Digital retail and platform company Amazon has committed to buying 1.95-million tons of carbon removal credits generated over more than a decade by the nature-based carbon removal programme in South Africa's Eastern Cape that it is supporting.

This long-term commitment by the company enabled international development organisation the World Bank to launch the Spekboom Outcome Bond, which gives investors the confidence that there is a buyer for the project's future carbon credits.

These credits are available for qualified companies to buy through Amazon's carbon credit service, it says.

The credits will meet some of the world's highest standards for nature-based carbon removal and will carry both the ABACUS label and the Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) certification.

The restoration project that Amazon is supporting will see 180-million spekboom shrubs planted in South Africa’s Eastern Cape by 2028 to bring back the area’s thriving habitats.

This will also breathe new life into the Albany thicket, which is a distinctive ecosystem that has been in decline for decades.

Phase one of the project, which involves planting more than 30-million plants over 10 000 ha, has been in progress since April 2024. More than 50 000 ha will be added to the project as a result of Amazon’s support to restore degraded land.

Spekboom is a hardy succulent that can help turn degraded land back into thriving habitats and help tackle climate change. Spekboom can remove carbon from the atmosphere at rates comparable to young tropical forests.

The native succulent evolved specifically for the Eastern Cape's harsh climate and flourishes where many other plants struggle to grow. Known locally as elephant bush because elephants browse its leaves, spekboom grows from simple cuttings placed directly into the soil, which makes restoration practical at large scale.

Additionally, by restoring moisture and improving soil health, it creates the conditions for native grasses, shrubs and trees to return, followed by birds, insects and mammals.

As the plants mature, they gradually improve depleted soils and create conditions for ecosystems to recover naturally.

The project area is home to 165 recorded plant and animal species, including several considered vulnerable by conservationists.

Further, the restoration programme is expected to create an estimated 11 000 jobs by 2030 in South Africa, while training local businesses in ecological restoration and injecting more than $500-million into surrounding communities through wages, procurement, landowner payments and community investment.

The project forms part of Amazon's work toward its Climate Pledge goal to reach net-zero carbon across its operations by 2040.

“This is a story about nature, community, ingenuity and scale,” says Amazon chief sustainability officer Kara Hurst.

“Spekboom is a natural wonder, but it can’t heal the land without help from the people who call the Eastern Cape home. This project will restore the ecosystem and create jobs, and serve as a model for how nature-based solutions can enable both climate action and economic development.”

Meanwhile, the project holds a 'AA.pre' Standalone Rating from independent carbon credits verification agency BeZeroCarbon, which makes it one of the highest-rated afforestation, reforestation and revegetation (ARR) projects in the world.

The rating, on a scale from AAA (highest) to D (lowest), indicates that the project's carbon credits represent real, verified carbon dioxide removal.