In a concrete step to address the various injustices of debt, climate finance, and economic inequality, especially in the contexts of the Global South, the Council for World Mission (CWM), in collaboration with World Council of Churches (WCC), World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC), Lutheran World Federation, World Methodist Council, United Society Partners in the Gospel, All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), and ACT Alliance, jointly organised an online conference on 1 July attended by more than 100 global participants, including representatives from faith communities, civil society, and multilateral institutions.
Entitled, “New International Financial and Economic Architecture (NIFEA): Faith-based Perspectives on Financing the Future,” the one-day virtual conference served as a platform for faith-rooted perspectives on the moral and ethical crises underpinning the global financial system. The ecumenical think-tank also sought to galvanise its participants to reimagine an economic architecture grounded in care, justice, and ecological restoration.
A joint message was drafted at the conference and addressed to the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4), urging a profound transformation of the global financial system.
The FfD4 meeting, coordinated by the United Nations, brings together governments, international financial institutions, civil society, and the private sector to collectively shape global policies that mobilise resources for sustainable development. It convened from 30 June to 3 July in Seville, Spain.
Not remaining complicit in neutrality
Featuring two panels that spoke on and sparked dialogues over tax justice, debt, and climate finance, with contributions from experts grounded in faith, economics, and activism, the sessions also in brought together prophetic voices from attending youth, women, members of Indigenous communities, and the global church—ruminating on lived experiences of economic violence and sharing stories of spiritual resistance.
“Africa’s debt is robbing us of our future. While billions are paid to creditors, our schools crumble, our dreams are deferred, and our potential is mortgaged away. We are not asking for charity—we are demanding justice,” cried Simbarashe Hunzvi, a youth economist and activist based in Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, CWM Mission Secretary for Ecology and Economy, Rev. Daimon Mkandawire, brought home the reality that the prevailing global economy system is not neutral ground but a battleground of morals, where faith demands resistance to injustice and reinvestment in life-flourishing alternatives.
“Our faith does not permit neutrality in the face of injustice. To finance a future that leaves no one behind, we must begin not with GDP metrics, but with the sacred worth of every being and the call to repair what Empire has broken,” stressed Mkandawire.
A move beyond charity towards structural reform
Being more than just a platform for powerful discussions, the conference also sounded a clarion call for faith communities to move beyond charity towards structural transformation—resisting death-dealing systems and reimagining an economic order grounded in justice, sustainability, and the dignity of all creation.
The ecumenical event rallied global faith communities and partners to move towards increased collaboration between faith-based organisations and global economic reform movements.
As a global missiological role-player and partner, CWM has also pledged to continue to advocate for reparatory climate finance and alternative financing mechanisms through upcoming multilateral forums.
Additionally, the development of a new policy brief based on insights gleaned from the panel sessions was announced.
