Climate change and the governance of carbon trading projects in Southern Africa

This project takes the Corruption & Governance Programme into an important new area of work: climate change. In fact, although this is perhaps the most critical issue of our time, detrimental climate change has only recently emerged on the African policy agenda.

The globally dominant response to climate change, the market-based system of carbon trading, has assumed an even more marginal position in the continental consciousness in spite of its proposed direct impact.

Although a new phenomenon, a significant and growing volume of work is emerging on carbon trading and its associated clean development mechanism and voluntary offset projects.

The carbon trading system lacks an African perspective in its nature and scope, which our research addresses. Our more general focus is also to engage African governments and inter-governmental organisations on the salient issues from an informed yet critical perspective.

Our exploratory project seeks to understand and address the complexities of carbon trading as it impacts on Africa; its key objectives are as follows:

• To outline the basics about carbon trading; its origins, history, components practices and debates
• To highlight the African policy influences, guidelines on, and approaches to carbon trading
• To explore projects currently underway, their guiding motivations and implementation
• To explore the nature, scope and extent of corruption within these projects - including the role of African governments, developeded countries, carbon trading companies and inter-governmental organisations
• To examine the interplay of cross-cutting issues of sustainable development and environmental mitigation/resolution proposed in these projects

Our project's main output will be a report focusing on case studies of carbon trading projects in Africa. Policy makers, environmental organisations, anti-corruption organisations and other researchers in the field will be engaged in discussion when the report is published.

This work will go a long way in investigating, reporting and monitoring carbon trading activities. Moreover, it will assist Africa in influencing regional and international policy and debate on the climate change agenda and in developing a long term African approach to dealing with devastating climate change and its impact on Africa.

Project leader:
Trusha Reddy

E: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it