The UAE Carbon Alliance has agreed to acquire $450 million in African carbon credits by 2030, with the goal of connecting high-integrity African carbon credits supply to strong demand from the Middle East. Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan, president and chief executive of the UAE Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA), signed a non-binding letter of intent with the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative's Advance Market Signal, according to the climate change organization.
The UAE Carbon Alliance was established in June by the UICCA to assist enterprises in transitioning to a green economy, as outlined in the UAE Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative. A carbon market is a trading mechanism for buying and selling carbon credits.
“Our collaboration with the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative provides carbon market buyers in the UAE and the wider region with access to high-quality carbon credits in Africa … Through this pledge, we hope to foster more integrated and efficient carbon market mechanisms between our two regions,” Sheikha Shamma said.
The decision helps to harness Africa's carbon credit generating potential, as well as boost long-term climate impact and sustainable investment prospects, she said, adding that carbon markets are an important element of the UAE's decarbonization path. Officials indicated ahead of the Cop28 meeting in the UAE in November that Africa will play a "fundamental role" in fulfilling the aims of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement.
Climate finance must be made more "available, affordable, and accessible" to all developing countries, including those in Africa, said Cop28 President-designate Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Kenyan President William Ruto, and African Union Commission Chairman Moussa Mahamat in a joint statement released at the Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi.