Kenya to open first Africa carbon exchange

NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Kenya says it is launching Africa's first carbon exchange to facilitate the trading of carbon credits and help tackle climate change.

The market will enable all African countries to sell and trade their carbon credits, the BBC reported Friday.

Carbon dioxide is one of the main gases causing climate change, scientists say, and such exchanges, where polluting industries in rich countries pay for clean development projects in poor countries, are one way to offset carbon emissions.

Experts say Africa will be badly affected by climate change even though most of the greenhouse gases that cause it are produced in the West and Asia.

Kenya officials say they hope the trade in carbon credits will open up investment in the generation of renewable energy and forestry projects.

They estimate the country's largest forest, the Mau, has the potential to earn the country close to $2 billion a year over the next 15 years.