EDFI joins over 30 institutions – including DFIs and private-sector impact investors – in calling for deeper impact harmonisation

In a call to action released today, EDFI has joined a diverse group of institutions pushing for greater harmonisation in the way that impact investors measure and report on the effects of their investments. The statement highlighted a commitment to use the newly developed Joint Impact Indicators on jobs, gender equality and environment & climate when measuring and reporting on impact, and to collaborate on the identification of a core set of impact metrics with the aim to define the minimum scope for impact measurement and reporting for all impact investors.

The Joint Impact Indicators (JIIs) are a unified catalogue of impact metrics – starting with gender, jobs, and climate – that integrates the Harmonized Indicators for Private Sector Operations (HIPSO) and the IRIS Catalogue of Metrics, the two impact indicator sets used by most impact investors. This new harmonized set of indicators will further enhance the credibility of the fast-growing market for impact investing, which has the potential to channel $26 trillion into investments that have a positive social, economic and environmental impact, alongside financial returns.

“The Joint Impact Indicators represent a significant achievement because they reduce fragmentation and harmonize impact reporting among a large group of DFIs and impact investors,” said Bruno Wenn, Chairman of the Association of European Development Finance Institutions. “These indicators will simplify reporting for many fund managers and companies in emerging and frontier markets. This successful collaboration demonstrates the potential to go further still, towards a generally accepted global impact reporting standard applicable to all impact investors.”

With an ever-widening range of metrics, the current impact reporting landscape is complex and fragmented, resulting in a lack of clarity and missed opportunities for learning and attracting new investors. By setting clear and common measurement standards, the JIIs will help capture the economic, social, and environmental impacts of investments, allowing investors to improve their effectiveness, transparency, and accountability. Institutions endorsing the statement committed not just to use the JIIs, but also to participate in a broader effort to identify a core set of metrics that would define the minimum scope for impact measurement and reporting for all impact investors.

EDFI’s support for the JIIs and the development of a core set of impact metrics is aligned with our extensive work on impact harmonisation within our own membership.

For further information please contact James Brenton, EDFI Programme Manager (james.brenton@edfi.eu).