MALAWI GEOGRAPHY Total area: 118,480 km2; land area: 94,080 km2 Comparative area: slightly larger than Pennsylvania Land boundaries: 2,881 km total; Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km Coastline: none--landlocked Maritime claims: none--landlocked Disputes: dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) Climate: tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) Terrain: narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains Natural resources: limestone; unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite Land use: arable land 25%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and pastures 20%; forest and woodland 50%; other 5%; includes irrigated NEGL% Environment: deforestation Note: landlocked PEOPLE Population: 9,438,462 (July 1991), growth rate 1.8% (1991); note--900,000 Mozambican refugees in Malawi (1990 est.) Birth rate: 52 births/1,000 population (1991) Death rate: 18 deaths/1,000 population (1991) Net migration rate: - 17 migrants/1,000 population (1991) Infant mortality rate: 136 deaths/1,000 live births (1991) Life expectancy at birth: 48 years male, 51 years female (1991) Total fertility rate: 7.6 children born/woman (1991) Nationality: noun--Malawian(s); adjective--Malawian Ethnic divisions: Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuko, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European Religion: Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%; traditional indigenous beliefs are also practiced Language: English and Chichewa (official); other languages important regionally Literacy: 22% (male 34%, female 12%) age 15 and over can read and write (1966) Labor force: 428,000 wage earners; agriculture 43%, manufacturing 16%, personal services 15%, commerce 9%, construction 7%, miscellaneous services 4%, other permanently employed 6% (1986) Organized labor: small minority of wage earners are unionized GOVERNMENT Long-form name: Republic of Malawi Type: one-party state Capital: Lilongwe Administrative divisions: 24 districts; Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ncheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhota Kota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba Independence: 6 July 1964 (from UK; formerly Nyasaland) Constitution: 6 July 1964; republished as amended January 1974 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 National holiday: Independence Day, 6 July (1964) Executive branch: president, Cabinet Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly Judicial branch: High Court, Supreme Court of Appeal Leaders: Chief of State and Head of Government--President Dr. Hastings Kamuzu BANDA (since 6 July 1966; sworn in as President for Life 6 July 1971) Political parties and leaders: only party--Malawi Congress Party (MCP), Maxwell PASHANE, administrative secretary; John TEMBO, treasurer general; top party position of secretary general vacant since 1983 Suffrage: universal at age 21 Elections: President--President BANDA sworn in as President for Life on 6 July 1971; National Assembly--last held 27-28 May 1987 (next to be held by May 1992); results--MCP is the only party; seats--(133 total, 112 elected) MCP 133 Communists: no Communist party Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, SADCC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Robert B. MBAYA; Chancery at 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 797-1007; US--Ambassador George A. TRAIL, III; Embassy in new capital city development area, address NA (mailing address is P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe); telephone 265 730-166 Flag: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band; similar to the flag of Afghanistan which is longer and has the national coat of arms superimposed on the hoist side of the black and red bands ECONOMY Overview: A landlocked country, Malawi ranks among the world's least developed with a per capita GDP of $175. The economy is predominately agricultural and operates under a relatively free enterprise environment, with about 90% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for 40% of GDP and 90% of export revenues. After two years of weak performance, economic growth improved significantly in 1988-90 as a result of good weather and a broadly based economic adjustment effort by the government. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. The closure of traditional trade routes through Mozambique continues to be a constraint on the economy. GDP: $1.6 billion, per capita $175; growth rate 4.8% (1990 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 11.7% (1990) Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues $398 million; expenditures $510 million, including capital expenditures of $154 million (FY91 est.) Exports: $390 million (f.o.b., 1990 est.); commodities--tobacco, tea, sugar, coffee, peanuts; partners--US, UK, Zambia, South Africa, FRG Imports: $560 million (c.i.f., 1990 est.); commodities--food, petroleum, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment; partners--South Africa, Japan, US, UK, Zimbabwe External debt: $1.4 billion (December 1990 est.) Industrial production: growth rate 4.9% (1989 est.); accounts for about 18% of GDP (1988) Electricity: 181,000 kW capacity; 535 million kWh produced, 60 kWh per capita (1989) Industries: agricultural processing (tea, tobacco, sugar), sawmilling, cement, consumer goods Agriculture: accounts for 40% of GDP; cash crops--tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, and corn; subsistence crops--potatoes, cassava, sorghum, pulses; livestock--cattle and goats Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $215 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-88), $2.0 billion Currency: Malawian kwacha (plural--kwacha); 1 Malawian kwacha (MK) = 100 tambala Exchange rates: Malawian kwacha (MK) per US$1--2.6300 (January 1991), 2.7289 (1990), 2.7595 (1989), 2.5613 (1988), 2.2087 (1987), 1.8611 (1986), 1.7191 (1985) Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March COMMUNICATIONS Railroads: 789 km 1.067-meter gauge Highways: 13,135 km total; 2,364 km paved; 251 km crushed stone, gravel, or stabilized soil; 10,520 km earth and improved earth Inland waterways: Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi); Shire River, 144 km Ports: Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, and Nkotakota--all on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) Civil air: 3 major transport aircraft Airports: 48 total, 46 usable; 6 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 9 with runways 1,220-2,439 m Telecommunications: fair system of open-wire lines, radio relay links, and radio communication stations; 36,800 telephones; stations--8 AM, 4 FM, no TV; satellite earth stations--1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT Note: a majority of exports would normally go through Mozambique on the Beira or Nacala railroads, but now most go through South Africa because of insurgent activity and damage to rail lines DEFENSE FORCES Branches: Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (includes paramilitary Mobile Force Unit), paramilitary Malawi Young Pioneers Manpower availability: males 15-49, 1,960,082; 995,864 fit for military service Defense expenditures: $22 million, 1.6% of GDP (1989 est.)