ACC: “Plastic credits are a market-based solution to address the amount of plastic waste found in the environment in West Africa.”

Exclusive interview with Nicole Dewing, Co-Founder and Director and Ahmed Mbaye, Communications Coordinator at African Carbon & Commodities (ACC) in Senegal. At the upcoming Africa’s Green Economy Summit in February in Cape Town, ACC is part of the pitch programme.

   

Interview Summary:
The interview highlights the work of African Carbon & Commodities (ACC), a Dakar-based social enterprise co-founded by Nicole Dewing, alongside insights from communications coordinator Ahmed Mbaye. ACC focuses on market-based environmental solutions, particularly plastic credits, carbon credits, and circular economy projects across West Africa.

The organization developed Africa’s first plastic credit project under the Verra Plastic Standard, partnering with recyclers to formalize waste collection, ensure labor and environmental compliance, and generate verified plastic credits that represent plastic removed from the environment and recycled. ACC is also implementing a seabed cleanup initiative involving local divers and communities, which has already recovered over 13,000 kilograms of marine waste while creating jobs and strengthening local recycling systems. In addition, ACC is developing an innovative biochar project that converts invasive Sargassum seaweed into soil-enhancing biochar, generating high-integrity carbon removal credits and supporting agriculture in Senegal.

The interview emphasizes Africa’s critical role in the future of plastic credits due to severe plastic leakage caused by inadequate waste management, while addressing challenges such as unsuitable international standards, limited Africa-based auditors, and misconceptions around greenwashing. ACC views plastic credits as a practical, transitional solution that delivers tangible environmental and social benefits while longer-term systemic solutions evolve.

Q. Thank you for joining us. Please can we start with some background on you and your organisation, Africa Carbon & Commodities (ACC).

Nicole: Good afternoon. My name is Nicole Dewing and I’m the managing director of Africa Carbon & Commodities, (ACC) based in Dakar. I came to Senegal over 20 years ago to work for the US Peace Corps, and I’ve stayed ever since. Some people joke I’m half American, I’m half Senegalese, but I consider myself a global citizen. I have been with ACC for over 10 years ago where I started the company with my husband and our Italian partners and I came on full-time as the managing director about four years ago when we started the plastic program.

Ahmed: Good afternoon. My name is Ahmed Mbaye. I’m 32 years old. I’m Senegalese. I studied economics and management, and I have always been passionate about community development and climate action. Before joining ACC, I served as a volunteer with Corps Africa, an international NGO focused on community development and youth empowerment. I was deployed in the southeast of Senegal, where I closely worked with the local community on developing community-based projects based on their assets and resources.

For more than two years now, I’m at ACC as the communications coordinator and the Seabed Cleanup Project Manager. I’m delighted to be here today and to discuss our work, opportunities ahead, and the future of Africa.

Q. Tell us more about ACC and the projects you are involved in.

Nicole: At ACC, we are very proud to be known for developing the first plastic credit project in Africa and in a least developed country under the Verra Plastic Standard. And we developed the first project called the Deekali project. Deekali, a Wolof word in the local language in Senegal means to be reborn, to be given a second life. In the Deekali Plastic Waste Recovery Project, we have partnered with three recycling companies.

We are also launching the West Africa Coast Plastic Free project, which is in currently based in Senegal with a hope to expand from Mauritania all the way to Ghana. It’s a very ambitious plastic credits project.

So what are plastic credits? Most people don’t really know what they are as they’re so new to the market. Plastic credits were created several years ago to address the issue of plastic pollution and the problem of inadequate solid waste management systems in developing countries as well as creating new markets for hard-to-recycle plastics. And plastic credits were developed to address this issue as a market-based approach, that is,  private sector to private sector. Under the Plastic Standard of Verra and also PCX, a plastic credit equals one ton of plastic that’s removed from the environment and one ton of plastic that is recycled equals one plastic credit. And our job at ACC is to work with our recycling company partners to help formalize their operations so that they’re able to obtain the plastic credits, which is based on an international standard. And the plastic credits oblige that the recycling companies must meet local laws, so they have to make sure they have their environmental permits, they comply with local labor laws, as well as meet the international Plastic Standard. Plastic credits are difficult to obtain, and they are independently validated and verified by an independent auditor that comes in after we at ACC write the project design, and we develop the project, they come in and they verify all the different sets of criteria we need to meet to be able to obtain plastic credits.

Ahmed: In addition to the plastic credit project, we are developing a seabed cleanup project. It is a very interesting project for marine recovery and plastic waste collection. In this project, we are working with local divers, local communities, clubs or groups, the municipality, and even the state. So this is a participatory project where ACC developed the project to ensure that the data are monitored well to make sure that the plastic waste is characterized and the plastic waste is recycled or discarded to the right landfill. In this project, we have mobilized over 200 divers, trained over 30 young people on characterizing plastic waste and recognizing the different types of plastic, as well as working with our partners to recycle these plastics collected from the seabed.

In this project, we were able to collect over 13,000 of kilograms of plastic waste, including discarded fishing nets, tires and shoes. With local associations, we were able to sensitize people, raising awareness on plastic waste. This pilot project demonstrates how the entire chain from the collection of plastic waste from the seabed to the recycling works and shows how local resources and human capital can be used effectively to reduce ocean pollution, to create jobs, and to strengthen the local recycling businesses and local communities.

Nicole: And the beauty of this project is we’re removing waste that’s in the ocean with the divers, and it arrives all the way to the recycling centers with whom we work. And they’re able to recycle this waste, and we are able to sell plastic certificates. So this is another way of doing a green finance project.

And the last project we want to talk about is our biochar project. Our biochar project is based on the invasive seaweed species called Sargassum that you find all along the coast of West Africa. And it’s a very invasive species and because of climate change we’re getting more and Sargassum that are washing up on the beaches. And when they do wash up on the beach, the seaweed starts to decompose and when it decomposes, it emits a lot of CO2. So this is a carbon credit project where we’re collecting the seaweed mass with the local community and women’s groups and we are converting it into biochar, which will then be reused or utilized as part of the agricultural system in Senegal because here in Senegal, unfortunately, we have a lot of degraded soils and there’s a real need for organic matter to nourish the soil. So the biochar, besides obtaining carbon credits, because it sequesters more carbon emissions than most trees that we can find in Senegal, it has a high potential for carbon credits, but it also has a high potential for a market value for the regeneration of soil in Senegal.

Q.How important is the continent for the future of plastic credits?

Nicole: Thank you. I really appreciate this question. As I said, the plastic credit market is very new. It’s similar to the carbon credit market that was over, I think over 20 years ago, the carbon credit market started to come to fruition. And the plastic credit market is very important to the Global South, especially here in Africa, because there’s a real issue of plastic pollution here.

There are inadequate solid waste management systems and plastic credits are a market-based solution to address the amount of plastic waste that is found in the environment in West Africa. It’s very important to the continent. For example, in Senegal, more plastic waste ends up in the ocean than from the entire United States of America. That’s a pretty staggering statistic.

Why is that? Well, in the US, we definitely produce more plastic waste than in Senegal.  But Senegal with over 700 kilometers of coastline and unfortunately inadequate solid waste management systems in place, a lot of that waste ends up in the ocean. I believe that Senegal is the 21st polluter of plastic waste into the ocean. So this is why the plastic credits market is vital for what’s happening in Africa because the collection systems and the recycling systems desperately need to be formalized. And we at ACC, we spend our time working with the collectors, working with the recyclers through the plastic credit projects to formalize these systems. Putting a tracking system in place to track the plastic waste that’s removed from the environment, to track the plastic waste that’s recycled, but at the same time, formalizing how the plastic waste is collected, that it’s safe, it’s hygienic, and it protects the workers’ rights, as well as formalizing the recycling end of it as well.

Just to tell a quick little story to show the importance of plastic credits in our project, Verra actually did a four-minute documentary on one of our collectors, Khassim Diagne, who’s from Theis, the third largest city in Senegal, who seven years ago was ready to take a boat illegally to Spain. He had given up thinking he could make a living and support his family in Senegal. So he collected as much money as he could to be able to take the boat to Spain. Fortunately, one of his friends has suggested, Khassim, why don’t you try and collect plastic waste? He was like, “That’s crazy. Why would I do something like that?” Fast forward seven years, he now employs 12 people. He has built a house, he’s bought a truck, he sends his five children to school and he helps his brother send his six children to school.

So, by adding value to plastic waste through plastic credits, it helps people like Khassim, and prevents illegal immigration, to actually make a decent living in Senegal, and create employment for others.

So for us, the plastic credit market in Africa is desperately needed as we advance forward. And this market is also very important for it to improve, and for international companies, like Coca-Cola should be able to help address and be part of the solution for their plastic footprint in Africa. So by purchasing plastic credits, which go directly to the recycling activities and the collection activities, Coca-Cola can be part of the solution in Africa to reduce its plastic footprint. I always say at conferences, perhaps this could be a bit controversial is that I hope in 10 years we don’t need plastic credits. I hope that we have found other solutions on how we can reduce our reliance on plastic and on how we can have the recycling and the collection systems in place to be able to deal with the plastic that’s in the environment and that in 10 years plastic credits won’t be needed.

Q. You are working in a system that is constantly evolving and changing. What are the main challenges in your view?

Nicole: Similar to carbon credits with plastic credits, the issue is the standards that are created and the methodologies that are created. They’re not created based on the African reality. They’re created by institutions based in Europe or based in the US, based elsewhere. And we really need standards that reflect the African reality and the very informal system at this time of the collection and recycling of the plastic waste.

So I think that’s one of the first challenges that came to my mind from this question is we need to have plastic standards that are more appropriate to the African reality. The second is auditing companies. As I mentioned before, like carbon credits, plastic credit projects need to be audited by an independent auditor that comes in and verifies and validates that everything is correct and there’s a tracking system in place and that we’re meeting the standards that are set forth. There are no auditing companies for plastic credits based in Africa. And I think that is something that we need to address. Fortunately, there are branch offices that are based in Africa, but we need more auditing companies that are based in Africa that understand the African reality of the solid waste management system and how plastic credits can make a difference.

And lastly, I want to address sort of the elephant that’s always in the room, and that is greenwashing. I’ve heard and read articles that plastic credits are just another form of greenwashing. I totally disagree. Why? Because plastic credits are tangible. They’re concrete. You can see the plastic, that one kilo of plastic that we’ve developed a tracking system for, and that has been independently verified and validated by an independent auditor, that one kilo of plastic is removed from the environment.

There’s a physical dimension to that. And that one kilo of plastic is then recycled. And so plastic credits are tangible and concrete because you can actually see the effect of the plastic being removed from the environment and the plastic being recycled.

When I hear about greenwashing and they say, plastic credits are not dealing with a problem of production, but we’re not saying that we’re dealing with a problem of production. We’re saying we’re dealing with the issue of the plastic footprint. We want to address the plastic that’s leaking into the environment because of inadequate solid waste management systems. As I already mentioned, more plastic waste goes into the ocean from Senegal than the entire United States. We need to address that footprint that’s in the environment, that’s causing environmental damage as well as hygienic issues. Plastic credits directly address the issue of plastic waste leaking into the environment and how a company can diminish its footprint by purchasing credits that have been validated and verified independently.

The greenwashing aspect of it is a problem in the media, because I don’t think the media really understands how plastic credit works. I always invite the media to come and see our projects and see from the beginning to the end product how the plastic waste has been transformed and becomes part of the circular economy.

Q. How is Africa positioned in your view to take advantage of this burgeoning opportunity?

Ahmed: Africa is very well positioned because the continent already has a strong foundation of community-led recycling, environmental action. So in many countries, including Senegal, hundreds of waste pickers, youths, women, and micro recyclers are already doing the work that plastic credit systems seek to support. So we think with proper financing and transparency, we can scale these efforts quickly. And Africa has a young, dynamic population. And we can feel that the government is increasingly committed to the circular economic strategies like in Senegal. And I think that this combination means that the continent is not just prepared, it goes beyond that, it has the potential to become a global leader in high-impact socially driven plastic credit projects.

Nicole: Exactly. And I’d like to share some of the initiatives that are happening. One I’d like to share with you is very interesting. In 2024, the World Bank issued a hundred-million-dollar bond for plastic collection and recycling projects in Ghana and in Indonesia. And as part of this bond, the World Bank utilizes plastic credits as an incentive. So how this works is investors get a guarantee on their principal of 1.75 % interest, so their capital is protected. But what’s so interesting about this bond is that the bonus return is based on how many plastic credits will be generated and at what price they will be sold. So if you’re an investor in this bond, you know you have your capital is protected, but the bonus is the plastic credits that will be issued from this project. It’s a seven-year bond and I’m very interested to follow this. It supports a project specifically in Ghana working in the communities for plastic collection and recycling as part of the circular economy. This is one way that the continent is doing very interesting initiatives around plastic credits, working directly with the World Bank.

Q. What is your vision for this sector?

Nicole: This is an incredibly interesting sector, the plastic credit market, but also the whole issue of plastic pollution. And there is the Plastics Treaty that’s being facilitated by the United Nations that brings all the countries in the world together, just like COP, but to deal with the issue of plastic pollution. And this Plastics Treaty has been looking at plastic credits like carbon credits are in Article 6 of the Paris Treaty, what they’re calling blended finance, as a potential, as a way for international corporations and countries to meet their responsibility for the plastic pollution in this world. Unfortunately, the Plastics Treaty, the last one was held in Geneva in August has been blocked for the moment thanks to the United States and oil-producing countries. But I still have hope for the future that the Plastics Treaty one day will be signed by all the participating countries and that plastic credits will be a part of the solution. As I said, a market-based approach that goes directly to the recycling and collection activities. So that is one of the visions for the future. We need to get the Plastics Treaty up and going and we need to put in financing mechanisms that actually work and that actually will have an impact.

The other is EPR schemes. EPR schemes that include plastic credits. Right now there is one version of an EPR law that’s in the Philippines that’s working quite well that has plastic credits as part of its EPR scheme in which large companies in the Philippines can offset can be reduce their plastic footprint in the Philippines by purchasing plastic credits. Why is that important is because when you purchase plastic credits as a type of results-based financing, the project’s already been validated, verified by an independent auditor, and it’s on a registry with the credits ready to be bought. And you know that what you’re purchasing has already had results. And so your funding goes directly back to those recycling and collection activities that already have a structure in place and that have an international standard that they’ve been able to meet. So that’s part of the EPR scheme in the Philippines that has been working. Obviously, like anything that’s new, it needs some fine-tuning. And we’re also working with the Senegalese government on a similar EPR scheme that we hope that they will be able to incorporate, which would allow, what we’re calling EPR certificates, that would allow companies in Senegal to diminish their plastic footprint in Senegal by purchasing these EPR certificates and be funding projects that are already in the pipeline that have shown results and have been able to meet international standards. So that is the short term vision for the sector for plastic credits .

Then there is the long-term vision. I hope that in the future we won’t need plastic credits. We will already have the infrastructure in place, that we’re able to recycle hard-to-recycle plastics, and we have found solutions to reduce plastic production and use, and we find other solutions for plastic. I think that’s the long-term vision, but the short-term vision is let’s get the plastic waste out of the environment, let’s repurpose it, let it be a part of a circular economy, and let’s find the best way to manage it.

Q. You are part of the pitch programme at the upcoming Africa’s Green Economy Summit in February in Cape Town. Can you give us a preview of your offering to prospective investors and what are your expectations of AGES?

Nicole: We’re very excited to be part of Africa’s Green Economy Summit in South Africa in February. One of our projects has been chosen as part of the pitch program as well we are presenting on plastic credits there. So we’re really excited and delighted to be asked to be part of it. And our project that I was talking about, the Dundal Waag Initiative in Senegal, which means in Wolof “reviving seaweed” addresses the issue of Sargassum seaweed, which is very invasive along the coast of Senegal and also along West Africa. And because of climate change, it’s becoming more invasive. This project, that we are just completing our feasibility study on, is actually a structured system to collect and convert up to 10,000 tons of seaweed per year into biochar – which is a stable carbon-rich material that nourishes the soil.

And through the pyrolysis process, we expect to produce around 1,200 tons of biochar annually, as well as sequestering approximately 1,500 tons of CO2 each year through this biochar project.

It’s really important to Senegal, this project, because as I mentioned, we have degraded soils here because of imported chemical fertilizers. And the soils need to be fed, they need to be nourished, while chemical fertilizers feed the plants, the biochar will feed the soil, which then in turn feeds the plant. So it’s an organic system of fertilization that is very important and much needed in Senegal.

In addition, these carbon credits are considered carbon removal credits from my understanding, the biochar credits, and therefore, they’re high-integrity carbon credits. So it’s an investor-ready project because not only are you able to invest in a product such as biochar that is much needed in Senegal and in West Africa to nourish the soil and fertilize the soil, but it also will provide for high-integrity carbon credits on the market that are in high demand. So we actually have a dual revenue system of the biochar sales into the local market and the carbon removal credits that are sold internationally. And it addresses a clear environmental need. We have a strong business case for that. And we’re also hoping to make it replicable as a new model across West Africa, and it provides jobs as it utilizes local resources. So we’re very excited to introduce this biochar Dundal Waag Initiative in South Africa in February at the conference.

Q. How important is such an event for the continent?

Ahmed: I think that events like the Africa’s Green Economy Summit are extremely important because they create bridges between African innovators and global investors. So they give visibility to local solutions that are often overlooked and they open opportunities for funding, knowledge sharing and partnerships. For us, participating in such events means showing that Africa is not waiting for solutions, but we are actively building these solutions. So this platform helps accelerate projects, strengthens collaboration, and highlights the leadership of African organizations in the circular economy.

Nicole: And the networking potential is really important at these conferences, meeting people who are like-minded or doing similar projects, learning from them, and also the capacity to meet investors that this platform offers. And the thing that I really appreciate about it is that when you do receive financing, you receive support throughout the process. And that is really important from our perspective, support from the beginning to the end of the financing of these projects. So it’s an important platform and we’re very excited to be a part of it and to be able to meet other people and to network to share our ideas and to improve.

Q. Anything you would like to add?

Ahmed: I would just like to add that Africa has enormous potential in the circular economy. So every day in the field, we see communities, see waste pickers, we see young people and local recyclers committed to protecting their environment despite limited resources. So, if we continue investing in people, strengthen local companies and promoting a transparent system, we can build something that is both environmentally impactful and socially transformative. So ACC is very proud to contribute to this movement and we are excited about what lies ahead for Africa.

Nicole: And we’re very proud and excited to work with the youth of Africa. As you know, 60% of Africans are under the age of 30. And so, it’s really important to include the youth as part of this. We’re really looking forward to working with AGES and to moving forward and continuing our projects in Senegal and West Africa. Thank you very much for this opportunity