Hon Chairperson, as a country, South Africa has been invariably accused of punching above our weight. We do so because, in a real sense, we are independent. We are not in a debt trap. Therefore, in all multilateral institutions we are able to voice our views openly and candidly without being indebted to anyone. That would apply to our participation in Bric. You must also remember that three parts of Bric consist of the countries with whom we also have a longstanding relationship, namely Ibsa, that is India, Brazil, South Africa. We have that structure.
The structure of Bric was put together at the behest or suggestion of a merchant banker in the United States who, using his own projections, thought a combination of these countries could play a very influential role in global economic relations. We have now been invited. As I said, we have been part and parcel of Ibsa. Therefore, our interaction and relations with parties within Bric is nothing new.
The issue of the strength of the rand is one that the SA Reserve Bank is paying attention to, because the factors which contribute towards its relative strength and weakness at particular times or vicissitudes are numerous. It is not possible simply to think that we can control that. As changes happen in geopolitics, the good thing is that we are a country that is rich in gold. Therefore, when the rand weakens, we know that the gold price goes up. The point I am making is that we would certainly regard ourselves as equal to the challenge of representing the best interests of our country within Brics. Thanks.