Economic Value of Peace framework is key to understanding economic losses caused by violence and which types of violence have the greatest effect on Positive Peace indicators

The Economic Value of Peace framework covers 163 countries and independent territories - representing 99.5 per cent of the global economy and population. There are at least two major trends in the cost of violence. Firstly, where countries have experienced dramatic increases in violent conflict, there is a corresponding impact on their economies. The primary example of this is the case of Syria where the civil war has devastated the country and economy, with violence and conflict costs equivalent to 54.1 per cent of GDP in 2015. Conversely, countries that have achieved peace have reaped significant economic gains. The economic impact of violence in Sri Lanka has decreased 66 per cent since 2009, resulting in a peace dividend of $48 billion PPP, which is equivalent to 20 per cent of the country’s 2015 GDP. Through understanding the economic losses caused by violence and which types of violence have the greatest effect on Positive Peace indicators, governments and policymakers can better understand how a lack of peace is affecting not only economic growth but also poverty levels, social mobility, education, the control of corruption or life expectancy. Indeed, results from the 2016 iteration of the PPI show that the average score across these indicators were much higher in the top ten ranked countries than the bottom ten ranked. This highlights that by identifying the right violence containment strategies, policymakers may be able to lower economic costs of violence by nurturing the tangible drivers of peacefulness.