Malawi Environment Protection Authority (Mepa) has justified its handling of the environmental review process for a fertiliser manufacturing plant that businessperson Napoleon Dzombe plans to establish, saying omissions in submitted reports contributed to delays.
In a statement issued yesterday, the authority said it processed all submissions for the environmental and social impact assessment (Esia) within prescribed timelines.
Mepa said it received the project brief on March 24 2025 and prepared feedback within two days, which was collected by the developer on April 1 2025.
The authority said a preliminary Esia report was submitted on July 2 2025 and underwent editorial review, with comments communicated at the end of the same month for the developer to address before the report could proceed to technical review.
However, Mepa said the revised report was only submitted in March 2026, preventing the formal review process from progressing during that period.
Dzombe. | Nation
The authority said the report was reviewed by the technical committee of its board in May 2026 and further comments were communicated to the developer for incorporation into another revised report.
Reads the statement: “As of the date of this statement, the developer has not yet submitted the revised ESIA report addressing the comments raised during the technical review process.”
Mepa said its service charter provides for up to 60 working days to conduct a technical review of a complete submission and maintained that it reviewed the report within the stipulated timeframe.
When contacted yesterday, Dzombe asked to be called after an hour but subsequent calls went unanswered.
Last month, Dzombe told The Nation that Maulalo Fertiliser Company in Dowa was ready to start production but was awaiting environmental clearance from Mepa.
He said his company had engaged experts to address shortcomings identified in the initial assessment and had since submitted a revised report.
Dzombe said the company spent K20 million on the two environmental assessments, with each costing K10 million.
The fertiliser plant has capacity to produce between 30 and 40 metric tonnes of compound fertiliser, including NPK, per hour.
