New Africa Carbon Markets Initiative inaugurates at COP27

Sharm El Sheikh, The Gulf Observer: Led by a 13-member steering committee of African leaders, CEOs, and carbon credit experts, the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI) was launched at COP27 to support the growth of carbon credits production, create jobs and protect biodiversity in Africa.

ACMI announced a bold ambition for the continent to reach 300 million credits offered annually by 2030. This level of supplies would unlock US$6 billion in income and support 30 million jobs. By 2050, ACMI is targeting over 1.5 billion credits annually in Africa, leveraging over US$120 billion and supporting over 110 million jobs.

A number of African nations including Kenya, Malawi, Gabon, Nigeria and Togo shared their commitments to collaborating with ACMI to scale up carbon credit production via voluntary carbon market activation plans.

The initiative was inaugurated at COP 27 in collaboration with The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), and the UN Economic Commission for Africa, with the support of the UN Climate Change High Level Champions — Mahmoud Mohieldin and Nigel Topping.

ACMI released Africa Carbon Markets Initiative, Roadmap report: Harnessing carbon markets for Africa at the initiative’s COP 27 launch event.

The report identifies 13 action programs to support the growth of voluntary carbon markets (VCMs) on the continent.

Although voluntary carbon markets are already growing quickly, retirements of African credits have grown by an average of 36 percent annually over the past five years, aggressive action will be required to maintain this level of growth over the coming decades.