Malawi Fact Sheet

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malmapMalawi is a small and impoverished yet incredibly beautiful country. It is one of Africa’s best kept secrets; a country blessed with an enormous 365 mile long freshwater lake, fringed with beautiful beaches and simple fishing villages. Southern Malawi has traditionally been the most visited area of Malawi but in recent years the stunning natural beauty of the landscape, beaches and people of the Northern Region have begun to win visitors over. It is 855km long, with varying widths from 10km to 250km, covering a total area of 118484sq km, of which over 24000sq km is fresh water – Lake Malawi, minor lakes and rivers. Lake Malawi water surface area is 28760 sq km.

Location: Southern Africa 13 30 S, 34 00 E          Time: GMT -2

flag1Climate: Tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November)

Official Languages: English Chichewa

Currency: 1 Malawian kwacha (MK) =100 tambala

Population:

  • 9,609,081 (July 1997 est.)
  • 13,013,926 (July 2006 est.)
  • 16,777,547 (July 2013 est.)
  • 21,196,629 (July 2020 est.)

Population growth rate:

  • 1.57% (1997 est.)
  • 2.38% (2006 est.)
  • 2.74% (2013 est.)
  • 3.3% (2020 est.)

Birth rate:

  • 40.79 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)
  • 43.13 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
  • 39.98 births/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Death rate:

  • 25.08 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)
  • 19.33 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
  • 40.1 births/1,000 population (2020 est.)

Age Structure:

2006 est

  • 1.03 male(s) / female under 15 years:
  • 1.02 male(s) / female 15-64 years:
  • 0.98 male(s) / female 65 years and over:
  • 0.68 male(s) / female

Total population:

  • 0.99 male(s)  / female

2013 est

  • 0-14 years: 44.7% (male 3,754,206 / female 3,738,521)
  • 15-24 years: 20.6% (male 1,723,098  /female 1,725,326)
  • 25-54 years: 28.5% (male 2,422,642 / female 2,364,137)
  • 55-64 years: 3.6% (male 269,058 / female 327,158)
  • 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 192,928 / female 260,473)
2020 est
  • 0-14 years: 45.87% (male 4,843,107/female 4,878,983)
  • 15-24 years: 20.51% (male 2,151,417/female 2,195,939)
  • 25-54 years: 27.96% (male 2,944,936/female 2,982,195)
  • 55-64 years: 2.98% (male 303,803/female 328,092)
  • 65 years and over: 2.68% (male 249,219/female 318,938) (2020 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate:

2006 est

  • 94.37 deaths/1,000 live births male:
  • 98.66 deaths/1,000 live births female:
  • 89.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
2020 est
  • total: 39.5 deaths/1,000 live births
  • male: 45.8 deaths/1,000 live births
  • female: 33.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2020 est.)

Total Fertility Rate: 5.92 children born/woman (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

1997 est.

  • 35.26 years male:
  • 34.86 years female:

2020 est.

  • 61.2 years male:
  • 65.3 years female

Literacy: Aged 15 and over can read and write

  • Total population: 56.4%, male:  71.9%, female: 41.8% (1995 est.)
  • Total population: 62.7%, male: 76.1%, female: 49.8% (2003 est.)
  • Total population: 62.1%.male: 69.8%. female: 55.2% (2015 est.)

HIV/AIDS

  • Adult prevalence rate 9.5% (2019 est.)
  • People living with HIV/AIDS: 900,000 (2003 est.)
  • People living with HIV/AIDS 1.100,000 (2019 est.)

Major Infectious Diseases: Degree of risk: very high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vector borne diseases: malaria and plague are high risks in some locations water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2005)

Nationality: noun: Malawian(s), adjective: Malawian

Religions: Christian 79.9%, Muslim 12.8%, other 3%, none 4.3% (1998 census)

Ethnic Groups:

Chewa 34.3%, Lomwe 18.8%, Yao 13.2%, Ngoni 10.4%, Tumbuka 9.2%, Sena 3.8%, Mang’anja 3.2%, Tonga 1.8%, Nyanja 1.8%, Nkhonde 1%, other 2.2%, foreign .3% (2018 est.)

Languages: Chichewa 57.2% (official), Chinyanja 12.8%, Chiyao 10.1%, Chitumbuka 9.5%, Chisena 2.7%, Chilomwe 2.4%, Chitonga 1.7%, other 3.6% (1998 census)

Protestant 33.5% (includes Church of Central Africa Presbyterian 14.2%, Seventh Day Adventist/Baptist 9.4%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Anglican 2.3%), Roman Catholic 17.2%, other Christian 26.6%, Muslim 13.8%, traditionalist 1.1%, other 5.6%, none 2.1% (2018 est.)

Country Name:

  • Conventional long form : Republic of Malawi,
  • Conventional short form: Malawi
  • Former: Nyasaland

Government Type: Multiparty democracy

National Capital: Lilongwe

Independence: 6 July 1964 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day 6 July (1964); Republic Day 6 July (1966)

Legal System: Based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Universal Suffrage: 18 years

Judicial branch: High Court; Supreme Court of Appeal

Flag Description: Three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band

MalawiDistricsAdministrative Divisions:

 Central Region

1. Dedza 2. Dowa 3.Kasungu 4. Lilongwe 5. Mchinji 6. Nkhotakota 7. Ntcheu 8. Ntchisi 9. Salima

Northern Region

10. Chitipa 11. Karonga 12. Likoma 13. Mzimba 14. NkhataBay 15. Rumphi

Southern Region

16. Balaka 17. Blantyre 18. Chikwawa 19. Chiradzulu 20. Machinga 21. Mangochi 22. Mulanje 23. Mwanza 24. Nsanje 25. Thyolo 26. Phalombe 27. Zomba 28. Neno[2]

Neno is not listed on this map. The district was created from a division of the Mwanza district

 

 

Inflation rate

  • 83.3% (1995 est.)
  • 21.4% (2012 est.)
  • 21.7% (2016 est.)
  • 12.2% (2017 est.)

Labour force: Total: 3.5 million (1990 est.) 4.5 million (2001 est.)  by occupation: agriculture 86%, wage earners 14% (1990 est.)

Natural Resourses: limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite.

Agriculture: 90% industry and services: 10% (2003 est.)

Population below poverty line 55% (2004 est.)

Industries: tea, tobacco, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods

Agriculture – products: tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses, groundnuts, Macadamia nuts; cattle, goats

Exports Commodities: tobacco, tea, sugar, coffee, peanuts, wood products ,apparel  partners :

Imports Commodities: Food, petroleum products, semi manufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment

Railways: Total: 797 km

Highways:

(1999)

  • Total: 28,400 km
  • paved: 5,254 km
  • unpaved: 23,146 km

2003

  • Total: 15,451 km
  • paved: 6,956 km
  • unpaved: 8,495 km
Waterways: 700 km (on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and ShireRiver) (2006)

Ports and harbors: Chipoka, MonkeyBay, NkhataBay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba