Episode description

“I’m not sure if Egypt is looking to replace the dollar at the moment. I’m not sure even BRICS wants to do that at the moment” - Wael Gamal, Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights US president-elect Donald Trump recently threatened BRICS member states with 100% tariffs, should they go against his country’s currency. “We require a commitment from these countries that they will neither create a new BRICS currency, nor back any other currency to replace the mighty US Dollar”, he told his social media followers. He further said, these nations “should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful US economy”. BRICS is an acronym for a bloc of five states, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Founded in 2009, it aims to promote economic co-operation and increase multilateral trade and development among member states. Trump’s remarks come after the bloc welcomed new members including Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. Presenter: Alan Kasujja Guests: John Steenhuisen and Wael Gamal