This announcement closely follows the second annual Kenya Carbon Markets Conference, co-organized by the Government of Kenya, VCMI, CCA, FSD Kenya, and FSD Africa, where over 200 stakeholders from across government, finance, civil society, and the private sector came together to unlock Kenya’s carbon market potential.

Carbon finance as a solution to clean cooking challenges

Currently, approximately 1 billion people in Africa do not have access to clean cooking solutions and instead rely on inefficient and polluting biomass fuels such as firewood and charcoal to cook their daily meals. While Kenya has significantly improved access to clean cooking solutions over the past decade—up to 30% of its population in 2023 from 10% in 2010—millions of households still rely on polluting fuels such as firewood, charcoal, and kerosene.[i]

Clean cooking remains one of the most under-invested development challenges in the world. Carbon finance offers a critical source of capital to fill this gap, reducing how much consumers pay for clean cooking solutions and making them more accessible to low-income families who need them the most.

Partnership objectives

As part of VCMI’s Access Strategies program, this partnership with CCA will support financial market regulators to develop a framework that makes it easier to assess and prioritize which interventions could improve the integration of carbon-backed assets into mainstream finance – boosting carbon finance from clean cooking. The project intends to work with a wide range of stakeholders, including but not limited to the Central Bank of Kenya, the Capital Markets Authority, the Insurance Regulatory Authority, the Kenya Bankers Association, and commercial banks.

Scaling up carbon finance for clean cooking and other projects has long been constrained by a lack of supportive regulatory frameworks, as well as concerns over project quality. This lack of clarity has stalled urgently needed government action, limiting the role that high-quality carbon credits can play in financing. At the same time, domestic banks, insurers, and capital market institutions have often faced barriers such as limited capacity and unclear risk, which have hindered their engagement in carbon markets.

Central banks and financial regulators are uniquely positioned to change this scenario – and thus align domestic financing with climate priorities – by providing clear, consistent regulatory guidance on carbon finance. This is precisely the process that VCMI and CCA aim to support through their new partnership.

“Unlocking the true potential of carbon markets requires more than just demand — it requires trust, transparency, and regulatory clarity,” said Feisal Hussain, Senior Director of Innovative Finance at CCA. “By working with financial regulators and institutions, we aim to turn carbon credits into widely accepted and trusted bankable assets that can help scale up clean cooking access across Africa. Kenya is leading the way in many regards, and we hope this model can inspire broader financial innovation across the continent.”

“VCMI is pleased to partner with the Clean Cooking Alliance to support the scale up of high-integrity clean cooking carbon market projects by advancing financial policy guidance that enables domestic financial institutions and the private sector to engage in carbon markets with confidence. When operated with integrity, these projects improve the livelihoods of Kenyans, drive real climate impact and contribute towards sustainable development goals—serving as a model for other countries to follow,” said at Bianca Gichangi, Regional Lead for Africa at VCMI.

Advancing high-integrity carbon markets

This work is informed by a policy brief, recently published by CCA, identifying 15 targeted interventions that financial regulators can take to increase the recognition and use of carbon credits within financial systems. It also builds on previous collaborative works like the Buyer’s Guide to High-Quality Cookstove Carbon Credits, which complements VCMI’s Claims Code of Practice by helping buyers understand how to responsibly engage in the clean cooking sector.

This partnership lays a critical foundation by guiding regulators toward actionable, high-impact interventions. By working closely with the Government of Kenya, this partnership will continue the country’s leadership in the global carbon market as a provider of high-quality carbon credits that not only deliver climate benefits but also respect and strengthen the rights and livelihoods of local communities, ensuring that carbon markets are inclusive, transparent, and deliver tangible, lasting value for local actors.

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The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) is an international non-profit committed to realizing the full potential of high-integrity voluntary carbon markets (VCMs). Our mission is to empower companies, governments, and non-state actors to maximize the impact of their climate actions through the use of high-quality carbon credits.

VCMI’s Codes of Practice provide rigorous, science-aligned guidance for organizations to take credible and transparent climate action using high-quality carbon credits, enabling them to align their climate transition plans with accelerating progress to global net zero.

Through our Access Strategies Program, VCMI supports host countries, regions, and sectors to participate in high-integrity carbon markets and unlock the environmental, social, and economic benefits of carbon finance within national climate plans. This program is instrumental in building the necessary infrastructure for countries to participate meaningfully and benefit from the global carbon market.

At VCMI, we are committed to integrity, transparency, and impact, ensuring that every carbon credit used contributes to real, verifiable climate progress.

vcmintegrity.org

The Clean Cooking Alliance (CCA) works with a global network of partners to build an inclusive industry that makes clean cooking accessible to the 2.1 billion people who live each day without it. Established in 2010, CCA is driving consumer demand, mobilizing investment to build a pipeline of scalable businesses, and fostering an enabling environment that allows the sector to thrive. Clean cooking transforms lives by improving health, protecting the climate and the environment, empowering women, and helping consumers save time and money.

CleanCooking.org

[i] IEA, 2025

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The partnership was formally launched during UNFCCC Climate Week 2025, hosted in Panama City, where VCMI, the Partnership for Agricultural Carbon (PAC) and Panama’s Ministry of Environment (MINAM) co-hosted the event “Unlocking Carbon Market Opportunities in Latin America for Agriculture and Nature-Based Solutions on the Road to COP30.”

This session took place on the main stage of the Nature Summit, bringing together ministers, technical experts, leaders from the agriculture community, investors, and other stakeholders to explore how accelerated carbon finance flows across the region can support the scaling of nature-based solutions and sustainable agriculture systems.

“We are delighted to collaborate with the Government of Panama to demonstrate how carbon markets—when designed and governed with integrity—can be a powerful tool for financing sustainable development, protecting nature, and supporting local communities,” said Mark Kenber, Executive Director of VCMI.

Panama is located in one of the world’s most biodiverse regions, covered 60% by forest, and is committed to delivering real-world climate action through high-integrity carbon markets. Through the partnership, VCMI is providing in-house support to the Ministry of Environment through the hiring of two regional experts who will:

· Support the design of robust, transparent carbon market governance aligned with global best practice and Article 6 of the Paris Agreement

· Ensure the market is strategically aligned with the domestic policy landscape and can be scaled up over time

· Facilitate knowledge exchange, capacity building, and engagement with local stakeholders to ensure the market works for people and planet.

Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, Special Representative for Climate Change & National Climate Change Director of the Ministry of Environment of Panama, said: “Panama is committed to leading by example in building a carbon market that delivers real climate action, respects nature, and benefits our people. This partnership with VCMI supports our ambition to develop a high-integrity framework that attracts international investment while safeguarding environmental and social integrity. Looking ahead to COP30, we see carbon markets scaling up as an essential tool to mobilize finance and drive sustainable development across Latin America and beyond.”

George Hodgetts, Senior Policy Associate at VCMI, said: “Panama’s leadership on the design and implementation of innovative climate finance mechanisms shows what’s possible when climate ambition is paired with a commitment to integrity. We are excited to support the Ministry’s vision and help mobilize global investment to communities driving real-world climate solutions.”

UNFCCC Climate Week provides a platform for collaboration between governments ahead of COP30 in Brazil, where carbon markets are expected to play a key role in global climate negotiations, providing an essential tool for channelling finance to the Global South.

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About VCMI

The Voluntary Carbon Markets Integrity Initiative (VCMI) is an international non-profit committed to realizing the full potential of high-integrity voluntary carbon markets (VCMs). Our mission is to empower companies, governments, and non-state actors to maximize the impact of their climate actions through the use of high-quality carbon credits.

VCMI’s Codes of Practice provide rigorous, science-aligned guidance for organizations to take credible and transparent climate action using high-quality carbon credits, enabling them to align their climate transition plans with accelerating progress to global net zero.

Through our Access Strategies Program, VCMI supports host countries, regions, and sectors to participate in high-integrity carbon markets and unlock the environmental, social, and economic benefits of carbon finance within national climate plans. This program is instrumental in building the necessary infrastructure for countries to participate meaningfully and benefit from the global carbon market.

At VCMI, we are committed to integrity, transparency, and impact, ensuring that every carbon credit used contributes to real, verifiable climate progress.

For media enquiries, please contact: VCMI@bcw-global.com

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