Africa’s carbon markets are entering a new phase as governments strengthen policy frameworks, investors seek credible projects and stakeholders work to unlock climate finance, with the shift from market readiness to transactions expected to take centre stage at the Carbon Markets Africa Summit (CMAS) 2026.
The summit, scheduled for Oct. 13-15 in Kigali, Rwanda, will bring together policymakers, investors, carbon project developers, corporate buyers and carbon market leaders from Africa and beyond to examine how high-integrity carbon markets can attract investment and support sustainable development.
The gathering comes as implementation of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement advances globally and African countries move toward developing projects and completing the regulatory systems needed to participate in international carbon markets.
The African Union is rolling out its Africa Action Plan on Carbon Markets, while countries including Ghana are developing Article 6 project pipelines and authorization systems.
The African Principles for Equity and Integrity in Carbon Markets, developed through AUDA-NEPAD, also place greater emphasis on governance, transparency, community benefit-sharing and market confidence.
The challenge now is turning policy progress into transactions and investment.
Buyers and investors are increasingly assessing carbon projects on the basis of quality, measurement, reporting and verification (MRV), compliance readiness, transaction certainty and policy clarity.
Strong projects will need access to appropriate capital, buyers, standards, market infrastructure and institutional support if Africa’s carbon markets are to expand.
The summit will be hosted by Rwanda’s Ministry of Environment, with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and African Development Bank (AfDB) serving as host organizations.
The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) will serve as host partner, while AUDA-NEPAD will be the strategic institutional partner. Other contributors and partners include GIZ, BeZero Carbon, Welthungerhilfe, FSD Africa, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Carbon Standards International.
Article 6 and CORSIA
The updated CMAS programme will focus on how Article 6 and the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) can move from policy frameworks to actual transactions.
Participants will examine what buyers and investors are prepared to finance, what makes carbon projects bankable and verifiable, and how African countries can strengthen MRV capacity while maintaining market integrity.
The programme will feature technical contributions from organisations including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the European Commission.
More than 10 African governments and over 20 investors and financiers are expected to attend the three-day summit, which will feature leadership discussions, investor and buyer roundtables, project showcases, technical workshops, solution labs and deal rooms.
Discussions will cover Article 6 and CORSIA, voluntary carbon market demand, offtake agreements, high-quality MRV and ratings, policy readiness, regional market alignment and early-stage carbon finance.
Participants will also consider global regulatory changes, private capital de-risking, authorization processes, registry interoperability and the expansion of MRV and validation and verification capacity across Africa.
A UNEP-hosted Nature Deal Room will bring together African governments, corporate buyers, investors, standards organisations and market intermediaries to advance high-integrity nature-based carbon transactions.
Africa’s opportunity
Shikha Sharma, global technical lead for offsets and removals at SGS, said Africa could play a major role in shaping the global carbon market, but that stronger governance and local capacity would be critical.
“I genuinely think Africa could become the defining force in global carbon markets,” Sharma said.
Africa’s natural resources provide significant opportunities, she said, but the continent must strengthen governance, invest in local capabilities and maintain market integrity.
“If Africa gets governance right, invests in local capabilities and keeps integrity at the centre, it won’t just supply the market. It will influence how the market operates globally,” she said.
For UNDP, the opportunity extends beyond carbon transactions to broader economic and development outcomes.
“For UNDP, the true value of carbon markets lies in what they make possible: finance for national priorities, decent jobs, resilient livelihoods, and sustainable development,” said Fatmata Lovetta Sesay, UNDP resident representative in Rwanda.
“The task before us in Kigali is to build markets that are credible, investable, and designed to deliver real value for African countries and communities,” she said.
Emmanuelle Nicholls, portfolio director, said collaboration between governments, investors, project developers and the private sector would be critical to unlocking Africa’s carbon market potential.
Africa’s strengthening policy frameworks and growing investor confidence provide an opportunity to mobilise climate finance while delivering economic, environmental and social benefits, she said.
“CMAS 2026 is designed to bring those stakeholders together to share knowledge, strengthen partnerships and accelerate practical action that supports Africa’s growing carbon markets,” Nicholls said.
The summit is expected to give African governments and market participants a platform to address the practical barriers between carbon market policy and investment, as the continent seeks to secure a larger role in the global climate finance market.
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