How can legislatures contribute to a more representative global governance architecture? Discuss in the context of an expanded BRICS.

India is hosting the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum (26–27 October 2026), attended by 11 member and 10 partner countries. One of its sessions is on representative global governance [1]. Legislatures cannot sign treaties. They can, however, give global governance the democratic legitimacy that summits of governments lack.

Ways legislatures contribute

• People's voice: elected representatives bring citizens' concerns into multilateral agendas. The Forum's theme is "Strengthening Parliaments for People-Centric Development" [1].
• Building shared norms: at Brasília (2025), BRICS parliaments condemned the Pahalgam attack and backed zero tolerance on terrorism [2].
• Feeding the government track: the P20 Joint Statement hosted by India in 2023 was adopted unanimously and sent to the G20 Presidency [3].
• Turning commitments into law: India follows dualism, so a treaty needs a law passed by Parliament before it takes effect [4].
• New issues: the Innovation session covers legislative oversight of human-centred AI [1].
• Wider participation: Presiding Officers of State Legislatures and chairpersons of International Affairs Committees also take part [1].

Expanded BRICS: opportunities and limits

• Opportunity: the Kazan Summit (2024) endorsed a partner-country category [5]. Rio (2025) then welcomed partners such as Vietnam, Nigeria and Kazakhstan [6]. Together these give the Global South a wider voice.
• Consensus: BRICS works by consensus [5]. With 21 different political systems at the table, joint texts tend towards vague wording, and "accountability" means different things to different signatories.
• Advisory outcome: a Joint Statement binds no government. It matters only if governments act on it.
• Credibility at home: the 17th Lok Sabha sent only 16% of Bills to committees [7]. This weakens India's message on strong institutions.

Way forward

• Formally send the Joint Statement to the BRICS chair, as was done with the P20 statement [3].
• The Committee on External Affairs should ask the MEA for action-taken notes on Forum commitments.
• Hold a yearly review of past declarations, starting with the counter-terrorism language.
• Strengthen committee scrutiny at home so that practice matches words.

Legislatures therefore add legitimacy, shared norms and follow-up to a global order still dominated by governments. India should turn the Joint Statement into commitments that are tracked, and lead by example at home. An expanded BRICS can then become a people-centric voice for reformed multilateralism, advancing SDG 16.8's aim of wider developing-country participation in global governance.