Amazon carbon plan to create 11,000 South Africa jobs
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Amazon is investing in the removal of 1.95 million tons of carbon credits through a nature-based programme in South Africa’s Eastern Cape. The project is designed to restore the rare Albany Thicket ecosystem and is being supported by the World Bank’s Spekboom Outcome Bond.
The initiative will involve planting about 180 million spekboom shrubs by 2028. Amazon said the credits meet high international standards for nature-based carbon reduction and carry both ABACUS and Climate, Community and Biodiversity certifications.
The restoration effort began in April 2024 with the planting of around 30 million spekboom cuttings across 10,000 hectares. As the shrubs mature, they are expected to improve soil quality, retain moisture and help bring back native grasses, shrubs and trees.
Beyond the environmental impact, the project is expected to create around 11,000 jobs by 2030. It is also projected to inject more than $500 million into local communities through wages, procurement, landowner compensation and related community spending.
The programme is intended to restore damaged land in an area home to at least 165 identified plant and animal species, many of them fragile. Amazon chief sustainability officer Kara Hurst said the project combines nature, community, ingenuity and scale.
The investment also gives the project a clearer commercial path by backing future carbon credit demand. The World Bank said its outcome bond structure helps provide investors with confidence that the credits will find a market over time.
For South Africa, the project is more than a carbon story. It links climate action with employment, ecosystem restoration and local economic activity, showing how nature-based projects can be built around both environmental and development goals.
