The Division is responsible for promotion and coordination of environmental education and public awareness to enhance public participation. It also promotes information management to enhance public engagement and learning through exchange of information, experiences and best practices.

The division is responsible for development, review, and harmonisation of policies, guidelines, plans, strategies, and programmes/projects for management of environment, natural resources, and climate change.  
It is also responsible for research, monitoring environmental conditions and trends, and evaluate the effectiveness of policies, strategies, and programmes to inform decision-making, policy adjustments including allocation of finances, and accountability.

This Division is responsible for provision of advisory, technical and policy direction in the identification, protection and conservation of Malawi’s biodiversity and associated indigenous knowledge through the design and implementation of national strategies, action plans, and programmes for conservation and sustainable utilisation of biodiversity and restoration of ecosystems including identification of important habitats and species and   provision of technical expertise and advice on access and benefit sharing. The Division also represents Malawi’s interests at the national and international forums on biodiversity matters including reporting in relation to the multilateral and bilateral agreements and any related cooperation arrangements. The Division is also responsible for coordinating sector MDAs on biodiversity policy related matters. 

This division is responsible for provision of policy and strategic direction and to lead, support, inform, monitor and report efficient and effective local, national, regional and international, responses to climate change, including carbon trading. Climate change as much as it is an environmental issue is mostly a development issue. As such, the EAD through the Division plays a coordination role with all key players at the local, national, regional and international levels with consideration of gender perspectives and vulnerable groups. 
It is also responsible for identifying and fostering partnerships to mobilize resources (financial and technical) for implementation and monitoring of programmes on climate change including mitigation, adaptation, capacity development, technology development and transfer, research and systematic observations. 

The registry is responsible for provision of secretarial services to the tribunal. The Environmental Tribunal is an administrative tribunal separate from the judicial system.