Plan underway on carbon credits trading

By John Oyuke

 

The Government has announced plans to establish an investment advisory team to help the country undertake carbon projects and carbon credits trading.

At the same time. it has also said all new carbon projects will be prepared in consultation with the Treasury.

Treasury Permanent Secretary, Joseph Kinyua said the team comprising of key ministries would be charged with the responsibility of appraising and evaluating viable projects.

Kinyua said these guidelines are meant to enhance the country’s efforts in the carbon business.

“As a signatory and a party to the Kyoto Protocol, Kenya has a commitment to implementation of the climate change convention,” he said.

According to the circular, participation in implementation of the convention is essential to attracting investments. The permanent secretary said in recent years, awareness about carbon market opportunities has rapidly gained momentum and more and more people have started to venture into the carbon business.

The idea behind carbon trading, which came about in response to the Kyoto Protocol, signed in 1997 is quite similar to the trading of securities or commodities in a marketplace.

Carbon would be given an economic value, allowing people, companies or nations to trade it, creating a market to facilitate buying and selling of the rights to emit greenhouse gases.

 

Foreign aid

 

The industrialised nations for which reducing emissions is a daunting task could buy the emission rights from another nation whose industries do not produce as much of these gases. In an attempt to respond adequately to the climate change problem in the country, Kinyua said the Government has set a basic climate finance and carbon trading policy goal.

 The goal, he added, seeks to develop a strong carbon market, which would benefit the people at all levels, reduce the country’s overdependence on foreign economic assistance and guaranteeing resource mobilisation for recapitalising investments in the country.  This basic goal has four aspects. First, it aims at facilitating resource mobilisation and enhancing the country’s capacity to effectively tap into the carbon markets,” he said. Second, it aims at attracting international climate change finance from the carbon markets. 

Third, it aims at reducing dependence on foreign aid and strengthens the country position in international climate change.