New report highlights the transformative power of social impact measurement in community-based carbon projects in Tanzania

On 23rd June Carbon Tanzania launched its comprehensive Impact Report for 2024, demon­strating the profound positive impacts of its forest-protection projects on communities, biodiver­sity, and climate across Tanzania. A key focus of this year’s report is the critical role of robust social Mon­itoring, Reporting, and Verifica­tion (MRV) in understanding and enhancing the real-world benefits for local communities.

The 2024 Impact Report under­scores Carbon Tanzania’s commit­ment to “listening more closely to, and learning from, our commu­nity partners.” This is achieved through the innovative REFLECT for Nature (RfN) end-to-end social impact evaluation approach, which captures community perspectives on how carbon revenue influences their lives, livelihoods, and connec­tion to the forests they protect.

“Our core philosophy remains unchanged: people are at the very centre of this conservation sto­ry,” says Marc and Jo, Co-found­ers of Carbon Tanzania. “The 2024 Impact Report, particularly through our work with REFLECT for Nature, allows us to evidence the broader, transformative chang­es that define true impact, ensur­ing we are not causing unintended harm and are truly building equita­ble partnerships.”

Key findings from the 2024 Impact Report highlight the tangible social benefits:

Significant channeling of finance: Carbon Tanzania channeled over TZS 9.4 billion (US$3.7M) directly to some of Tanzania’s most remote communities in 2024. This vital finance supports forest protection, critical health services, improved education, and essential infrastruc­ture, with ripple effects extending to wildlife protection and positive climate impacts.

Community-led transforma­tion in Makame: The REFLECT for Nature study in the Makame Savannah project revealed a unique combination of strong social cohe­sion, accountable governance, and a shared long-term vision. The project is driving real communi­ty-led transformation, generating an estimated 1:10 social return on investment, with a social value of US$6,727,659 based on locally informed valuations in 2024.

Education as a priority: In Makame, 94% of people highly val­ue their children’s education, lead­ing communities to invest carbon revenue in building classrooms and dormitories and funding high­er education. Across projects, 72 university students’ fees were paid, and 9,840 children in Makame now benefit from better access to edu­cation through new infrastructure and sponsorships.

Enhanced land security and reduced financial stress: The report confirms how highly communities value the additional protections the project places upon their land. Vil­lagers can report suspicious activ­ity to village game scouts (VGS), who patrol protected areas, reduc­ing encroachment and poaching. This has led to better grazing for livestock, significantly reducing financial stresses for many in the Masai community.

Women: Women’s empower­ment initiatives are strongly sup­ported, with 64 women serving as VGS (approximately 20% of all scouts) and 183 women as mem­bers of Community Conservation Banks (COCOBA) in the Ntakata Mountains, comprising 53% of all COCOBA members. The Makame study notably found women reporting similar asset ownership levels as men, challenging stere­otypes and indicating progress in gender equality.

Transparency and Accountabili­ty: In Makame, 82% of community members surveyed feel the carbon project is being managed transpar­ently. Carbon Tanzania is actively using RfN insights from the Eya­si region (Yaeda-Eyasi Landscape project), where 64% of community members had not been involved in decision-making, to improve par­ticipation processes and engage­ment.

Employment and Economic Growth: Project implementation led to the employment of 448 peo­ple, including 325 Village Game Scouts (a 15% increase from 2023) and 96 Carbon Champions (a 533% increase). COCOBA groups, boosted by carbon finance, provide critical micro-loans, fostering eco­nomic growth and enabling signif­icant improvements in livelihoods, including a shift from thatched to brick houses.

Carbon Tanzania’s commitment to best-in-class reporting extends to transitioning its projects to Verra’s consolidated REDD meth­odology, VM0048, which is eligi­ble for the Core Carbon Principle (CCP)-label by the Integrity Coun­cil for the Voluntary Carbon Mar­ket (ICVCM). This adoption rein­forces credibility, transparency, and market confidence, ensuring continued community and biodi­versity benefits under a globally recognised standard.

Engagement with Stakehold­ers, Government, and Non-Gov­ernmental Organisations (NGOs)

Carbon Tanzania recognises the vital importance of engage­ment in achieving sustainable conservation goals. The company has forged robust relationships with various non-governmental organisations involved in con­servation both within Tanzania and globally. This cooperation includes the exchange of exper­tise, joint research and monitoring efforts, and combining strengths in project implementation.

By working through engagement with Stakeholders, Government, and Non-Government Organisa­tions (NGOs) such as Honeyguide, the Community Wildlife Manage­ment Area Consortia (CWMAC), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), The Nature Conservan­cy (TNC), Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs), Ujamaa Commu­nity Resource Team (UCRT), and district councils, Carbon Tanzania can reach more extensive areas, enhance the effectiveness of its programmes and ensure that con­servation endeavors yield signif­icant and lasting benefits for both communities and the environ­ment.

About Carbon Tanzania

Carbon Tanzania is a business that creates and sells nature-based carbon credits. We channel this cli­mate finance from global compa­nies to local communities, realising value from natural ecosystems. Our equitable business model delivers measurable development out­comes for Tanzanians.

Here is the link to the Impact report https://carbontanzania.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/impact-report-2024-web.pdf