IMBRICS Forum
Business Interregional BRICS Forum is an annual Forum being held with support of the MFA of Russia. The Forum aims to promote the economic development of business communities in BRICS cities, build business communications, develop exports and imports, promote investment projects, and find partners for economic cooperation.
The project’s mission is to establish the Russian Federation as a center for cooperation among the world's cities.
The project’s mission is to establish the Russian Federation as a center for cooperation among the world's cities.
The Forum is the successor to the International Municipal BRICS Forum (2019-2025).
In 2026, the Forum Ambassador, a representative of India, which chairs the BRICS intergovernmental association, put forward an initiative to shift the Forum's focus to economic cooperation among business communities, as a result of which the name of the event was changed to the Business Interregional BRICS Forum for Russian participants.
In 2026, the Forum Ambassador, a representative of India, which chairs the BRICS intergovernmental association, put forward an initiative to shift the Forum's focus to economic cooperation among business communities, as a result of which the name of the event was changed to the Business Interregional BRICS Forum for Russian participants.
Areas of activity
of the VIII IMBRICS Forum
Signing of cooperation agreements
Organizing solemn ceremonies in the framework of the Forum
Speeches
Speakership in the framework of business sessions, sections, and roundtables on current topics
Media support
Coverage in the leading Russian and foreign media from the information partners of the Forum
Networking
Business communication with representatives of business communities of the BRICS countries
Negotiations
Organizing negotiations based on individual requests of the Forum participants
Presentations
Presentations of infrastructure investment projects
The decision to establish the Forum was made at the BRICS Ministerial Summit, held in July, 2018 in South Africa. A regional delegation from St. Petersburg, led by Mikhail Cherepanov, proposed creating a global information and communications platform for municipalities in the BRICS countries. The proposal was supported by the Summit participants.
2019
I IMBRICS Forum
LenExpo Exhibition Complex, St. Petersburg
LenExpo Exhibition Complex, St. Petersburg
2020
II IMBRICS Forum
Business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
Business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
2021
III IMBRICS Forum
Business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
Business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
2022
IV IMBRICS Forum
Expoforum Exhibition Complex, St. Peterburg
Expoforum Exhibition Complex, St. Peterburg
2023
V IMBRICS Forum
Expoforum Exhibition Complex, St. Peterburg
Expoforum Exhibition Complex, St. Peterburg
2024
VI IMBRICS Forum (summer session)
Expocenter Exhibition Complex, Moscow
VI IMBRICS Forum, Экономический конгресс (autumn session)
Presidential Library and over 10 other locations, St. Petersburg
Expocenter Exhibition Complex, Moscow
VI IMBRICS Forum, Экономический конгресс (autumn session)
Presidential Library and over 10 other locations, St. Petersburg
2025
VII IMBRICS Forum
Multifunctional complex “Gornyi” and business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
Multifunctional complex “Gornyi” and business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”, St. Petersburg
2026
VIII IMBRICS Forum
St. Petersburg, Russia
St. Petersburg, Russia
| 2019 I IMBRICS Forum I IMBRICS Forum'19 Report The Forum was first held in September 2019 at the LenExpo Exhibition Complex with the support of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The business program included 30 sessions. Representatives from municipalities in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa exchanged best practices in regional development, presented investment projects, and established new business contacts. The event was attended by over 700 participants. The Forum also featured a sports program, including the International Municipal Rugby Sevens Tournament among the BRICS countries teams. Delegates summarized the work and developed a draft roadmap for cooperation among municipalities in the BRICS countries. The draft roadmap included proposals for strengthening cooperation among municipalities; transitioning to renewable, environmentally friendly energy sources; separate waste collection and appropriate recycling; developing new tourism destinations; establishing a working group to identify the key needs of BRICS municipalities in the context of cooperation and exchange of experience in state and municipal practices in the BRICS countries and cities; promoting cultural exchange; developing the sports industry, and more. |
| 2020 II IMBRICS Forum II IMBRICS Forum'20 Report In 2020, the Forum was held under the auspices of Russia's BRICS Presidency and was included in the XII BRICS Summit Moscow Declaration, approved by the leaders of the member states. The Forum's business programme was jointly organized by various ministries, federal agencies, federal universities, and public organizations of the Russian Federation. Total number of the Forum’s speakers exceeded 170 in 2020, with 3,796 online connections in total. Several high-ranking officials from the BRICS countries spoke during the Forum's business sessions, including the Deputy Mayor of São Paulo (Brazil), the Advisor to the Ambassador of South Africa to the Russian Federation, and the Consuls General of India and China. In addition to the five BRICS countries, the BRICS+ International Forum also hosted speakers and attendees from Italy, Spain, Argentina, Mali, Peru, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Nigeria, Mongolia, Mexico, Egypt, Germany, Estonia, Finland, Denmark, Austria, and other countries. The business program included 29 sessions dedicated to numerous current issues in various fields. The Forum also included a number of cooperation agreement signing ceremonies, including one between the Brazilian city of Guarulhos and the Russian cities of Perm and Chelyabinsk. |
| 2021 III IMBRICS Forum III IMBRICS Forum'21 Report On November, 5-6 the III IMBRICS Forum was held online in St. Petersburg. The forum was originally planned for in-person use, but due to the rising coronavirus infection rate in St. Petersburg, it was moved to an online format. The platform used was Zoom, with the organizers broadcasting from the business center “Nevskaya Ratusha”. The Forum featured 24 sessions (videoconferences), attended by 235 speakers and moderators. Participants included the Mayor of Guarulhos, the Vice Mayor of Recife (Brazil), the President of the All India Association of Industries (AIAI), the Vice Mayor of Panzhou (China), the Mayor of Palermo (Italy), the Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to Russia, the President of the European Council of Engineers Chambers (Austria), and others. The following spoke at the Forum via video message: the Honorary President of the New Development Bank (BRICS Bank) Kundapur Vaman Kamath, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, the Head of Rossotrudnichestvo Yevgeny Primakov, the Chairman of the Accounts Chamber of the Russian Federation Alexey Kudrin, the Vice Mayor of Qingdao (China) Li Jian, and others. The Forum featured the signing of 11 international cooperation agreements among regions and municipalities, including agreements between Krasnodar and the Chinese city of Jinhua, the Gorodetsky District of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, and the Brazilian city of Trinidade. |
| 2022 IV IMBRICS Forum IV IMBRICS Forum'22 Report The IV IMBRICS Forum took place on November, 24-25 in 2022, at the ExpoForum Exhibition Centre in St. Petersburg. The forum was specifically mentioned in the XIV BRICS Summit Beijing Declaration as an event that contributes to fostering connections among the sister cities of the association's countries within the framework of the Sustainable Development Agenda. The event was attended by 3,179 people from 37 countries, with over 15,000 online connections. The Forum's business program included 40 sessions, 17 roundtables, 5 business training sessions, and 21 online sections. The agenda of the first day of the Forum focused on the development of digitalization processes, the future of alternative energy, urban planning and smart cities, the transformation of logistics, the role of NGOs, child safety, and the future of youth. The second day's programme focused on the following topics: philanthropy, the impact of tourism development on the appearance of cities, the economic and social development of municipalities, maintaining population welfare, import substitution, economic recovery in a post-COVID world, and the development of international cooperation in an era of global geopolitical change. The business program featured 511 speakers, including the Deputy Chairman of the State Duma, the Head of the Representative Office of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the China Chamber of International Commerce, the Governor of Algiers city (Algeria), a member of the National Assembly of South Africa, and the Mayor of Adityapur Municipality (India). The Forum participants were greeted via video message by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, the Mayor of São Paulo (Brazil), the President of the BRICS International Forum (India), and the Chairman of Shanghai Junjin Asset Management Co. (China). |
| 2023 V IMBRICS Forum V IMBRICS Forum'23 Report On November, 9-10 in 2023, in anticipation of the association's expansion, the anniversary V IMBRICS Forum was held. Over 7,000 people from 104 countries participated, including delegates from over 200 foreign cities. The online connections reached 20,000. The forum was organized with the support of the Moscow Government, and in particular the Department of Foreign Economic and International Relations. The business program included 123 events dedicated to digital transformation and AI, sustainable development, urban planning, investment, foreign economic activity, media and communications, national sovereignty, and society. More than 1,340 people participated as moderators, speakers, presenters, and experts. Among them were the Deputy Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Women, Youth, and Disability of South Africa, the Secretary of International Cooperation of the State of Santa Catarina (Brazil), the President of the Eastern Regional Council of Cameroon, and the Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Angola and the Kingdom of Bahrain. In addition to the business programme agenda, the Forum hosted the International Chess Tournament, the Interregional Children Rugby Sevens Tournament, and a friendly football match between teams from the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg and representatives of the International Youth Forum BRICS. As part of the exchange of experience and technologies, 210 cooperation agreements were signed among representatives of municipalities, public organizations, and commercial companies. |
| 2024 VI IMBRICS Forum In 2024, two events were held as part of the official calendar of Russia's BRICS Presidency: the VI IMBRICS Forum (summer session) in Moscow and the VI IMBRICS Forum, Economic Congress (autumn session) in St. Petersburg. The Moscow Government served as the Forum's general partner and co-organizer at the August event in Moscow. A total of 6,127 people participated, including 1,133 foreign delegates from 101 countries. Over 100,000 participants and listeners connected online. The Moscow Forum's business program focused on interparliamentary and municipal cooperation, specifically the exchange of tourism development practices, the establishment of platforms for ongoing dialogue among cities and regions, key aspects of municipal governance and integrated territorial development, sustainable development, digitalization, healthcare, urban modernization, education, and science. Among 720 speakers, moderators, presenters, and experts, were, in particular, the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council, the Chairman of the Moscow City Duma, the Head of the Kazan Municipality, the Deputy Mayor of Beijing (China), the Chairman of the Tehran City Council (Iran), the Head of the Baku Executive Authority (Azerbaijan), the President of the People's Assembly of the Vilayet of Algiers (Algeria), the President of the International Investment Forum (UAE), and others. The Russian Foreign Minister and the Mayor of Istanbul, Turkey, delivered welcoming remarks via video message. All 89 events were broadcast live on the Forum's official website. During the Forum, 307 agreements on international municipal cooperation were signed among Russian cities and their counterparts from the BRICS member and partner countries. In particular, agreements were signed between the Moscow Government and the authorities of Tehran (Iran), São Paulo (Brazil), and Cebu (Philippines). |
| The VI IMBRICS Forum (autumn session) in St. Petersburg focused on developing export-import relations and cooperation among the business communities of the BRICS cities and partner countries. The November event attracted over 3,500 participants and entrepreneurs in major BRICS cities paid keen interest to the event. Following the Forum, approximately 80 agreements were signed, including agreements with the Korean Business Association, representatives from Vietnam, and others. The event was supported by the Government of St. Petersburg. Acting Governor of St. Petersburg V.N. Moskalenko participated in the opening ceremony and the plenary session of the Economic Congress of the VI IMBRICS Forum (autumn session), and Vice Governor S.N. Kropachev also spoke at the gala reception. The business program included a major section, overseen by Vice Governor O.N. Ergashev throughout the year. |
| 2025 VII IMBRICS Forum VII IMBRICS Forum'25 Report On November 20-21, 2025, the VII IMBRICS Forum was held in St. Petersburg, organized with the support of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Federal Agency of Rossotrudnichestvo, and the Government of St. Petersburg. 5,128 participants from 76 countries participated in the Forum in St. Petersburg. The Forum's significance was enhanced by the composition of the international delegation: 1,270 official foreign representatives, including 115 official delegates, and 680 representatives of international NGOs. The Forum was also attended by 330 representatives of federal agencies, 650 regional representatives, and 1,070 mayors and heads of municipalities. Business sessions made up a significant portion of the program: the total number of business participants exceeded 2,565 people. Such widespread participation demonstrates that the Forum has become a tangible tool for building business bridges and identifying concrete solutions for sustainable urban development. |