ECOWAS moves to establish regional carbon market to bridge $294bn climate finance gap

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is working to establish a regional carbon market platform to address a $294 billion climate-finance gap. The initiative aims to leverage West Africa’s potential in international carbon markets to fund climate mitigation efforts.

During a three-day regional workshop in Abuja, representatives from ECOWAS Member States, international organizations, and climate experts met to validate the framework for this platform. The urgency of the project is driven by the region's vulnerability to climate change. Projections from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggest temperatures in West Africa could rise by 1.5°C to 3°C by 2050. Additionally, the World Bank estimates that climate impacts could lead to the internal displacement of nearly 32 million people in the region.