Malaysia to join BRICS soon, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announces

Malaysia will soon start the formal process to join the the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) organisation, the country's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced.

"We have made the appropriate decision. We will launch the formal process shortly."

"We are now awaiting the final decision and feedback from the government of South Africa," Premier Ibrahim said in an interview with Shanghai-based Guancha on Monday.

The BRICS group comprises of major emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The bloc was founded as an informal club in 2009 to challenge a world order dominated by western economies.

It recently expanded by several more members after Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Iran and Ethiopia joined at the start of this year.  

More than 40 other countries including Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Kazakhstan have expressed interest in joining the forum.

Earlier this month Russia had welcomed Turkey's reported desire to become part of the BRICS group of nations, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying the subject would be on the agenda of the organisation's next summit.

Together, the BRICS countries account for more than 40% of the world's population and around a quarter of the global economy, and so hold significant clout when banded together.