National Environment (Strategic Environmental Assessment) Regulations, 2020 (No. 50).

The National Environment (Strategic Environmental Assessment/SEA) Regulations, 2020, issued under the National Environment Act, 2019, establish a legal framework requiring strategic environmental assessments (SEAs) for policies, plans and programmes in designated sectors to ensure early integration of environmental, health and social considerations into decision-making. The Regulations define key concepts and set objectives for SEA, and prescribe detailed procedures including screening, scoping, preparation of terms of reference, conduct of assessments, public consultation, and preparation of SEA reports with strategic environmental management and monitoring plans. They assign responsibilities to ministries and agencies, supported by multi-sectoral technical committees and the National Environment Management Authority, provide for transboundary notification and stakeholder participation, and require validation, ministerial approval, integration of findings, and possible rejection of proposals with unacceptable impacts, alongside obligations for monitoring, evaluation, public access to reports and the issuance of guidance by the Authority.