Ghana has transferred 11,733 tonnes of carbon credits to Switzerland, marking the world’s largest and Africa’s first-ever issuance of Paris Agreement-aligned carbon credits, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The credits, officially termed Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs), were issued through the Ghana Carbon Registry and transferred to the Swiss Emissions Trading Registry under a bilateral climate cooperation agreement signed in 2020 between the two countries.
In a statement issued by the EPA, it said “this milestone operationalizes the Ghana-Switzerland cooperation agreement under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and represents the largest transaction under Switzerland’s CO₂ Act to date.”
Clean Cooking, Clean Air, and Climate Finance
The transferred carbon credits were generated from Ghana’s Transformative Cookstove Activity, a project promoting the use of Envirofit Improved Cookstoves.
Manufactured locally and sold at subsidised prices, these cookstoves reduce household air pollution by up to 80% and cut fuel costs by 60%, directly benefiting thousands of rural and peri-urban households.
The initiative is supported by the Spark+ Africa Fund and a revolving credit facility operated through Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs), making clean cookstove technology more affordable.
The programme also includes user training, live demonstrations, and the creation of jobs in stove manufacturing and distribution.
According to the EPA, Ghana will apply a “corresponding adjustment” to its greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory, ensuring emission reductions are not double-counted between the two countries.
More Carbon Credits on the Horizon
The project is expected to generate an additional 60,000 ITMOs in 2025, with total transfers projected to surpass 100,000 credits.
Future credits will also come from sustainable rice farming and waste-to-compost projects developed in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Currently, 14 initiatives are in the pipeline under the Ghana-Switzerland framework, 12 led by the Klik Foundation and two by UNDP. Four of these projects, covering clean cookstoves, electric mobility (e-bikes), composting, and sustainable rice production, have already received government authorisation for implementation.
A Carbon Market Model for Africa
Ghana’s updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement target significant emissions cuts across key economic sectors. Carbon market initiatives like this bilateral transfer are seen as vital tools to finance and achieve these targets.
“This transaction showcases how carbon finance can be a game changer and not only for reducing emissions but also for delivering social and economic co-benefits at scale,” the EPA said.
