The government, through the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment, has developed Interim Guidelines on Carbon Market and Trading, which will enable the country to manage the approval, implementation, and regulation of carbon projects.
Minister of Green Economy and Environment Eng. Collins Nzovu said that the transactions on the carbon market are intended to meet commitments under climate change conventions or simply to offset institutional or individual carbon footprint and thereby contribute to good environmental management.
Speaking during the launch of the Interim Guidelines for Carbon Trading and Marketing today, Eng. Nzovu explained that the carbon market refers to trading systems in which carbon credits are sold and bought.
“The reason for putting a monetary value on carbon is to promote the reduction of the emissions and thereby contribute to addressing global warming and subsequently climate change,” he said
He said that the interim guidelines on carbon markets and trading outlines some administrative measures and procedures to guide government and stakeholders in the regulation and management of the carbon market in Zambia during the interim period until the enactment of the Climate Change Act.
Eng. Nzovu further added that Zambia has been facilitating the implementation of projects under the carbon market since the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 which gave emission reduction targets to industrialised countries, adding that following the promulgation on the national policy on climate change in 2016, the government set out to enact the first ever climate change legislation called the “Climate Change Act”, whose enactment is expected during the first half of 2023, will provide for the regulation of the carbon market in Zambia.
“Therefore, the Ministry has aligned the interim guidelines to the rules guiding the functioning of the carbon market under the Paris agreement, which were finally agreed at COP-26 in November 2021,” he said
He mentioned that in a bid to benefit from carbon trading in the interim period, the New Dawn Government in 2021 issued a Statutory Instrument – SI No. 66 of 2021, the Forestry Carbon Stock Management Regulations, explaining that the SI No. 66 encourages community forest groups to mobilise and participate in carbon trading through among other things reduction in deforestation and forest degradation, forest conservation and sustainable management of forest.
“SI No. 66 is however, restricted to forest related carbon and does not address other forms of carbon as such to incorporate the other forms of carbon which are equally important with enormous potential for exploitation, the government through my Ministry has developed interim guidelines for carbon markets and trading which will enable the country facilitate approval, implementation and regulation of carbon projects in the interim,” he mentioned
The Minister said that the guidelines are meant to ensure that the country does not lose out from the carbon market but takes advantage and ensures Zambian people, especially the rural communities, benefit from this innovative source of climate financing.
He further said that the government will not provide finance to project developers for the carbon market but will only play a role in facilitating the partnerships that project developers come up with.
“We will also pay extra attention to ensure that local market players, especially local communities participating in this market are not exploited, but get their fair share of the accrued benefits,” The Minister said
Eng. Nzovu disclosed that the guidelines will address the categories or projects interventions eligible for consideration inline with the national aspirations as outlined in the National Policy on Climate Change of 2016, as well as the Nationally Determined Contributions – NDCs.
He further disclosed that the guidelines will address considerations regarding technologies and their relevance and appropriateness proposed for the buying of project components, adding that technical considerations related to quantification of carbon, measurement, verification, monitoring and international best practices in general.
“Other guidelines will include, benefit sharing and mechanism inline with the government policy. And steps in the application and approval process which include templates for preparations of projects consents and documents and score cards for use during evaluation of project proposals,” Eng. Nzovu said
