Ethiopia - Lessons Learned from the Standardized Crediting Framework

Overview & Synopsis

Ethiopia is one of the Carbon Initiative for Development (Ci-Dev) countries implementing the Standardized Crediting Framework (SCF). The SCF is a tool for testing and operationalizing a national crediting mechanism to access carbon finance and build readiness for participation in carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. Ethiopia launched its first official SCF rollout in 2023, enabling a national-scale mitigation program to issue verified emission reductions (ERs). The SCF is a package of tools that can serve countries that intend to develop a national carbon crediting standard to access carbon finance. The rollout process following the SCF is an opportunity to build readiness for host countries’ wider participation in carbon markets, including under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement. In Ethiopia, it was financed by Ci-Dev, a carbon fund hosted by the World Bank. The setup of the SCF in Ethiopia served two purposes: In the short-term, it helps generate carbon credits for projects previously registered under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), as they are facing the consequences of the end of the CDM. Additionally, the setup of the SCF delivered practical benefits that will help the country with its long-term carbon market development and Article 6 readiness, including strengthened institutional capacity, improved understanding of carbon crediting processes, and early mobilization of carbon finance