5 March 2010: The second Africa Carbon Forum, which was held from 3-5 March 2010, in Nairobi, Kenya, aimed at helping build on growing interest in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in Africa, and concluded with expectations for a boost in Africa’s share of the global carbon market.
The Forum was held under the Nairobi Framework, an initiative launched in 2006 to help developing countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa, to increase their participation in the CDM. It was organized by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank, the African Development Bank (AfDB), the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UNFCCC Secretariat and the International Emissions Trading Association (IETA), and brought together about 1,000 members of the public and private sectors.
Highlighting the prospects for the continent, John Kilani, Director of the Sustainable Development Mechanisms programme of the UNFCCC Secretariat, noted the growing number of projects in Africa and a growing number of countries hosting projects. He added that “some project developers are even prepared to pay a premium for offset credits originating from Africa, no doubt because they are confident in the long-term growth prospects for CDM on the continent.”
Also speaking during the Forum, Henry Derwent, IETA President and CEO, commented that, “Africa Carbon Forum 2010 has been a serious and businesslike meeting of people with African emissions reduction projects and people who want to invest in them. Africa’s slow start in the CDM business seems now to have been more about finding the right ways to structure projects in the sectors that are Africa’s national specialities than about a fundamental incompatibility.” The third Africa Carbon Forum, is scheduled to be held in March 2011, in Morocco. [Africa Carbon Forum Website] [UNFCCC Press Release] [UNEP Press Release]