Finance for Peace Initiative – Peace Impact and Standards Research

A. About the Finance for Peace initiative

The Finance for Peace Initiative is part of Interpeace’s five-year 2021-2026 strategy which calls for Interpeace to seek systemic change in how peacebuilding is financed and how private and public economic development supports peace. This is partly a response to a widely understood series of system problems in peacebuilding whereby interventions are too often not deployed at adequate scale, not effectively sequenced with economic development actions and too short term. This recognizes the significant role that private sector actors have in fragile and post-conflict settings, and how livelihood and resource competition issues impact many of the conflict dynamics we work on. Private actors that do not deploy their resources and investments in fragile and conflict affected places in conflict sensitive ways can not only exacerbate conflict dynamics, but also increase the risk to their own investments undermining future development prospects. Conversely, private actors that operate in peace responsive ways can potentially contribute to peace and lower the risks attached to their investments by increasing community ownership, trust and better meeting local needs.

At a higher and more systemic policy level, it is also important to recognize that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is a significant component of the financial flows into fragile settings, exceeding Official Development Assistance for most of the last ten years until the Covid-19 pandemic. The conflict sensitivity and peace responsiveness of these flows can be highly consequential for peace, and yet much international peacebuilding action and response remains disconnected from the role, activities and approaches of private actors. Further, the growth of new ESG, SDG and Impact investing approaches provides significant opportunity for increasing peace responsive private investment, yet existing frameworks are not adequately tailored to realizing peace impacts and/or improving conflict sensitivity.

The Finance for Peace Initiative is supported by the German Federal Foreign Office (GFFO) and builds on feasibility research supported by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) on a new sustainable investment category developed by Interpeace, called peace bonds. Over the course of 2022, the initiative began a process of harmonizing metrics, norms, guidance and standards on how the private sector can positively impact peace. Specifically, we developed a Peace Finance Impact Framework (PFIF) and relative Peace Financing Standard (PFS) that will help public and private investors to plan, align, partner around, report on and ultimately realise peace impacts that reduce risks for both investors and communities.

These are critical pillars of knowledge and guidance required to grow the market for peace finance in ways that are conflict sensitive and potentially peace responsive. This assignment will thus build on the existing versions of the Peace Finance Impact Framework and Peace Financing Standard to facilitate their uptake among key partners of the initiative, while providing support to gather, systematize and incorporate feedback on new versions of the PFIF.

For more information on the Finance for Peace initiative, please see our dedicated website: https://financeforpeace.org/

B. Conceptual background to the assignment

Today, billions of people and most of the world’s extreme poor live in 57 conflict affected countries. Because of conflict, instability and violence, none of these countries are on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Development requires investment, but investment requires peace. We know greater investment is possible: the world’s financial resources of almost USD 300 trillion dwarfs the cost of achieving the SDGs. Yet, investment cannot find its way to places of great need because of risks related to peace, whether real or perceived. This leaves some of the world’s fastest growing markets and greatest investment opportunities untapped. And herein lies the problem: the peace actions that could open these markets for investments are underfunded and poorly aligned; blended finance approaches have promises, but do not currently focus on peace.

New approaches are needed: we need to fundamentally rethink how peace and development is financed and aligned. This is why the Finance for Peace initiative is currently working with partners from finance, government, and development institutions to create a market for peace enhanced finance which include the world’s first peace bonds, but also all forms of finance that will help investors better align and embed what are called peace enhancing mechanisms into their investments. In order to catalyse a broader market for peace enhancing investment, a certain key market infrastructure is required. Most fundamentally, a viable market for peace finance requires at least two things: (1) a wide, market-recognised framework as well as set of standards and related benchmark metrics that can be used by investors to establish credible peace impacts, and (2) a pipeline of investments that can fill significant demand for investments that achieve peace impacts. This research aims to significantly support the first issue, building on the Peace Finance Impact Framework and Peace Financing Standard that were developed by the Finance for Peace initiative in 2022.

We believe that peace, like climate, is a fundamental building block for economic growth and all the other SDGs. Making this work isn’t easy, but the opportunity of getting it right is enormous: the market for green bonds has grown from zero to over one trillion dollars in 10 years. The objective of the Finance for Peace initiative is to facilitate a similar outcome for peace bonds. We believe that bringing finance and peace together could unlock immense untapped value for sustainable development and peace.

C. Description of the Assignment

This Terms of Reference is for core research support on the four task areas listed below:

1. Task area 1: Facilitate the uptake of the Peace Finance Impact Framework and the Peace Financing Standard. This includes:
   • Drafting relevant usability guides for issuers and investors supporting the implementation and verification of the Peace Finance Impact Framework (v.2.0)
   • Gathering, systematizing and summarizing the feedback received by relevant stakeholders and partners on the Peace Finance Impact Framework (v.2.0)
2. Task Area 2: Create an understanding and profile of the sectors and geographies where peace additionality has the most potential. This involves demonstrating how investors can move towards more conflict sensitive or peace aligned investments. This includes:
   • Conducting a review of the size of emerging markets and eligible market for peace bonds/equity classes
   • Assessing how existing investment classes can become more peace aligned by refinancing investments
3. Task Area 3: Develop a review of possible exclusionary criteria for peace. This involves screening sector specific exclusionary and eligibility criteria, also based on the issues that emerged from the Task 2 area above.
4. Task Area 4: Network and attend key (online) events with the intention of growing finance connections and further support the uptake of the Peace Finance Impact Framework.

Objectives and Scope of the Assignment

The key objectives of this assignment are:

• To build on the existing versions of the Peace Finance Impact Framework and Peace Financing Standard to facilitate their uptake among key partners of the Finance for Peace initiative
• To demonstrate concrete ways in which investors can move towards more conflict sensitive, peace aligned investments
• To develop and further refine a list of possible exclusionary criteria for peace investments
• To gather, systematize and incorporate feedback on new versions of the PFIF.
• To occasionally support the Finance for Peace initiative in growing its networks, attending key online events when necessary

The successful candidate will need to familiarize themselves with the key materials of the initiative, especially with the Peace Finance Impact Framework and the Peace Financing Standard.

Timeframe and Deliverables

The consultancy will commence in the second half of February/beginning of March, and will last for a total of maximum 100 days to be completed before 30 December 2023. The successful consultant is expected to complete all four tasks indicated in Section C of this ToR, producing specific deliverables including but not limited to:

• A usability guide for issuers and investors
• A usability guide and checklist for independent verification by second party opinion providers (SPOs)
• A usability guide and checklist for independent evaluation by SPOs
• A review and mapping of sectors and geographies with potential for peace additionality
• A review of exclusionary criteria for peace finance, to be included in the Peace Financing Standard document

F. Reporting and feedback

All tasks listed in this ToR are to be developed in an interactive and iterative process with members of the Finance for Peace initiative. The consultant will initially work under the direction of Daniel Hyslop, Head of Research and Senior Peacebuilding Advisor, and will successfully work under the supervision of the Executive Director of the Finance for Peace initiative, once that position will be filled. The tasks and specific deliverables will be discussed with the successful candidate during the formulation of the workplan and at milestone meetings.

Budget

The full-time number of workdays for the assignment is a maximum of 100 workdays, to be allocated among the different tasks at the consultant’s discretion. The daily rate is to be determined based on researcher experience.