Ministers and climate envoys at the COP31 climate talks in Antalya, Türkiye, have signed a joint declaration backing policy action to expand international carbon credit markets, in a move supporters say could quadruple the market's value to $21 billion by 2035.

The Antalya Statement was issued by the Coalition to Grow Carbon Markets, a government-led initiative, and was announced on Friday at the United Nations climate conference, which is running in Antalya from 9 to 20 November under Türkiye's presidency.

In the statement, the signatories said carbon credit markets "play an important role in directing capital to climate action and climate-positive growth", adding that "what matters now is implementation".

What the Antalya Statement promises

The statement was launched alongside a Policy Playbook setting out eight policy levers governments can use to increase corporate demand for high-integrity carbon credits. The playbook was released by the coalition at the Singapore Pavilion in Antalya.

Its aim is to give governments practical steps to build business demand for credits, encourage consistency between national approaches and give companies stronger reasons to invest in emissions reductions. Supporters say the measures could lift the value of the international carbon credit market to $21 billion by 2035, roughly four times its current size.

The coalition argues that private finance will be essential to paying for climate action, and that clear, consistent government policy is the missing piece. Friday was Finance and Trade Day at COP31, a day also recognised informally as Carbon Markets Day, according to the International Emissions Trading Association.

Who signed up

Fourteen countries signed the statement: Canada, France, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Kenya, Luxembourg, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Switzerland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom and Zambia.

Egypt and Ireland also announced they would join the coalition itself, becoming its 15th and 16th members. Egypt's announcement was made by Mohamed Farid Saleh, the country's minister of investment and foreign trade, while Ireland's was made by Darragh O'Brien, its minister for climate, energy and the environment.

The coalition was launched in June 2025 and has tripled its membership since then. Kenya, Singapore and the United Kingdom hold its three co-chair seats.

What happens next

Ministers and climate envoys are due to meet at a roundtable hosted by the coalition, with the support of the Türkiye COP31 Presidency, on Monday, 16 November, to deepen international cooperation on growing carbon credit markets.

The announcement came as formal COP31 negotiations continued, with governments still divided over climate finance obligations to developing countries and over how far and how fast to move away from fossil fuels. Türkiye, which holds the COP31 presidency, has been pressing countries to agree a goal of raising electricity's share of global energy use to 35 percent by 2035, from a little over 20 percent now.

For the coalition's members, the test will be whether the playbook's eight levers turn into national policy. The statement itself makes no binding commitments, but its backers present it as a shift from pledges towards the practical steps they say are needed to get private money flowing to climate projects.