WELCOME
Zambia’s Carbon Market Page aims to make Carbon Market information accessible to a wide audience, including state and non-state actors, by offering insight and information on Carbon Markets in Zambia. This page also serves as a platform for raising awareness on the operationalization of Carbon Markets in Zambia, as Zambia continues to establish its Carbon Market Framework and associated Regulations and Statutory Instruments.
What are Carbon Markets?
Carbon Markets are carbon pricing mechanisms enabling governments and non-state actors to trade Green House Gas emission credits in order to achieve climate targets and implement climate actions cost effectively.
Why are they important?
Carbon Markets help countries to meet their climate targets by unlocking cost effective ways to decrease GreenHouse Gas emissions.
Zambia's Carbon Market Development
The Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP) and the Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment (MGEE) 2022 to 2026, identified Carbon Markets and trading as modalities that would help achieve Zambia’s Carbon emission reduction targets.
In 2022, the Government developed Preliminary Guidelines on the Handling of Carbon Markets and Trading and subsequently announced its intention to develop legislation to regulate the Carbon Market in the country, especially in the Agricultural and the Forestry sectors. In 2023, the Ministry published strengthened Guidelines for the submission and evaluation of Article 6 Mitigation Activities as part I of Zambia’s Carbon Market Framework.
In 2024, the Ministry established and enabled enactment of the Green Economy and climate Change Act which seeks to mainstream climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction; provide for climate change mitigation, low emission development, green economy and related actions; regulate carbon markets; provide for environmental and social safeguards in climate change actions; establish the Climate Change Fund; domesticate the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement.
In 2025, Zambia’s Carbon Market Framework was published, the framework seeks to provide clear eligibility criteria for project development and procedures for carbon trading, monitoring and reporting to support the country’s strategic planning and needs with regards to mitigation and the achievement of our nationally determined contributions (NDC’s).
The Government of Zambia through the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment continues to engage with buyer countries, private and public sector institutions and continues to work with cooperating partners to enhance Zambia’s participation in international carbon markets mechanisms and ensure high integrity and high-quality carbon markets in Zambia.
What is Article 6 of the Paris Agreement?
Zambia’s MGEE continues to pursue Bilateral Agreements on Cooperative Approaches under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement to ensure a thriving Carbon Market.
Zambia’s NDC’s in brief & the role of Carbon Markets in NDC achievement
Zambia’s first NDC was submitted in 2016 and consisted of both mitigation and adaptation components based on the country’s national circumstances. This NDC was
submitted with a conditional pledge of reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions by 2030. In 2021, Zambia submitted its updated NDC which commits to a conditional emissions reduction target from 25% to 47% by 2030 as compared to the business-as-usual scenario with a 2010 base year.
The updated NDC covers mitigation actions for Energy, Agriculture, Forestry and other land use, and waste as well as adaptation actions for agriculture, wildlife, water, strategic infrastructure, health, and technology.
As party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, Zambia may voluntarily cooperate with other countries to achieve emission reduction targets set out in its’ NDCs. The Paris Agreement (PA) introduces international market mechanisms to unlock green investments for the collaborative achievement of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) under Article 6, specifically Articles 6.2 and 6.4. The goal of these mechanisms is to increase private sector participation and to contribute to the global mitigation goals, which aim to limit global temperature rise to well below 1.5 degrees.
Supported by the Supporting Preparedness for Article 6 Cooperation (SPAR6C)
