Abstract

Strategic environmental assessment has been considered significant to the achievement of sustainable transformations and many countries have successfully integrated this instrument in their legal frameworks. Nevertheless, its implementation is influenced by several critical factors, and its strategic nature makes its application a challenge in Global South countries. This paper aims to discuss these factors through the case study of strategic environmental assessment integration and its implementation in Nicaragua. To do this, a literature review regarding success factors for implementation was conducted, and a characterization of the state of implementation in Nicaragua was performed. A series of interviews were conducted with environmental experts and stakeholders was executed a) to develop a social cognitive map, that was used to validate the literature-based strategic environmental assessment characterization. And b) to identify the specific factors contributing to the challenges for its implementation. As a result, it was determined that a total of 32 factors were affecting the successful integration of strategic environmental assessment in plans, programmes and policies. Through the social cognitive mapping, the authors identified the most influential factors and challenges to integrate this type of assessment in Nicaragua. This paper provides indicated potential approaches to overcome obstacles to improve strategic environmental assessment for decision-making and environmental planning.