Rutendo Nyeve, [email protected]
THE Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has been urged to stop measuring its success by the number of inspections conducted, environmental awareness campaigns undertaken or enforcement orders issued but instead demonstrate measurable improvements in the state of rivers, wetlands, forests, air quality and urban environments.
The challenge was made by Environment Management Agency Board Chairman Ambassador Zenzo Nsimbi while officially opening the EMA 2026 Strategic Planning Review and 2027 Planning Workshop in Victoria Falls on Thursday.
Ambassador Nsimbi said the workshop was not merely a ceremonial gathering or a routine planning exercise but a critical governance and accountability exercise.
He said the board would be interrogating three fundamental questions, chief among them whether EMA is making a tangible difference.
“It is not enough to count the number of inspections conducted, environmental awareness campaigns undertaken or enforcement orders issued. We must demonstrate measurable improvements in the state of our rivers, wetlands, forests, air quality and urban environments,” Amb Nsimbi said.
“Ultimately, our success must be reflected in positive environmental outcomes and improved quality of life for the communities we serve.”
He said the board should also assess whether EMA was doing what it said it would do, against its 2026 targets, key result areas and the performance contract entered into between the board and the director-general, as well as how future-ready the institution was in terms of systems, human capital, technology and financial resources.
Amb Nsimbi challenged EMA to move beyond planning to action, beyond activities to measurable results and beyond institutional commitments to lasting environmental impact.
He outlined five key strategic priorities for consideration that include results-based performance management, strengthening monitoring, evaluation and learning, financial sustainability and resource mobilisation, integrity and organisational culture and strengthening institutional risk management.
“Every directorate and provincial office must emerge from this workshop with clear, measurable and achievable 2027 targets, appropriately aligned to the agency’s strategic plan and available budgetary resources. Our focus must shift increasingly towards results, impact and value for money,” he said.
On monitoring and evaluation, Amb Nsimbi said data quality was a shared institutional responsibility, with every directorate and provincial office required to take ownership of the accuracy, integrity and timely submission of performance information.
He also called for an organisational culture firmly anchored in integrity, inclusivity, transparency, accountability, responsiveness, Ubuntu and professionalism.
“These values must be demonstrated through our daily conduct, institutional decisions and interactions with stakeholders. They must be lived and practised, not merely displayed as words on office walls,” he said.
He further urged the Agency to diversify its funding base, strengthen revenue collection and position itself strategically to access climate finance, particularly through its status as an accredited National Implementing Entity.
He also called for strengthened capacity to identify and mitigate strategic, opera tional, financial and reputational risks before they undermine institutional performance and public confidence.
“As we conclude our deliberations here in Victoria Falls, let us ensure that we leave with practical resolutions, clearly defined responsibilities, realistic timelines and firm commitments to systematic monitoring and implementation,” Amb Nsimbi said.
Speaking at the same event, EMA Director-General Mr Aaron Chigona said as it turns its attention to 2027, the focus must be on translating strategic intentions into concrete results.
“Our priorities must be realistic, adequately resourced, measurable and responsive to the emerging environmental challenges facing our country,” he said.
Mr Chigona urged participants to engage openly and constructively and to ensure that the success of the workshop is measured not by the quality of presentations or the number of resolutions adopted, but by the ability to translate resolutions into action and deliver on the commitments made.
The workshop is being attended by Government officials, board members, EMA management and development partners and stakeholders.
