Environmental assessment simplification in Botswana – is it fit for purpose?

Figures & data

Table 1. Environmental assessment legislative reforms in Botswana since 2011.

EA regime thematic area	2011 EA act and 2012 EA regulations	2020 EA (Amendment) act and 2021 EA (Amendment) regulations
Type of effects to be assessed during EA	EIAs to evaluate effects of initiatives with particular reference to (1) health, safety or quality of life of people; (2) archaeological, aesthetic, cultural or sanitary conditions of the environment; and (3) configuration, quality and diversity of natural resources (DEA 2011: section 9.2).	List of type of effects to be evaluated is retained for EIA and extended to SEA (see DEA 2020: Section 9.2).
List of activities requiring EA	Mandatory activity list established (for the first time) in the EA regulations of 2012 for EIA and SEA.	Mandatory activity list was revised: Some projects previously requiring EIA now require EMP; thresholds for triggering EA have been raised higher; radius around ecologically sensitive areas within which EA is mandatory has been reduced; and, new categories of developments now require EIA.
Type of environmental management tools	Required EIA and SEA for stipulated activities and EMPs for activities which do not qualify for a full EIA.	Added waste management plans and rehabilitation plans to the list of environmental management tools; however, the activities to which they apply are not specified.
Duration for: Placing proposal-related information on publically accessible media The review of a project brief The review of the TOR and scoping report Review of EA statements Review of waste management plans and rehabilitation plans	Set at 21 days (DEA 2011: Section 7.2) Not specified. Set at 28 days for EIA (DEA 2011: Section 8.4) Set to 60 days (DEA 2011: Section 10.1) Not applicable; these were not required then.	Reduced to 10 working days (DEA 2020: section 7.2). Set to 3 working days (DEA 2020: Section 6.3) Reduced to 10 working days for both, EIA and SEA (DEA 2020: section 8A.3). Set to 14 working days for EIA statements, 10 working days for EMPs and, a month for the review of SEA statements (DEA 2020: sections 10.3–10.5) Set to 5 working days (DEA 2020: section 6.7)
Review of EAs	Review of EAs to be undertaken by DEA (i.e. government reviewers) in collaboration with technical departments and local authorities.	Private EA quality reviewers also to assist DEA, technical departments and local authorities in the review of EAs.
Declaration of conflict of interest	Required for EAPs (DEA 2011: Section 64)	Also required for – newly permitted- private EA quality reviewers (DEA 2020: Section 66.3)
Penalty for an EAP or private reviewer who engages in practice with an undisclosed conflict of interest	Fine ≤ P2,000 or imprisonment ≤ 3 month or both; it was only applicable to EAPs.	Fine ≤ P2,000 or imprisonment ≤ 3 month or both; also extended to private reviewers.

Source: Summarised from DEA (2011; DEA (Department of Environmental Affairs) 2012, 2020, 2021).

DEA (Department of Environmental Affairs). 2011. Environmental assessment act, 2011. GaboroneBotswana: Minister of Environment, Wildlife and tourism.

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DEA (Department of Environmental Affairs). 2020. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (Amendment) ACT, 2020. GaboroneBotswana: Minister of Environment, Natural Resource Conservation and tourism.

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DEA (Department of Environmental Affairs). 2012. Environmental assessment regulations, 2012. GaboroneBotswana: Minister of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism.

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DEA (Department of Environmental Affairs). 2021. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (Amendment) regulations, 2021. GaboroneBotswana: Minister of Environment, Natural Resource Conservation and tourism.

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