What does this mean for Africa?

Julie Kimutai is the Manager at Karura Forest Environmental Education Trust (KFEET), an education centre that promotes environmental conservation awareness through a variety of educational programmes.

The phrase “carbon credits” features frequently in today’s global environmental conversations, yet many people do not fully understand what it means.

What might seem like a complex scientific or financial concept is quite simple when properly explained.

At its core, it addresses the growing concern about greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, which trap heat in the atmosphere and contribute to global warming.

To understand carbon credits, imagine the world as a large bus with a limited number of seats. Wealthier, industrialised countries have taken up many of these seats through years of heavy pollution from factories, transport systems, and power generation.

Less developed countries, particularly in Africa, have taken up very little space, or haven’t even boarded the bus yet.

Those who have occupied too much space must now reduce their pollution, take up fewer seats, or “compensate” those using fewer seats by buying the extra space.

This is where carbon credits come in. In this analogy, the ticketing system represents carbon credits. A country or company that pollutes less can earn credits by protecting the environment, which can then be traded with countries or companies struggling to meet their emission limits.

Harmful greenhouse gases are released through activities more prevalent in developed economies, energy production, transport, including cars, planes, ships, and trains, and industrial processes.

Yet the effects of these emissions, droughts, floods, rising temperatures, are felt globally, often hitting hardest in countries that contribute the least to the problem.

This imbalance led to the creation of the carbon credit or carbon trading system, first through the Kyoto Protocol (1997) and later the Paris Agreement (2015).

These agreements recognise that developed economies, having contributed most to the crisis, have a responsibility to reduce emissions and support global mitigation efforts.

International treaties legally bind these countries and companies by setting emission limits and targets. Those still emitting at high levels are permitted, and encouraged, to invest in emission-reducing projects in developing countries, earning carbon credits that help them meet their targets.

This can be achieved, for example, through support for renewable energy or environmental conservation projects abroad.

At the heart of it all lies a critical question: does this system genuinely present viable opportunities for Africa and other developing regions? African countries emit minimal carbon but are rich in natural resources and ecosystems, forests, grasslands, wetlands that absorb carbon and combat climate change.

The consensus is that the continent is well-positioned to tap into the carbon credits market by protecting these resources and adopting clean energy like solar or wind power. Local communities living sustainably and in harmony with nature can be rewarded for their stewardship.

Done transparently and fairly, the carbon credit system, now expanding to include biodiversity credits, could create real opportunities for Africa, including job creation in environmental conservation and income-generating opportunities for communities.

However, concerns remain. Critics question whether carbon and biodiversity credits might become yet another avenue for exploiting African land and resources, leaving the continent underdeveloped while the developed world continues unabated.

To ensure Africa truly benefits, there must be grassroots awareness of the system, strong local governance, fair compensation, and strict safeguards against exploitation.

Without these, carbon trading risks becoming another mechanism for wealthier countries to profit at the expense of the developing world. If clear, transparent, and equitable policies are implemented, Africa may yet turn carbon credits into a tool for income, sustainability, and climate justice.

Julie Kimutai is the Manager at Karura Forest Environmental Education Trust (KFEET), an education centre that promotes environmental conservation awareness through a variety of educational programmes.

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