The BRICS SEZ investment navigator is presented in the context of new mechanisms for cooperation among the countries of the association.

Russia presented the structure of the BRICS Grain Exchange at the 16th meeting of the ministers of economy and foreign trade of the association’s countries. The Russian side proposed creating a single digital trading platform for direct interaction between producers and buyers of agricultural products.

Vladimir Ilyichev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia, reported on the work on the initiative. According to him, the Grain Exchange should reduce the number of intermediaries in transaction execution and provide BRICS countries with the opportunity to independently determine the terms of trade in agricultural products.

At the meeting, the ministers also discussed the sustainability of value chains and the participation of small and medium‑sized businesses in international trade. The participants agreed to work on establishing an interdepartmental technical council for BRICS, holding joint business missions and exhibition events, as well as developing a mechanism for discounting invoices for export‑oriented SMEs.

A separate area of cooperation among the BRICS countries is related to the development of digital tools for investment interaction. In this area, the Invest‑Navigator SEZ BRICS has already been launched, developed by the Association of Clusters, Technoparks and SEZs of Russia together with the Development Corporation of the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

The platform brings together information about the special economic zones of the BRICS countries, including data on their specialization, preferential regimes, residents, and contact details. The Invest‑Navigator allows investors to search for suitable sites for locating production facilities and to obtain information about the operating conditions in the SEZs of the member countries.

In July 2026, the Association of Clusters, Technoparks and Special Economic Zones of Russia held a working meeting with representatives of the China Center for Cooperation on Special Economic Zones in BRICS Countries. The parties discussed the development of cooperation between the special economic zones of the BRICS countries and further interaction within the framework of the Association’s international projects.

Continued work with representatives of the special economic zones of the BRICS countries is planned for the IV International Forum of Special Economic Zones, which will be held in Moscow in October 2026. During the forum, representatives of the preferential territories of the association’s member countries will discuss issues related to investment and industrial cooperation, as well as the implementation of joint projects.