Carbon exchange kicks off in Zim with 2 million cr...

Carbon exchange kicks off in Zim with 2 million credit Belarusian gift

Zim Now Writer

A carbon credit initiative in Zimbabwe got off to a great start on Friday 7 July 2023 with a large donation from Belarus African Foreign Trade Association, announced by South Africa’s former president Jacob Zuma who is a BAFTA board member.

“This is our pledge to kick-start the process,” Zuma announced the 2 million credit gift in a speech during a climate conference in the holiday resort of Victoria Falls

He said that trade in the green financial tools there would benefit from an endowment of two million credits from BAFTA.

“This is our opportunity to dictate the African approach to what we believe will take us out of living on donations and aid,” Zuma said.

Zimbabwe and other African countries have started making alliances with other nations as they move to remove the strangulating hold of western countries over Africa.

Zimbabwe has been battling illegal sanctions by the US and European countries for decades while South Africa is under siege for its stated refusal to be bullied into taking the US side against Russia in the Ukraine conflict.

“Through structures such as the AVCCMF, Africa will stand as a giant amongst nations in the righteous fight against climate change,” said Zuma.

Zimbabwe last week unveiled the new carbon credits exchange, as a financial tool aimed at tackling climate change.

Companies or individuals buy credits from entities that remove or reduce greenhouse gas emissions, such as investing in renewable energy, planting trees or nurturing old forests.

Each credit is worth the equivalent of one tonne of carbon dioxide — a useful badge of honour for those keen on proving their green credentials.

The global carbon credit market is forecast to grow at least five-fold to $10 billion by 2030, according to a 2023 estimate by oil giant Shell and the Boston Consulting Group.