A bold new climate coalition, led by Kenya, the UK, and Singapore, aims to restore trust and integrity in carbon markets while unlocking billions for sustainable development.
By Ethical Business Staff Writer | June 24, 2025
In a move poised to transform climate finance and reposition Kenya as a green growth leader, a new international coalition has been launched to scale up global demand for high-quality carbon credits. Unveiled during London Climate Action Week on June 24, The Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets brings together three founding nations – Kenya, Singapore, and the United Kingdom – in an unprecedented government alliance to reshape the voluntary carbon credit landscape.
At the heart of this initiative is a promise: to make carbon markets credible again.
Kenya, long viewed as a climate solutions hub in Africa, has found itself at the forefront of this mission. With a history of successful carbon credit projects in reforestation, biochar production, and clean energy, Kenya’s participation signals a strategic bet that global demand for high-integrity credits can unlock climate finance for developing nations.
“Kenya’s leadership in this Coalition reflects our commitment to transforming how climate finance reaches developing nations,” said Ali Mohamed, Kenya’s Special Climate Envoy and one of the coalition’s co-chairs.
“Pricing must reflect the true value of emissions-reducing and emissions-removing projects.”
Already, Kenya has attracted 14.3 million tonnes worth of carbon credit purchases, valued at over $209 million, and houses 70 million more tonnes in surplus credits under development. The Coalition could be the long-awaited key to turning those dormant credits into thriving climate assets.
A Crisis of Confidence, A Call to Action
The Coalition emerges at a critical juncture. Once heralded as a promising climate solution, the voluntary carbon market suffered a crisis of confidence in 2023 after investigative reports—most notably from The Guardian – found that over 90% of rainforest-based credits failed to deliver genuine emissions reductions. Prices plummeted, trust eroded, and companies hesitated.
But rather than abandon the tool, the Coalition aims to fix it.
“It is not the tool that is at fault, but the manner in which it has been used,” said Ravi Menon, Singapore’s Ambassador for Climate Action. “There are demand, supply and market infrastructure issues that we need to address.”
Singapore, a major buyer of credits, recently released a voluntary guide urging firms to use credits only after exhausting all avenues to cut emissions internally. Meanwhile, Kenya offers the supply side—reforestation, direct air capture, and carbon farming – with communities expecting a fairer share of revenue moving forward.
What the Coalition Will Do
The Coalition plans to issue its first major output by COP30 in November 2025: a globally recognized framework of shared principles for the voluntary use of high-integrity carbon credits by businesses. These guidelines will offer clarity, build investor confidence, and align policy across countries.
“This is a welcome response to calls from the global business community,” said Philippe Varin, Chair of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).
“High-integrity carbon markets are a vital, but still underused, tool in our climate arsenal.”
The initiative has already attracted new members. On launch day, France and Panama officially joined, while Peru endorsed the coalition’s mission. Discussions are ongoing with other emerging economies, including Brazil, which welcomed the coalition’s push for integrity and political leadership in climate finance.
The Vision: From $500 Million to $250 Billion
Today, the voluntary carbon market is valued at just over $500 million. But if credibility can be restored and demand from corporates rises, experts estimate the market could swell to $250 billion by 2050.
This scale of capital could support a vast array of global needs—funding solar power plants in Nairobi, restoring mangroves in Southeast Asia, or developing clean cookstove programs across Latin America. It also presents a rare opportunity to deliver climate justice, ensuring communities involved in credit-generating projects see tangible, long-term benefits.
“The perceived failure by buyers and project developers to fairly compensate communities significantly contributes to negative perceptions of the carbon markets,” Mohamed noted. “This must change.”
For Kenya, the Coalition is more than just climate diplomacy – it is an investment in its green economic future. The country’s carbon credit average price of $9.77 per tonne lags behind global high-value projects like blue carbon credits, which can fetch up to $29 per tonne. Fair pricing could fuel job creation, infrastructure, and new climate technologies.
With the Coalition’s backing, Kenya now has a platform to demand value, transparency, and fairness – and to influence a market that, if done right, could deliver both climate impact and economic uplift.
