31. Why is South Africa included in the BRICS?

http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2013/03/economist-explains-why-south-africa-brics

On March 29th, a writer for The Economist addressed South Africa's involvement in the BRICS. After mentioning the purpose of the group and their latest meeting, J.P.P. says that South Africa could have joined the group without any really good reasons. The author tells us the origin of the acronym and explains why this grouping didn't and still doesn't seem to be too rational since the countries that make up this group were and still differ greatly. In addition to these seemingly incompatible nations, J.P.P. carries on justifying the invlusion of South Africa to the group, making the BRICs become the BRICS. To conclude, the author says what the countries intend to do in the future and what was decided in the latest meeting.

The author's purpose in writing this post was to clarify and present his ideas, which are probably shared by many other, on the reason why South Africa joined the BRICs. His audience is primarily focused on people who are curious to know more about South Africa's involvement since the title of the article says that. The author's tone seems to be one of indecisiveness since the reasons he gives make it appear as if South Africa was included just to have it in the group, without any real purpose. His arguments are logical and he doesn't refer to any other people since they are self explanatory. However, to save the group's appearance from too much embarrassment J.P.P. says what the countries are doing to improve their relations, but the impression given still makes the group look slightly unprofessional.