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UAE Carbon Alliance pledges to purchase $450 million in African carbon credits by 2030

The initiative aims to create, amplify, and sustain the next generation of high integrity carbon credits in Africa with the ambition to reduce emissions

The UAE Carbon Alliance, chaired by Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, President and CEO 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 to pledge an indicative intended purchase of $450 million in African carbon credits by 2030.

The Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI) is a collaborative effort incubated by Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL), the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), and The Rockefeller Foundation, and rolled out in partnership with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions.

Launched during COP27, the initiative aims to create, amplify, and sustain the next generation of high integrity carbon credits in Africa with the ambition to reduce emissions and bring transparency and integrity to voluntary carbon markets in the region.

Signatories under ACMI's Advance Market Signal represent the carbon market buyers and investors interested in purchasing African carbon credits to support the development of African carbon markets.

Sheikha Shamma said: "As we navigate the climate crisis, carbon markets stand as a pivotal tool in our decarbonisation journey. The UAE Carbon Alliance aspires to aggregate demand for high-quality carbon credits from the UAE; demand which already exceeds the supply available from the UAE alone. Our collaboration with the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative provides carbon market buyers in the UAE and wider region with access to high-quality carbon credits in Africa. This does not only help to unlock Africa's carbon credit generation potential, but also supports sustainable investment opportunities and long-term climate impact. Through this pledge, we hope to foster more integrated and efficient carbon market mechanisms between our two regions."

Paul Muthaura, CEO of ACMI, said: "We are thrilled to announce this critical signal from the United Arab Emirates Independent Climate Change Accelerators (UICCA), which amplifies the ACMI mission to build integrity via transparency and accountability for high-integrity carbon credits in Africa. We seek to promote a conducive environment, across continental jurisdictions, that bridges the demand from the Middle East, among others, with Africa's potential for high integrity supply. UICCA's pledge is a testament to the opportunity created through international cooperation in addressing climate change. Together, we aim to create a sustainable, transparent, and equitable carbon market ecosystem in Africa that will drive significant positive impact for our continent and the world."

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To date, the current signatories under ACMI's Advance Market Signal include Standard Chartered, Vertree, ETG and Nando's, with an estimated US$200 million collected for purchase of African carbon credits by 2030. ACMI is aligned with the Integrity Council for Voluntary Carbon Market's Core Carbon Principles, the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and the Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative's recommendations.

The UAE Carbon Alliance is a coalition of partners dedicated to advancing the development of a carbon market ecosystem. Chaired by Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, its founding members include AirCarbon Exchange (ACX), First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB), Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala), Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA) and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar), in addition to UICCA as its secretariat.