Ethiopia becomes first country to have verified emission reductions issued under ISFL Standard

Ethiopia has reached a major carbon milestone: 14.9 million verified emission reductions have been issued for the first monitoring period of the Oromia Forested Landscape Program. Following independent verification, the World Bank issued the credits under the BioCarbon Initiative for Sustainable Forest Landscapes (ISFL) Standard, and recorded them in its Carbon Asset Tracking System.

This milestone reflects more than a decade of sustained commitment by the Government of Ethiopia, the Oromia regional government, development partners, and the hundreds of thousands of forest-dependent communities working to protect and restore Oromia's forests—home to more than 30 million people and over half of the country's forest cover.  

Spotlight on DRC: Carbon revenues support clean water access and make a generational shift in quality of life

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s Mai-Ndombe Emission Reductions Program is using carbon revenues generated under its program with the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) to fund clean water infrastructure through its benefit-sharing mechanism. 

New solar-powered water systems are improving access to safe drinking water for more than 218,000 people, demonstrating how results-based payments for forest conservation can deliver tangible development benefits and support the World Bank Group’s Water Forward goals.  

Helping countries build the legal foundations for high-integrity carbon markets 

As countries increasingly look to carbon markets to support climate and development goals, many are facing a common challenge: building the legal and regulatory foundations needed to participate effectively and credibly in these markets. 

To help address this gap, the World Bank has launched the Legal and Regulatory Reforms Toolkit for High-Integrity Carbon Markets, a practical resource designed to support developing countries in establishing robust institutional, legal, and regulatory frameworks for carbon markets.

With support from several World Bank initiatives including the FCPF, ISFL and the Scaling Climate Action by Lowering Emissions (SCALE) trust fund, the publication was launched at the Innovate4Climate conference in Singapore in May 2026. 

New report released on Indigenous knowledge and climate resilience in Fiji  

The World Bank has launched a new report examining how Indigenous and traditional knowledge is strengthening climate resilience in Fiji.

With support from the Enhancing Access to Benefits while Lowering Emissions (EnABLE) trust fund, the report draws on research across six iTaukei communities, highlighting the role of customary knowledge in sustainable resource management, disaster preparedness, resilient housing, and food security. 

Innovate4Climate celebrates 10 years of advancing carbon pricing and market

Innovate4Climate (I4C) 2026 marked the conference's 10th anniversary with strong global participation, bringing together policymakers, practitioners, investors, and development partners to advance the implementation of carbon pricing and carbon markets.  

The event highlighted practical solutions, technical innovation, and new partnerships to help countries move from policy design to delivery, reinforcing I4C's role as a leading global platform for accelerating high-integrity carbon markets.

Ci-Dev showcases a decade of impact through carbon finance 

The World Bank's Carbon Initiative for Development (Ci-Dev) has released a new brochure highlighting more than a decade of impact in results-based climate finance, demonstrating how emission reductions programs have expanded clean energy access while delivering development benefits in low-income countries.  

The publication showcases Ci-Dev's achievements, lessons learned, and the evolution of its Standardized Crediting Framework, offering practical insights to inform the next generation of high-integrity carbon market initiatives. 

How Central Asia is pioneering a scalable solution for energy reform  

A new World Bank feature story highlights how Uzbekistan and the Kyrgyz Republic are combining energy policy reform, technical assistance, and results-based carbon finance to modernize their energy sectors while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.  

The approach is supported by the World Bank’s Transformative Carbon Asset Facility (TCAF), which pioneered results-based carbon finance for policy reforms through Uzbekistan's iCRAFT program. It is now helping scale the model in the Kyrgyz Republic, demonstrating a replicable pathway for clean energy transition and sustainable economic growth.