CEPB leads investor engagement for peace in Goma

The Church of England Pensions Board (CEPB) has said it will lead investor engagement in response to the escalating conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), urging companies to support the Goma Call for Peace.

Following a briefing convened by the CEPB in response to news breaking on 27 January of Goma’s capture by Rwandan-backed M23 rebels, the investor initiative will engage with companies in key sectors with supply chains at risk of exposure to minerals from the conflict.

“If investors do not act, we will see further risk of regional conflict, increasing loss of life and the continued tragic story of minerals sustaining conflict and human suffering when they could be supporting a very different path of economic and human flourishing,” said Adam Matthews, chief responsible investment officer at CEPB.

Having previously highlighted the risk posed by investors’ exposure to minerals sourced from conflict zones, the £3.4bn (€4bn) CEPB pension fund is now leading engagement with major firms operating in Rwanda, urging them to endorse the peace appeal issued in a statement by the Anglican Bishop of Goma, Martin Gordon.

“In support of the Goma Call for Peace we will be contacting all companies we are invested in that have operations in Rwanda to seek their support for the call. We will also be encouraging companies to engage the Rwandan government to pull back their forces and those of the M23 rebels and return to peace talks,” Matthews said.

The United Nations Security Council has condemned the escalation of violence in the DRC.

With increasing risk of a regional conflict, the CEPB has said it is backing the public call made by the Bishop of Goma, which sets out five steps including an immediate ceasefire and a return to peace talks between Rwanda and the DRC.

“The Pensions Board supports the Goma Call for Peace and will be asking peers across the finance sector to join us in supporting a ceasefire and meaningful peace talks,” said Matthews, who visited Goma last year when coltan mines to the west of the city were captured by the M23 rebels.

Last year Matthews was appointed to the UN Secretary General’s Advisory Panel on Critical Energy Transition Minerals as the representative of the Principles for Responsible Investment.

He also chairs the Global Investor Commission on Mining 2030, which has called on investors to take a strategic approach to a new relationship with the mining sector and other stakeholders.

“It is clear from the UN reports that minerals from this region enter global supply chains and are directly sustaining this conflict. Investors are exposed through their holdings to companies that risk fuelling the conflict,” Matthews said.

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