* Emphasises that remains committed to ensuring that all development projects are processed in a timely, transparent and professional manner
* While safeguarding environmental sustainability and compliance with Malawi’s environmental laws and standards
By Duncan Mlanjira
Following scathing attacks that were generated from a media report alleging that Malawi Environmental Protection Authority (MEPA) is delaying in issuing a licence for business tycoon, Napoleon Dzombe’s fertilizer manufacturing plant, MEPA has come out in the open to issue a transparent clarification.
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A report by ZBSNews quotes Dzombe indicating it is not known when his fertilizer manufacturing plant in Dowa will be operational as he is yet to acquire a license from MEPA.
Dzombe is quoted as saying MEPA rejected the project’s initial report and that he resubmitted a fresh one, which has not yet been approved — adding that he has already procured raw materials from China which are expected to arrive in the country soon and he intends to source such materials locally once the company is cleared to start production.
But MEPA has issued a public statement, indicating that the Project Brief that it received from Dzombe’s Mulalo Granular Fertilizer Production Factory at Mchemela in Dowa on March 24, 2025, and after being reviewed the Authority sent its feedback two days later, March 26 2025, which Dzombe collected on April 1, 2025.
Dzombe is reported to have submitted a preliminary Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) report on July 2, 2025, and MEPA conducted an editorial review of the report and communicated to Dzombe at the end of July 3025 — advising the developer “to address the editorial comments before the report could proceed to the technical review stage”.
“However,despite being provided with the editorial review comments in July 2025, the revised report was not submitted until March 2026, approximately nine months later. During the period, the formal review process could not proceed because the revised report had not yet been submitted to the Authority.”
MEPA further indicates that upon receipt of the revised report in March 2026, it “initiated the formal review process [which] was reviewed by the technical committee of the Board in May 2026, and the review comments were subsequently communicated to the project developer for incorporation into a further revised report”.
MEPA emphasised that the developer, Dzombe “has not yet submitted the revised ESIA report addressing the comments raised during the technical review process” — thus consequently, MEPA “is unable to proceed with further consideration of the project until the revised report is submitted and assessed in accordance with the Environmental Management Act (2017) and applicable procedures”.
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MEPA also highlights that “the Service Charter for the ESIA review provides for the technical review period of up to 60 working days from the date of receipt for a complete submission for technical review”.
“In this case, the revised ESIA report was submitted in March 2026 and reviewed by the technical committee of the Board in May 2026, which was well within the prescribed service standard. The review was, therefore, conducted in accordance with the timelines stipulated in the applicable guidelines and service charter.
“The documented timeline clearly demonstrates that MEPA processed all submissions within the prescribed timelines and that significant delays arose from factors outside the Authority’s control, including the approximately nine-month period taken by the proponent to submit a revised report following the editorial review stage and the outstanding submissions of the revised report following technical review.”
MEPA thus maintains that “the ESIA review process for the proposed Mulalo Granular Fertilizer Production Factory has been undertaken in accordance with the Environmental Management Act and relevant ESIA guidelines” and it remains committed to “ensuring that all development projects are processed in a timely, transparent and professional manner while safeguarding environmental sustainability and compliance with Malawi’s environmental laws and standards”.
The statement concludes by assuring that MEPA “will, therefore, continue processing the application for the proposed Mulalo Granular Fertilizer Production Factory immediately upon receipt of the revised ESIA report from the developer”.
In December last year, Dzombe who is the founder for Mtilimanja Holdings Limited told Zodiak Online that the factory has the capacity to produce 40 metric tonnes of fertilizer per hour, thereby making enough commodity for the whole country in just 150 days.
