Carbon Markets and Mitigation Strategies for Africa/Ethiopia: Literature Review and the Way Forward

Climate change is a serious threat to Africa, in general, and sub-Saharan Africa, in particular, as it is expected to have significant economic, social, and environmental impacts.

Although the region has the lowest average per capita greenhouse gases (GHG) emission, it is particularly vulnerable to climate change because of its over-dependence on rain-fed agriculture, compounded by factors such as widespread poverty and weak capacity to adapt. Climate change is a global issue, and international collective action will be critical in driving effective, efficient, and equitable mitigation and adaptation responses on the scale required. This report explores mitigation strategies for Africa taking the global carbon market(s) as an opportunity. There appears to be a number of mitigation options for Africa/Ethiopia including clean energy, energy efficiency, improved livestock systems, afforestation, avoided deforestation and forest degradation, and improved land management practices - to mention few.