• Kenya launches a national digital registry to centralize carbon credits.
• Platform aims to prevent double counting and improve transparency.
• Reform aligns with wider African efforts to regulate carbon markets.

Kenya’s government on February 17 launched the Kenya National Carbon Registry in Nairobi, creating a centralized system for all carbon credit activities in the country. The announcement was made during a ceremony led by Environment, Climate Change and Forestry Cabinet Secretary Deborah Barasa (photo).

The new public digital platform will record, authorize, and track all carbon projects and credits generated in Kenya. It will also document transfers and transactions linked to those credits, according to The Star.

Until now, carbon credit operations were not managed under a single national system administered by the state. According to Citizen Digital, this lack of centralization made it harder to officially track emission reductions and exposed the country to risks of double counting.

The new system, developed with technical support from international partners including Germany’s GIZ, is intended to organize the entire carbon credit process. It aims to ensure that each carbon credit corresponds to a verified emission reduction recorded only once. Every project must now be registered in the national database before any issuance or transfer of credits, The Standard reported.

During the launch, Deborah Barasa described the registry as a tool to strengthen transparency in Kenya’s carbon market. Principal Secretary for Environment Festus Ng’eno, quoted by Citizen Digital, said carbon credits are now recognized as assets under Kenya’s legal framework, referencing the Climate Change Act and regulations governing carbon markets.

Questions Over Credit Integrity

The launch comes amid renewed scrutiny of the voluntary carbon market. In January 2023, a joint investigation by The Guardian, Die Zeit, and SourceMaterial reported that more than 90% of forest-based credits certified by Verra may not represent real emission reductions, citing several independent scientific studies.

Verra, the leading certifier in the voluntary carbon market, manages the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), which is widely used to certify credits from emission reduction or avoidance projects. The organization rejected the investigation’s findings and defended its methodologies.

The revelations intensified debate over the environmental integrity of carbon credits, particularly around double counting and transaction transparency. In 2023, the United Nations High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities called for stricter oversight of carbon offset mechanisms.

Reform Momentum Across Africa

Several African countries have recently moved to strengthen public oversight of their carbon markets. In Tanzania, the government adopted Carbon Trading Regulations in October 2022, placing projects under state supervision and requiring prior approval for transactions.

In Zimbabwe, regulations published in May 2023 mandate state registration of all projects and provide for the government to retain a share of revenues generated. Ghana also issued national guidelines in 2023 governing its participation in international carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

These reforms reflect tighter regulatory frameworks across the continent. In July 2025, Ecofin Agency reported the creation of a coalition between the United Kingdom, Kenya, and Singapore aimed at reviving the voluntary carbon market under common rules.

Abdel-Latif Boureima