ENVIRONMENT · TANZANIA
Key Facts
- —The country Tanzania, home to Mount Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar, holds wide miombo woodlands, coastal mangroves and national parks that can earn carbon credits.
- —Why it matters Carbon credits let foreign companies pay for emission cuts abroad. Tanzania wants that money, but land rights and oversight remain contested at home.
- —Why now The environment minister gave the update in Kigali, days after rejecting opposition claims that Gulf firms had been handed Tanzanian forests.
- —What happened On Wednesday 14 October, Hamad Masauni said six Tanzanian carbon projects have reached the stage of generating credits.
- —The numbers The government said 117 projects were registered by July. The national registry lists nine ongoing projects and about 1.117 million credits issued.
- —What it means for you US buyers of offsets get a larger pipeline from Tanzania, now under a state monitoring centre. Integrity and community consent still need checking project by project.
- —Still open No volumes or revenue for the six projects were given. The names of the six projects and their buyers were not published.
Tanzania says six carbon projects now generate carbon credits, its environment minister told an African carbon forum in Kigali on Wednesday 14 October. The update puts a number on a market that Dodoma hopes will pay communities to keep forests standing.
For US readers, the credits feed a voluntary market where American and other companies buy offsets against their own emissions. The open questions are how much money reaches villages, and who controls the land behind each credit.
The government also wants to show that the trade is under firm state control. Days earlier, the same minister rejected opposition claims that Gulf companies had been handed Tanzanian forests.
What Masauni Said in Kigali
Hamad Yussuf Masauni is Minister of State in the Vice-President’s Office for Union Affairs and Environment, the post that runs climate policy. He spoke at the opening of the Africa Carbon Markets Forum 2026 in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital.
He said six projects have reached the stage of generating carbon credits, to promote green investment and environmental conservation. The account comes from the state-owned Daily News, which published it on Wednesday afternoon.
Masauni said the government had kept strengthening policy and institutions to make carbon projects transparent and to share benefits with local communities. He urged African governments, investors and financial institutions to work together to mobilise more capital.
Kathryn Kigaraba, chief executive of the National Carbon Monitoring Centre, said the forum was a chance to discuss more investment and a credible market. Immaculate Semesi, director general of the National Environment Management Council, pledged to keep working with the centre.
How Tanzania Regulates Carbon Projects
Masauni said 2025 amendments to the Environmental Management Act created the legal basis for the National Carbon Monitoring Centre. The centre registers projects and oversees the measurement and verification of carbon results.
The 2022 Carbon Trading Regulations and the national carbon trade guidelines published by the Vice-President’s Office set the basic rules. They cover registration, approval, monitoring and how benefits are shared with communities.
Before selling credits, developers must secure land rights or community agreements, register the project and choose a standard. They then need a baseline, monitoring and independent verification, The Chanzo, an independent Dar es Salaam outlet, reported.
The headline figures do not line up neatly, which is common in young markets. Masauni said in August that 117 projects had been registered by July, The Chanzo reported, while the registry lists nine ongoing projects.
The Chanzo found about 1.117 million credits issued on the centre’s registry. The larger government count appears to include projects still at earlier registration or assessment stages.
Opposition Claims Over Forests and Foreign Firms
On Sunday 11 October in Dar es Salaam, Masauni rejected claims that Saudi or Omani companies had been given Tanzanian forests for carbon trading. The claims were attributed to John Heche, deputy chairperson of Chadema, the main opposition party.
“If he can substantiate what he said, I will quit being a minister, quit Parliament and leave Chama Cha Mapinduzi,” Masauni said, according to The Chanzo. Chama Cha Mapinduzi is the ruling party, led by President Samia Suluhu Hassan.
The Chanzo said it could not identify any Saudi or Omani project that owns Tanzanian forests or receives national carbon revenue. The closest link it found was a preliminary 2023 agreement with Blue Carbon, a company based in the United Arab Emirates.
The denial was not new. In June, Masauni told reporters in Dodoma that the government had neither sold nor handed forest resources to foreign states, the Swahili-language HabariLeo reported.
What It Means for US Readers
Voluntary offsets are bought mainly by companies in the US and Europe to balance their own emissions. A state registry with verification rules gives those buyers a clearer paper trail in Tanzania.
The risk is reputational, as forest credits worldwide have faced doubts over whether the claimed carbon savings are real. Buyers should check the standard, the verifier and the community agreement behind any Tanzanian credit they buy.
Tanzania is also courting government-to-government deals under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, which lets countries trade emission cuts. In June it signed a memorandum with Singapore on possible cooperation, The Chanzo reported.
Climate finance is flowing in alongside the credits. The Vice-President’s Office said on 12 October that Tanzania expects US$41.06 million from the Global Environment Facility’s ninth funding round.
For background on the country and its politics, see Tanzania Explained: The Country, Its Politics, Its Economy and What to Watch. Land rules for foreigners are covered in Buying Property in Tanzania as a Foreigner: Leasehold Rules, Zanzibar and the Risks.
What Is Not Known
Masauni did not name the six carbon projects now generating credits, or say how many credits they have produced. The Daily News report gave no revenue figure, and none was published by the ministry.
It is not known who is buying the credits or at what price. It is also unclear how the gap between 117 registered projects and nine listed ones will close.
Community groups, including Maasai representatives, have raised concerns about consent and grazing limits in proposed northern soil-carbon projects. How the monitoring centre handles those disputes will shape trust in the market.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many carbon projects in Tanzania generate credits?
Environment minister Hamad Masauni said on 14 October that six projects have reached the stage of generating carbon credits. He did not name them or give volumes.
Who regulates carbon trading in Tanzania?
The National Carbon Monitoring Centre registers projects and oversees measurement and verification. It was set up under 2025 amendments to the Environmental Management Act, and the National Environment Management Council has pledged to work with it.
Did Tanzania hand forests to Saudi or Omani companies?
Masauni denied it on 11 October and offered to resign if the claim were proven. The Chanzo found no Saudi or Omani project that owns Tanzanian forests.
How many carbon credits has Tanzania issued?
The national registry lists about 1.117 million credits issued from nine ongoing projects, The Chanzo reported. The government says 117 projects were registered by July, many at earlier stages.
Can US companies buy Tanzanian carbon credits?
Yes, credits from registered Tanzanian projects are sold on the voluntary market to foreign buyers. Buyers should check the standard, the verifier and the community agreement first.
Sources: Daily News, 14 October 2026; The Chanzo, 13 October 2026; HabariLeo (Swahili), 27 June 2026; Vice-President’s Office (Swahili), 12 October 2026; Vice-President’s Office, National Carbon Trade Guidelines.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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