Rwanda Hosts Carbon Markets Meeting Ahead of Africa Summit
Rwanda's Minister of Environment, Dr. Arakwiye Bernadette during an event in Kigali
Kigali is set to host Africa Carbon Market Summit 2026 from 13 to 15 October. The event will be at Kigali Convention Centre, drawing governments, investors, project developers and buyers as markets shift toward investment.
The Africa Carbon Market Summit 2026 is hosted by Rwanda’s Ministry of Environment.
The United Nations Development Program and the African Development Bank are co-host organizations.
The Development Bank of Southern Africa serves as host partner, and NEPAD is the strategic institutional partner.
Organizers expect participants from 24 African countries and 45 countries globally.
There will be more than 100 speakers and over 50 investors.
At the Africa Carbon Market Summit 2026, representatives of 20 African governments and more than 40 project developers are expected.
The program covers the carbon-market value chain, from Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and policy implementation to project development, buyer demand, deal structuring and investment-ready pipelines.
Sessions include ministerial and technical roundtables, project showcases in nature-based solutions, regenerative agriculture, carbon removals, waste-to-value and related sectors, and deal rooms intended to connect developers with capital.
Discussions will also address measurement, reporting and verification, project bankability and the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation.
Rwanda’s role builds on its National Carbon Market Framework, launched on the sidelines of COP28 in December 2023 and overseen by the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) as the designated national authority.
The framework establishes governance arrangements, including a Governing Board for strategic oversight, to support participation in cooperative approaches under Article 6 and the voluntary carbon market while aligning credits with national climate and development goals.
REMA has reported that Rwanda has registered 29 carbon-market projects spanning land conservation, agriculture, forestry, electric mobility, waste management and renewable energy. In January 2026, Rwanda and Singapore opened applications for projects under a bilateral Article 6 implementation agreement signed the previous year.
On 9 October, days before the summit opens, REMA convened a Governing Board meeting and high-level session with government institutions, development partners and private-sector representatives to discuss operationalising carbon markets domestically.
Minister of Environment Dr. Bernadette Arakwiye, who chairs the board, said carbon markets span energy, agriculture, forestry, transport, industry, finance and international cooperation, and that no single institution can manage the agenda alone.
She described the board’s role as providing strategic direction, coordination and accountability so that activities serve Rwanda’s wider interests.
Rwanda frames the Kigali gathering as a chance to keep carbon-market benefits on the continent. It supports climate action and communities, rather than profits elsewhere, and Africa Carbon Market Summit 2026 underscores that aim. The gathering follows related discussions as international rules under the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism evolve.
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