IMF hails Guyana’s carbon-credit leadership: 32M credits issued, millions sold at US$22 a tonne
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recognised Guyana as a world leader in market-based forest conservation, pointing to the millions of carbon credits the country has issued and sold on international markets even as its oil sector booms.
“Guyana remains at the forefront in market-based forest conservation while diversifying its energy mix,” the Fund stated in its 2026 Article IV Consultation report on Guyana.
According to the report, about 32 million carbon credits have been issued under Guyana’s 2021–2024 certification with ART-TREES, the carbon-credit standard whose credits are eligible for use by airlines under the United Nations’ CORSIA offsetting scheme for international aviation. Guyana has already sold more than 12 million of those credits, at prices averaging US$22 per tonne.
The Guyanese authorities told the IMF they are continuing efforts to generate carbon-credit revenues and to use the proceeds to support Amerindian communities and climate-adaptation initiatives. The Fund also noted that Guyana is becoming a global leader in biodiversity, alongside its forest-conservation programme.
The carbon programme sits inside the government’s broader development strategy. The IMF welcomed the five-year development plan’s focus on economic diversification, resilience and sustainability, noting that it builds on the Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030.
On energy, the Fund expects the Gas-to-Energy project to considerably reduce fuel-based power generation by 2027, alongside expanded solar generation and the planned replacement of heavy fuel oil with natural gas for electricity. On adaptation, the IMF reported that government spending on sea defences amounts to 0.2 percent of GDP, and identified investments in sea defences, drainage and climate-resilient agriculture as important to withstanding climate shocks.
For a country better known right now for oil, the IMF’s verdict is a reminder that Guyana’s forests — and the carbon market built on them — remain one of its biggest earners and one of its strongest cards on the world stage.
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