Malawi
Malawi
Malawi is a nation in southern Africa, east of Zambia, west of Tanzania and north of Mozambique.
Although landlocked, a significant part of Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi), some 580 km long and with a surface 460 metres above sea level, is within the country.
West and south of the lake, Malawi is a narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, and some mountains.
The Great Rift Valley runs through the country from north to south.
Malawi's major environmental issues include:
Location of Malawi. Source: Vardion/Wikipedia
- deforestation; land degradation;
- water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; and,
- siltation of spawning grounds which endangers fish populations.
Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule under President Hastings Kamuzu Banda, the country held multiparty elections in 1994, under a provisional constitution that came into full effect the following year. Current President Bingu wa Mutharika, elected in May 2004 after a failed attempt by the previous president to amend the constitution to permit another term, struggled to assert his authority against his predecessor and subsequently started his own party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in 2005. As president, Mutharika has overseen substantial economic improvement but because of political deadlock in the legislature, his minority party has been unable to pass significant legislation, and anti-corruption measures have stalled. Population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, corruption, and the spread of HIV/AIDS pose major problems for Malawi.
Geography
Location: Southern Africa, east of Zambia
Geographic Coordinates: 13 30 S, 34 00 E
Area: total: 118,480 km2 (94,080 km2 land and 24,400 km2 water)
arable land: 20.68%
permanent crops: 1.18%
other: 78.14% (2005)
Land Boundaries: 2,881 km. Border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km
Lake Malawi location. (Source: University of Pennsylvania African Studies Center)
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime Claims: none (landlocked)
Natural Hazards: NA
Terrain: Narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains. Its lowest point is the junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique (37 metres) and its highest point is Sapitwa (Mount Mlanje) (3,002 metres).
Climate: Sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November)
Government
Government Type: Multiparty Democracy
Capital: Lilongwe
Independence Date: 6 July 1964 (from UK)
Legal System: based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
International Environmental Agreements
Malawi is party to international agreements on: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, and Wetlands. It has signed, but not ratified the international agreement known as the Law of the Sea.
People and Society
Population: 13,931,831
Age Structure:
0-14 years: 46% (male 3,208,112/female 3,194,600)
15-64 years: 51.4% (male 3,592,073/female 3,563,840)
65 years and over: 2.7% (male 159,450/female 213,756) (2008 est.)
Population Growth Rate: 2.39% (2008 est.)
Birth Rate: 41.79 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death Rate: 17.89 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net Migration Rate: NA
Life Expectancy at Birth: 43.45 years (2008 est.)
Total Fertility Rate: 5.67 children born/woman (2008 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)
Literacy (2003 est.): 62.7% (male: 76.1% - female: 49.8%)
Water
Total Renewable Water Resources: 17.3 cu km (2001)
Freshwater Withdrawal: Total: 1.01 cu km/yr (15% domestic, 5% industrial, 80% agricultural). Per capita: 78 cu m/yr (2000)
Agriculture
Agricultural Products: tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses, groundnuts, Macadamia nuts; cattle, goats
Irrigated Land: 560 sq km (2003)
Resources
Natural Resources: limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite.
Energy
| Energy in Malawi | |||||
| Production | Consumption | Exports | Imports | Reserves | |
| Electricity | 1.397 billion kWh (2005) | 1.299 billion kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2005) | |
| Oil | 0 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 6,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004) | 6,263 bbl/day (2004) | 0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Natural Gas | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005 est.) | 0 cu m (2005) | 0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
| Source: CIA Factbook | |||||
Health
Prevalence Rate of HIV/AIDS in Adults: 14.2% (2003 est.)
Major Infectious Diseases: degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: malaria and plague
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2008)
Conflict
International Disputes: disputes with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and the meandering Songwe River remain dormant
Economy
Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's most densely populated and least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural with about 85% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for more than one-third of GDP and 90% of export revenues. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth as tobacco accounts for more than half of exports. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In December 2007, the US granted Malawi eligibility status to receive financial support within the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) initiative. Malawi will now begin a consultative process to develop a five-year program before funding can begin. In 2006, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. The government faces many challenges including developing a market economy, improving educational facilities, facing up to environmental problems, dealing with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS, and satisfying foreign donors that fiscal discipline is being tightened. In 2005, President Mutharika championed an anticorruption campaign. Since 2005 President Mutharika's government has exhibited improved financial discipline under the guidance of Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe and signed a three year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility worth $56 million with the IMF. Improved relations with the IMF lead other international donors to resume aid as well.
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity): $10.51 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (Official Exchange Rate): $3.538 billion (2007 est.)
GDP- real growth rate: 7.4% (2007 est.)
GDP- per capita (PPP): $800 (2007 est.)
GDP- composition by sector:
agriculture: 37.8%
industry: 18.1%
services: 44.1% (2007 est.)
Population Below Poverty Line: 53% (2004)
Industries: tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods
Exports: tobacco 53%, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products, apparel
Export Partners: South Africa 12.4%, Germany 12%, Egypt 9.4%, Zimbabwe 8.3%, US 7.5%, Russia 4.7%, Netherlands 4.5% (2006)
Imports: food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment
Import Partners: South Africa 34.9%, India 8.2%, Zambia 7.8%, Tanzania 5.9%, US 5.9%, China 4.3% (2006)
Economic Aid Recipient: $575.3 million (2005)
Currency: Malawian kwacha (MWK)
Ports and Terminals: Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba.
Further Reading
Citation
CIA (Content Source);Lakhdar Boukerrou (Topic Editor) "Malawi". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth May 31, 2009; Last revised Date December 30, 2011; Retrieved February 10, 2012 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Malawi>
Contact Us
Send to a Friend
Comments
There are no comments.