Claim: Ghana has joined the BRICS economic bloc
Source: TikTok
Verdict: False
Researched by Nusrat Essah
On the back of a viral TikTok post made on January 25, 2025, alleging that Nigerian President Bola Tinubu was planning to deport U.S citizens because of Donald Trump’s immigration policies; a commenter on the said post with the user name, @Merodi claimed Ghana had joined the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) economic bloc.
“Ghana too has joined BRICS that’s why Burkina’s President was allowed to take part in the inauguration,” the user said.
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Fig 1 – Screenshot of the claim that Ghana has joined BRICS
Has Ghana joined BRICS as claimed by a social media user?
This fact-check report will verify the claim.
Fact-Check
GhanaFact reviewed official sources of information such as the presidency and relevant ministries (Finance, Foreign Affairs, Government Communications) and other government websites but found no confirmation of Ghana’s alleged BRICS membership.
Further checks by GhanaFact from the BRICS official website and publications show Ghana is not listed as a member or an official candidate.
Ghana’s former president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, attended the 15th BRICS Summit in South Africa in 2023. His speech focused on the importance of African development and economic cooperation, but he did not announce Ghana’s intention to join the bloc.
In his inaugural speech, Akufo-Addo’s successor, President John Dramani Mahama referenced the bloc when he spoke about global economic configurations and realignments.
“In 2023 for instance, the G7’s combined total world GDP was 30%; by 2029, that number is predicted to drop to 27%. In 2023, the BRICS’ percentage of world GDP was 37.3%.
“Whereas the G7 nations—the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan—once provided the highest percentage of the world’s GDP, over the last decade, that number has been steadily dropping. However, the combined total of the GDPs of the BRICS nations—Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE—has been consistently increasing,” he said.
From the above, there is no official confirmation from BRICS, the Ghanaian government, or credible international sources to support the claim that Ghana has joined BRICS.
About BRICS
BRICS is an economic bloc of emerging national economies that aims to promote trade, investment, and economic cooperation among its member states. The original BRICS members were Brazil, Russia, India, and China, with South Africa joining in 2010.
Beyond its core membership, BRICS expanded its cooperation to include other emerging economies, such as Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the UAE in January 2024.
Indonesia officially became a member of the BRICS nation in January 2025, while Nigeria joined BRICS as a partner country in January 2025, making it the only West African country on the bloc.
Verdict:
Therefore, the claim is false.
