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Abstract
This paper draws on a survey of the 32 environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports approved in Malawi after six years of mandatory EIA. With the aim of assessing the extent to which the requirements of the EIA process have been complied with and determining which EIA components influenced the apparent compliance, it is shown that the quality of the reports is poor, with most of the EIA requirements being unsatisfactorily adhered to. The components that contributed to the poor quality are analysis of alternatives, consultation and public participation, scoping and environmental audit. Substance problems that affect the adequacy of the EIAs, practice problems dealing with the administration of the EIA process, and contextual problems and deficiencies in the EIA law are specifically identified as the flaws responsible for the poor quality. It is thus recommended, for EIA quality to improve, that the flaws be addressed, and particularly the factors which are inducing them.
Acknowledgements
Gratitude is due to Mrs Meya Kalindekafe and Dr Eston Sambo of the University of Malawi for all their labours in supervising the research from which this paper is drawn, and Mr L. Kazembe and Dr J.J. Namangale also of the University of Malawi for their constructive advice on statistical options for analysing the data collected for the research. Dr Dimitri Devuyst of the Free University of Brussels, Professor Christopher Wood and James Walmsley of the EIA Centre of the University of Manchester are also to be thanked for supplying and recommending publications on EIA evaluation instruments. Special appreciation goes to the Eastern and Southern African Universities Research Programme (ESAURP) for supporting the research with a grant, and the Department of Environmental Affairs in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs in Malawi for their support and for permitting access to the EIA reports reviewed for the research.
