In 2024, the Russian Federation will preside over an association of countries called BRICS+. The motto for the joint activities of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will be the slogan “Strengthening multilateralism for equitable global development and security.” Events related to BRICS+ will be held in many cities of Russia. Since 2018, the International Municipal BRICS+ Forum has been taking place in St. Petersburg. It is held with the support of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rossotrudnichestvo and the Government of St. Petersburg.

The mission of the project is to establish the Russian Federation as a center of cooperation between cities around the world. The goal of the Forum is to promote the integration of positive world experience, the implementation of government tasks on the ground, the development of social and economic well-being of municipal territories, the introduction of information, digital and innovative technologies into the everyday activities of large cities in developing countries. The forum is focused on the socio-economic development of regional and municipal territories; increasing the investment attractiveness of cities in Russia and other “five” countries; strengthening relations between the BRICS countries and others; promoting a positive image of the Russian Federation abroad. The BRICS+ IMF is a platform that forms the intellectual agenda for the international municipal community in accordance with the current and specific demands of the time and society itself.

November 9 -10, 2023 representatives of the Kazan Innovative University named after V.G. Timiryasov Vice-Rector for Economics and Strategic Planning, Associate Professor Liliya Vorontsova and Advisor to the Rector for Strategic Initiatives, Professor Oleg Agapov took part in meetings, round tables and strategic sessions. More specifically, L.V. Vorontsova introduced a number of valuable ideas on building logistics between countries at the strategic session “BRICS+ - 2030”, O.D. Agapov acted as a speaker at the Forum section entitled “BRICS+: the Values That Unite Us” with a report on the geocultural foundations of the integration of the BRICS countries. In particular, he noted three strategically important points for building long-term relationships, namely: freedom to choose development paths, sovereignty of historical traditions and cultural diversity.

Two busy days at the Forum made it possible to outline ways for the development of the Kazan Innovative University in the BRICS+ format: expanding educational projects between KIU and universities of the BRICS countries, establishing contacts on academic exchange, building public and scientific diplomacy projects.