THE government has registered 9,061 environmental projects billed at 37.55trn/-, with 50 focusing on carbon trade.

Dr Selemani Jafo, the Union and Environment state minister in the Vice President’s Office (VPO) made this observation when contributing to the conclusion of debate on the Finance Bill 2024/25 in the National Assembly yesterday.

Noticeably, the government has registered 1,340 energy projects that enhance availability of clean cooking energy, he said, asking the public to get more involved in the conservation and care of the environment, in the wake of climate change challenges.

He said that a total of 50 projects were registered in the carbon trading sphere, with the Tanganyika District in Katavi Region receiving 14bn/- on account of various conservation projects in villages.

In October 2022 the Vice President’s Office prepared the National Rules and Guidelines for the Management of Carbon Business, the procedure used to register new projects, he said.

He said the country loses nearly $500m a year in undoing negative effects of climate change, in allocating funds for conservation and environmental management programmes.

Chroniclers say that by February 2024, 39 carbon projects had been registered and 4.8bn/- received by the Mbulu and Kiteto districts, with 30 projects in health and education in eight villages built, wholly funded by earnings from the conservation projects.

The opportunity for districts to earn revenues from the sale of carbon credits was first aired in October 2018 on the basis of multilateral environment funding arrangements.

Early this month communities in eight villages in Tanganyika District participating in the Ntakata Mountains carbon project received their eighth and ninth shares of carbon revenue payments, totalling 14.25bn/- for 2023.

“This brings the total share of revenues to 22.51bn/- since the inception of the project, with the revenues earned through a contract with a nature-based investor, Carbon Tanzania, from forest protection activities.

National parks are also involved, as by late November last year a feasibility study was being conducted where TANAPA and Carbon Tanzania aim to determine the potential number of carbon credits in that sphere.

In April this year Carbon First (T) Ltd and the Ruangwa District Council signed an agreement to participate in carbon trading, as a continuation of government expectations to raise $1bn through carbon trading this year.  

A similar example is signing a deal for one of East Africa's biggest land-based carbon credit projects tied with TANAPA, covering Katavi Plains, Ugalla River, Mkomazi Game Reserve and Gombe National Park, among others.

The minister said that as carbon credit trade thrives, villagers in many parts of the country have been motivated to venture into the business by deliberately setting aside part of their

He lauded public officials for the implementation of projects in various sectors directly affecting the environment, including the registration of 222 water projects and 1,894 construction projects.