Foundation for Climate Protection and Carbon Offset Klik Foundation Launches $100 million Climate Protection Programmes in Malawi

Malawi-The Foundation for Climate Protection and Carbon Offset Klik Foundation, under the mandate of the Swiss government, is in Malawi to gather support for climate protection programmes worth over $100 million by 2030, in line with Article 6 of the Conference of Parties (COP) under the Paris Agreement, writes Charles Mkoka.

Article 6 of the UNFCCC COP agreement acknowledges that countries can pursue voluntary cooperation in the implementation of their nationally determined contributions to allow for higher mitigation ambitions and to promote sustainable development and environmental integrity.

In her opening remarks, Hillary Namainja, Director of Administration in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change, welcomed the carbon trading initiative, saying it was timely as it will help contain carbon emissions into the atmosphere, thus cushioning the effects of climate-related challenges adversely impacting the economy from a disaster perspective.

Chimwemwe Yonasi, an Environmental Inspector, explained in his presentation that the Foundation intends to upscale the carbon market through international trading in emissions reduction targets.

"Carbon markets are intended to reduce greenhouse emissions in the atmosphere and enable countries to meet their targets through carbon trading certified under the UNFCCC," Yonasi said.

Malawi and Switzerland's Ministers responsible for the Environment set the legal basis for this cooperation when they signed a bilateral agreement on climate action at COP 27 in Sharma El Sheik, Egypt, on November 16, 2022.

Under the Swiss CO2 Act, mineral oil importers are obliged to offset, in Switzerland and abroad, part of the emitted emissions produced by the transport sector in the country.

As such, the Klik Foundation will be buying the resulting mitigation outcomes, technically known as internationally transferred mitigation outcomes (ITMOs), which correspond to one tonne of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere).

The Klik Foundation is interested in developing suitable protection programmes in the areas of improved cookstoves, biogas, carbon dioxide reduction in cement production, building efficiency, industrial energy efficiency, solar PVC, organic waste alternate wetting and drying, electric mobility, and green cooling,” explained Dr Jacqueline Jakob, Director of International Relations at the foundation.

“To this end, the Klik Foundation would like to establish a partnership with companies and other stakeholders operating in Malawi.”

She added that the Klik Foundation will support climate mitigation technologies with an expected total contract value of over $100 million until 2030 in Malawi.

A recent study by the International Monetary Fund suggests that every dollar spent on key carbon-neutral or carbon-sink activities as part of climate action can generate more than a dollar's worth of domestic economic activity.