By Ayomide Otitoju
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has called for urgent action to address Africa’s long-standing energy challenges, urging governments and stakeholders to leverage high-integrity carbon markets as a pathway to finance sustainable development.
Speaking ahead of the Carbon Markets Africa Summit (CMAS) scheduled for October 22–23 in Johannesburg, Maxwell Gomera, UNDP Resident Representative in South Africa and Director of the Africa Sustainable Finance Hub, questioned why basic energy access remains unresolved despite global technological progress.
“How is it possible that in 2025, when we are able to send people to the moon and create driverless vehicles, we’ve not been able to solve the problem of cooking energy in Africa’s rural areas?” Gomera asked.
He stressed that the issue is within Africa’s means to solve and highlighted carbon markets as a critical tool to mobilize financing. “High-integrity carbon markets can offer Africa a powerful tool to mobilise finance required to advance climate action and ensure fair benefits while driving sustainable and inclusive development,” he said.
Gomera emphasized Africa’s shift from reliance on external promises to proactive action. “Carbon markets can unlock billions in finance, strengthen our institutions, and accelerate both Agenda 2063 and the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C goal. At UNDP’s Africa Sustainable Finance Hub, we believe in a unified continent ready to harness this opportunity, own its solutions, and lead the global transformation towards resilience and prosperity.”
The CMAS will bring together the continent’s carbon market stakeholders, including early movers, climate-finance-ready projects, regulatory bodies, development organisations, and global investors, to strengthen the ecosystem for climate action.
“We cannot continue talking about Africa’s potential. We must make that potential a reality,” Gomera said. “The Carbon Markets Africa Summit matters because we bring together like-minded people to strengthen the ecosystem around a problem we all share and provide solutions. Our message is: Tomorrow is worth fighting for.”
