Investing and Partnering with Youth for Peace (IPYP)

Young peacebuilders play critical roles in building peace and have been recognised for these efforts by UN Security Council and General Assembly Resolutions. Despite this recognition, funding for youth-led peacebuilding remains inadequate, and young people are seldom included in funding decisions. With one in four young people living in conflict-affected  areas and 49% of youth-led organisations operating on less than $5,000 annually, the funding system remains inflexible, unpredictable, and short-term.

Furthermore, private financial flows are lowest in fragile, and conflict affected countries and least developed countries have attracted only 6% of all the private finance that official development assistance has mobilised.

There are opportunities for youth responsive peace finance—return seeking investments which respond to young people’s peacebuilding priorities—yet young people are rarely meaningfully involved in investment decisions.

The private sector significantly influences the lives of young people, with the potential to either promote peace or fuel conflict if not managed sensitively. Yet, despite this impact, there has been little effort to mobilise private partnerships for peacebuilding. 

To address this gap, Investing and Partnering with Youth for Peace (IPYP) was launched as a multi-stakeholder working group in 2022. Its vision is to bring together young peacebuilders, impact investors and corporates to meaningfully engage with each other to advance more peaceful, just and inclusive societies through sustainable partnerships and responsible business practices.  

Learn more about IPYP and its work on the IPYP website