Environmentalists accuse Nema of rolling out new system without consultation

Recently, the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) began implementing new systems aimed at digitising approvals, streamlining processes and enhancing compliance monitoring.

With the roll out of the integrated Environment Information Management System (ENViS) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System, Nema hoped to improve service delivery.

“The new systems ENViS and ERP will ensure efficient service delivery and support ease of doing business in the country by enabling the public, stakeholders and proponents to access all our service online,” reads part of Nema’s public notice dated July 24, 2025.

“The system will enable integration with other lead agencies for sectoral review coordination and provide real time information sharing for informed decision making.”

But environmental professionals, through the Environmental Institute of Kenya (EIK), claim that ENViS has stalled, severely hindering their work.

EIK Chair Alex Mugambi, acknowledges that the new system was necessary, and proper implementation has the potential to reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks, enhance transparency, and ensure timely project execution across all sectors.

However, Mugambi claims that ENViS was unnecessarily rushed, and that its implementation has ultimately undermined its effectiveness.

“We, as experts, were given only six hours’ notice before the new system was implemented, which left much to be desired on our part,” he says.

He claims that the new system was rolled out without involving environmental experts or relevant stakeholders, and without piloting or phased testing that could have helped identify operational gaps early.

Mugambi further says that no assessment of technical or user capacity was carried out, leaving many users struggling to navigate the platform.

“The approach taken by Nema has been illegal, procedurally flawed, and rushed. The resulting system is incomplete, untested, and incapable of fulfilling its mandate, threatening the integrity of professional practice, delaying national development, and creating unnecessary risks for proponents, investors and communities,” he explains.

EIK Vice Chair Edwin Otieno says that they are key stakeholders in the entire environmental licensing process and they have contractual obligations to deliver results for their clients.

Otieno terms the current situation as a crisis. “As an expert, I am unable to fulfil my contractual obligations. This means I cannot submit reports, secure licenses for my clients, or obtain conclusive feedback,” he says.

He says they have developers who are seeking funding awaiting these licenses, unfortunately they are stuck as a result of malfunctioning new system.

"We’re asking Nema, what was the urgency? There was no emergency—no one was in danger, and nothing was going wrong. It could have waited until all stakeholders were fully prepared," he says

Otieno questions why the process was carried out without public participation.

Environmental stakeholders claims that the new system has been disrupting their work for the past month. They say that hundreds of their contracts are now at risk, many have received warning letters, and they continue to face countless calls from concerned clients. They regret that the situation is damaging their credibility, making them appear unprofessional.

EIK CEO Titus Mutuku, says that the institution wrote letters to the Nema Director General, the Environment Cabinet Secretary and Principal Secretary, seeking clarification on the decisions that had been made regarding the new system.

“Unfortunately, our letters were never acknowledged, and to date, we have not received any response," he says.

Mutuku explains that the crisis is not only about environmental licensing, but affects every sector reliant on a functional regulatory system including agriculture, construction, energy, mining, tourism, manufacturing, research, finance, public health, and civil society.

The CEO is calling on all environmental professionals, project proponents, civil society actors, investors, and concerned citizens to stand in solidarity on the matter.

“Together, we must demand legality, transparency, accountability, and functional systems that protect our environment, safeguard professional integrity, and support national development,” he says.

Dr Caleb Basweti, a council member reveals that between 6,000 and 10,000 environmental experts are currently facing serious challenges in accessing the platform. This inability to generate timely information is hindering developers, and by extension, national development.

“Subsectors such as Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) licenses, environmental audits, noise permits, air quality licenses, accreditation and waste management permits, have essentially been put on hold, because without proper licensing, nothing can legally proceed,” he says.

Environment experts reveal, on rare occasions when the system works, it issues licenses, with incomplete-missing essential details such as the name of the proponent or developer, rendering the licenses non-compliant and questionable.

The experts now want Nema to revert to the old system while ENViS undergoes stabilisation.

They want consultation with licensed experts, project proponents, relevant stakeholders and the public at every stage of system refinement.

“This ensures that all user needs are addressed, fosters transparency, and aligns system functionality with legal and operational requirements,” they say.

Reached for comment, Judith Ochieno, responding on behalf of the Director General, says that the matter is currently before the court.

“Thank you for reaching out to us regarding your inquiry on above subject matter. As the matter is currently before the court, we are constrained from providing detailed comments so as not to prejudice the ongoing proceedings. We kindly request your understanding in this regard.”

“Once the case has been concluded, we will be in a better position to share more information. In the meantime, please feel free to reach out to us on any other issues within our mandate.”