Rockefeller Foundation has urged African countries to use the carbon credit market to expand school feeding programmes.
The Rockefeller Foundation Africa regional office vice president William Asiko noted that some 60 million learners in Africa get some form of meal every school day.
“We have to focus our eyes on the prize - school meals. There is a real opportunity for governments to expand school feeding programmes using carbon credits,” Asiko explained.
He said schools can earn carbon credit by transitioning to clean cooking.
“The Kenyan government intends to provide school meals to 10 million learners by 2030. This programme can be achieved and even expanded by the carbon credit market,” he added.
Asiko made the remarks in Nairobi during a meeting it convened to explore how carbon markets can be used to generate financial resources for climate action and development in Africa.
Participants included African Carbon Markets Initiative, National Council for Nomadic Education in Kenya and Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet, Verst Carbon and World Food Programme.
Asiko noted that majority of meals in schools and rural homes are prepared using open fires, which threaten the environment.
Verst Carbon CEO Brian Nyangena noted that 90 per cent of schools use firewood and charcoal for cooking.
He said schools can get extra income from carbon credit market for adopting clean energy.
“Revenues from the carbon credit market can sustain the school feeding programme. The earnings can cover up to 60 per cent of the programmes,” he explained.
Asiko said Rockefeller Foundation is committed to developing a transparent, scalable, and integrity-driven market for carbon credits in Africa to catalyse economic development and enhance climate resilience.
Asiko highlighted the importance of developing vibrant carbon markets in the continent.
“Carbon credits have become a very popular talking point for policymakers, private sector players, civil society, and philanthropists like ourselves,” said Asiko.
He noted that three essential components are needed to establish a robust and effective carbon market - producers, market intermediaries, and buyers.
“Producers must create high-quality carbon credits with transparency and integrity. Market intermediaries, including government regulators, ensure fair play and transparency, while buyers must have confidence in the credits they purchase, necessitating strong verification systems,” he added.
The carbon market is a type of commodity market standardised to the unit of a ton of carbon. Actions that prevent or remove carbon emissions can generate credits which can be bought, sold and traded by market participants.
These activities can be either nature-based or technology-based. Some reduce the emission of carbon into the atmosphere—for instance, by building renewable energy sources instead of fossil fuels.
Some remove carbon already in the atmosphere by the use of reforestation projects, soil carbon sequestration projects, or technologies that capture and sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.