2023 | October
The Africa Resilience Forum 2023 galvanized tangible momentum towards mobilizing financing at scale in support of peace initiatives. At the forefront of this effort, the panel “Creating the Structures and Environment for Peace-Positive Finance,” moderated by Interpeace’s Finance for Peace Initiative, convened diverse stakeholders actively involved in shaping peace finance strategies across various contexts. Reflecting on the groundwork laid during the ‘Innovating Financing for Peace’ event in Berlin in 2022, the forum provided a comprehensive overview of advancements in peace finance, highlighting innovative approaches and outlining future trajectories.
Ambassador Deike Potzel, Director General for Crisis Prevention, Stabilization, Peacebuilding, and Humanitarian Assistance of the Federal Republic of Germany, underscored the imperative of reevaluating our approach to sustainably financing peace. Germany, through its participation in the Investing for Peace Initiative (I4P) alongside implementing partners UNCDF and PBSO, is dedicated to spearheading peace-positive investments within the private sector of fragile and conflict affected settings. Ambassador Potzel emphasized, “We must prioritize discussions on the political will necessary to shift conflict dynamics. Good governance and the rule of law are fundamental for fostering livelihoods and enabling development. Peace-positive investment stands as a pivotal component of the solution.” She further asserted, “Partnerships are paramount; we call upon all stakeholders to champion Peace Finance initiatives.”