The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has partnered with two consortia to develop clean cooking and reforestation projects in Africa as part of the Refugee Environmental Protection Fund, the first large-scale refugee-led carbon finance platform designed to mobilise voluntary carbon markets in displacement settings.
Trading firm BB Energy will lead the development and management of two carbon initiatives in Rwanda and Uganda alongside carbon consultancy Hamerkop, non-profit organisation Fairventures and consultancy Innovest, it announced today.
BB Energy will manage the clean cooking component in the Kigeme camp in Rwanda, distributing wood and charcoal-efficient stoves, as well as LPG stoves, it said. It will also lead project activities in the Bidibidi settlement in Uganda, it said.
The company will pursue approval under the first phase of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (Corsia) in both countries and is already engaging with the government of Uganda, the firm's head of environmental projects Philip Hardwick told Argus.
It is also eyeing the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market's high-integrity Core Carbon Principles tag for its clean cooking credits, Hardwick said. Meanwhile, the reforestation credits will target "the kind of buyer that's got an interest to do a really meaningful, nature-based project with very high humanitarian impact", he said.
"For us at this stage, it's about keeping our powder dry and retaining optionality on which roads we can go down in the future," he said.
It will list its projects on different registries, with the forestry initiatives and the LPG component of the clean cookstove project to be submitted to Verra, and the rest of the clean cooking activities on Gold Standard.
There is no clear estimate of the amount of credits to be issued yet. But the initial desired round of funding for the UN is $30mn of investments.
Separately, a consortium with NGO Farm Africa, development charity Tree Aid and research centre World Agroforestry will lead activities in the Kyangwali settlement in Uganda and will co-lead reforestation activities at the Kigeme camp.
