linking maritime agencies with diplomatic missions for rapid evacuations and medical aid.

Highlighting rule-making in frontier sectors like artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and cyberspace, PM Modi announced that India is prepared to equip young diplomats and policymakers across the Global South with legal expertise, practical training, and negotiation skills. Coinciding with the United Nations Day for South-South Cooperation, he concluded that if humanity shares a common future, the right to shape that future must also be shared equally.