DR Congo Builds Its Own Machinery to Sell Its Rainforest’s Carbon

DR CONGO · MARKETS

Key Facts

—The move: The DRC has unveiled a National Digital Carbon Credit Registry to track and trade credits under its own control.

—The timetable: The environment ministry plans to make the registry and its oversight authority operational by the end of 2026.

—A new tax: A carbon tax on emissions is due to apply from 2026, part of the plan to capture more value at home.

—The prize: The Congo Basin is the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest, spanning about 3.7 million square kilometres across six countries.

—The stakes: Emissions from land-use change in the DRC topped 540 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent last year.

—On the ground: REDD+ schemes such as Mai-Ndombe have cut deforestation sharply while channelling revenue to tens of thousands of residents.

Congo carbon credits are about to run through the government’s own books: the Democratic Republic of Congo is building a national carbon registry and a 2026 carbon tax designed to capture far more of the money its rainforest can generate.

Why Congo carbon credits are moving onshore

For years, credits from Congolese forests were logged and traded largely through foreign registries and intermediaries. Much of the value, and the data, left the country.

The new National Digital Carbon Credit Registry is meant to change that by keeping the accounting inside national infrastructure, under Congolese control.

Officials describe it as a matter of data sovereignty: the environmental data will remain the property of the state, with access controlled by the regulator.

A registry and a tax

The registry is only half of the plan. A carbon tax on emissions is due to apply from 2026, giving the government both a way to track credits and a lever to raise revenue.

The environment ministry says it aims to have the registry and a dedicated authority operational by the end of the year.

The structure is a public-private partnership, and the country has floated an international forum in Kinshasa to attract accreditation, technology and buyers for verified African credits.

The scale of the forest

The Congo Basin is often called the planet’s second lungs, after the Amazon. It covers roughly 3.7 million square kilometres across Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the DRC, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon.

That forest absorbs enormous amounts of carbon, which is exactly what makes it valuable in a world trying to offset emissions.

It also faces pressure from logging, farming and mining, so the money from credits is meant to make standing forest worth more than cleared land.

For a country where most people are poor, turning that ecological value into public revenue is a rare economic opportunity.

Money reaching the ground

The idea is not only national accounting. Established projects show what carbon finance can do when it works.

The Mai-Ndombe REDD+ scheme has cut deforestation towards zero in its area while sending revenue to about 50,000 residents for salaries, schools and clinics.

Supporters argue that reliable payments give communities a direct stake in protecting the forest rather than clearing it.

Done well, that model could turn a fragile forest economy into a lasting source of income for some of the country’s most remote communities.

A market others want a share of

Demand for high-quality forest credits is rising as companies and governments look to offset emissions they cannot yet cut.

Africa has often sold that potential cheaply, with buyers and brokers capturing much of the upside. Kinshasa’s plan is meant to shift the balance towards the source.

By hosting accreditation and verification at home, the DRC hopes to attract technology, finance and buyers on its own terms rather than as a passive supplier.

A continental push

The DRC is not moving alone. Across the continent, governments and the Africa Carbon Markets Initiative have set out to expand credit supply this decade.

The pitch is that Africa holds a large share of the world’s untapped potential to store carbon, in forests, soils and new projects.

Turning that potential into reliable income, without repeating the mistakes of early carbon schemes, is the harder task these plans are meant to solve.

The risks, and the bigger contest

Carbon markets have a credibility problem, with past questions over whether some credits delivered the cuts they claimed. A national registry is partly an attempt to answer that.

The DRC unveiled the plan at the COP30 summit in Belem, Brazil, a reminder that Africa and Latin America share both the forests and the debate over how to finance them.

Congo’s natural capital sits at the centre of a wider contest for the continent’s resources, from minerals to carbon. Figures and rules are still evolving, so the value of any programme will depend on how it is enforced.

Frequently asked questions

What is the DRC’s national carbon registry?

It is a digital system to record and trade carbon credits under Congolese control, keeping the underlying data inside national infrastructure. The government aims to make it operational by the end of 2026.

Is the DRC introducing a carbon tax?

Yes. A carbon tax on emissions is due to apply from 2026, alongside the registry, as part of the plan to capture more value at home.

Why are Congo carbon credits significant?

The Congo Basin is the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest and a major carbon sink, so its credits are valuable to buyers trying to offset emissions.

How do communities benefit?

Projects such as Mai-Ndombe channel carbon revenue to residents for wages, schools and clinics, giving them a stake in keeping the forest standing.

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