Whilst reading Empireworld by Sathnam Sanghera (one of my summer reads), l am struck by the futility of the Commonwealth in todays world when we have the BRICS forming and leading on economic reforms in the global economy.

Take for example, the cost of borrowing money for an ex-British colonial country from Africa. It has been established the borrowing costs during 2020-2024 would be almost 10 times more of an African country than a developed country like Germany, going by bond yields comparisons. For a Latin or Carribean country, its almost seven times more and for an Asian it would be almost five times more! This from the very global financially system largely built around British and American banking system, an example of how British imperialism shaped the globe.  

So if you were a nation state who has experienced the British colonial rule, who would you want to join – the Commonwealth or the BRICs?  Not surprising the answer is the later. Whilst the Commonwealth is a great gentlemen’s club headed by the King Charles, l am not sure what practical help it is at all to its member states any more. As Sanghera concludes in his book the Commonwealth has outgrown its evolutionary usefulness.  This while the BRICs can’t stop the applications coming into their new club as they bring together the world’s most important developing countries, to challenge the political and economic power of the wealthier nations of North America and Western Europe. 

So in 2022 we have Togo & Gabon join the Commonwealth which were never part of the British empire, l am sure they will be wondering why they bothered when everyone else seems to be trying to join the BRICs.