As countries seek to mitigate and adapt to the impact of climate change, Zambia wants to tap into carbon trading to raise funds with due consideration for the beneficiation of various communities as it envisions to migrate into a green economy.
The increasing surge of climate crisis on developing countries, chiefly in Africa and other Least Developed Countries beyond the continent has continued heightening but Zambia, like many of the affected countries on the African continent, and despite contributing a paltry 4% to the global emission, Africa is devising options of raising capital as part of the benefit sharing mechanism its people.
Permanent Secretary in the ministry of Green Economy and Environment, John Msimuko says it was vital for the country to prepare for now and the future on how to fight climate change effects by raise own capital for mitigation.
Speaking in Chongwe Tuesday when he officially opened a two-day Benefit Sharing Plan Forum for the Eastern Province Jurisdictional Sustainable Landscape Program (EP-JSLP), called for clear proposals and roadmap of the Benefit-Sharing Plan.
It was the Government’s resolve and commitment to promoting engagements in the carbon market and other innovative finance mechanisms.
Increased climate finance will ensure enhanced and ambitious climate adaptation and mitigation to achieve a climate resilient and low carbon green economy.
The government he said is currently preparing the EP-JSLP ultimately to realise the country’s commitment to improved livelihoods for rural communities in Eastern Province.
The EP-JSLP is being prepared by the Zambia Integrated Forest Landscape Project (ZIFLP) under the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment with support from the World Bank.
According to the Government’s blueprint, the initiative is being developed to incentivise and reward climate change mitigation actions that reduce emissions coming from the unsustainable land management practices of primary rural communities and households in the Eastern Province.
“This jurisdictional programme is intended to achieve emissions reductions by promoting interventions that prevent deforestation and forest degradation, reduce agriculture emissions as well as through improved rural land-use planning and renewable efficient energy generation,” Mr. Msimuko stated in a statement to FRA from the ministry.
Arguably, the initiative is being developed as the long-term results-based payment program that is jurisdictional in approach and performance-based in nature.
The formal processes for declaring Eastern Province as a jurisdiction are underway.
“I am also pleased to inform you that government is in the process of enacting legislation through the Climate Change Bill, aimed at addressing climate change, strengthen the coordination framework and enhance coherence between adaptation and disaster risk reduction and will guide efforts towards monetising and incentivising the trading in emissions reductions,”
Mr. Msimuko, stressed the essence of acknowledging that the core to any jurisdictional program is the involvement of stakeholders and communities such as Community Forestry Management Groups (CFMGs), Farmers Groups and Cooperatives and the traditional leadership structures in the sustainable management of natural resources.
It is inevitable that the development of a Benefit-Sharing Plan, with consideration for various communities, be agreed upon with all stakeholders.
This is expected to be done before signing of an Emission Reductions Purchase Agreement (ERPA) with the Biocarbon Fund Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (BIOCF ISFL) by June next year.
Zambia remains committed to promoting engagements in the carbon market and other innovative climate finance mechanisms. Increased climate finance will ensure enhanced and ambitious climate adaptation and mitigation to achieve a climate resilient and low carbon green economy.
The developing carbon market will enable developing countries such as Zambia, place a value on Carbon as an asset or resource to be measured as it would mineral reserves.
Zambia is ahead of many African countries having undertaken REDD+ readiness preparatory steps to take advantage of this opportunity.
Carbon Trading started in 1997 when some 180 countries signed the Kyoto Protocol. The Protocol called for countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions between 2008 – 2012 to 5% below 1990 levels, a target that was unfortunately never met.
The just COP 27 conference hosted by Egypt evoked the need by countries to revert to carbon trading as a way of financing-awaiting fulfilment of the delayed US$100 billion pledged by developed nations during COP 15.
The new Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI), inaugurated during CO27, seeks to, among other objectives, support the growth of carbon credit production and create jobs in Africa.
ACMI’s ambition for the growth of African voluntary carbon markets include: producing 300 million carbon credits annually by 2030, and 1.5 billion credits annually by 2050.
Unlock 6 billion in revenue by 2030 and over 120 billion by 2050 and support 30 million jobs by 2030 and over 110 million jobs by 2050.
Other set targets include distributing revenue equitably and transparently with local communities. The ACMI had during teh COP 27 identified 13 action programs to support the growth of voluntary carbon markets (VCMs) across Africa.
Multiple African nations including Kenya, Malawi, Gabon, Nigeria and Togo joined the ACMI launch event to announce their commitment to scaling voluntary carbon markets as part of Africa’s resurrection from the climate change crisis.
