On 15-16 May 2017, a two-day meeting of the BRICS Working Group on Research Infrastructure and Mega-Science projects started in the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research.

The Russian initiative on establishment of the BRICS Working Group on Research Infrastructure and Mega-Science projects was approved on 8 October 2016 at the 4th BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial Meeting and recorded in the Jaipur Declaration.

The Meeting was opened by welcoming speech of Director of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, RAS Academician Victor Matveev who noted the high importance of the event in light of enhancement of scientific and technical cooperation of the BRICS countries.

The Russian delegation which was headed by Director of the Department of Science and Technology of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russian Federation Sergej Matveev acted as co-chair of the Meeting along with representatives of a delegation of China that assumed presidency of the BRICS in 2017.

The program of the first day of the Meeting includes two topical sessions and a visit to the JINR basic facilities, including the accelerator complex NICA under construction.

Speakers of the Meeting noted that the choice of JINR as the venue for the first Meeting of the Working Group reflects the fact, that in addition to the Russian Federation which is a JINR Member State and South Africa that participates in the JINR activities as an Associated Member, a high degree of cooperation was achieved with other BRICS countries: China, India and Brazil.