Polity · 1967 CE – present
Malawi
Republic of Malawi · Charu cha Malaŵi · Malaŵi
Also recorded as Republic of Malawi
- Peak recorded area
- 92,974 km²
- 1967 CE
- Rulers on record
- 13
- from 1966 CE
- Data series
- 379
- 1967 CE–2025 CE
Overview
Malawi, officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast, and Mozambique to the east, south, and southwest. Malawi spans over 118,484 km2 (45,747 sq mi) and has an estimated population of 22,224,282. Lilongwe is its capital and largest city, while the next three largest cities are Blantyre, Mzuzu, and Zomba, the former capital.
Lead section from Wikipedia, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article.
Territory
3 dated territorial extents on record from Cliopatria. Areas are measured off the recorded polygons; the line steps because each extent holds until the next one is recorded — nothing is interpolated. CShapes 2.0 holds 3 further extents, measured on a different basis and deliberately not merged into this series.
The record
The best-attested series in each category; where several projects publish the same quantity, the one with the most observations is shown. Each row is the most recent value the record holds at or before the last complete year, shown with the year that value belongs to. Some statistical series also publish forward projections — the year column is the honest guide. Nothing on this page is interpolated or estimated by us.
People
6 of 58 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Population216 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 22.2Mpersons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy165 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 67.74years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Net Migration141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | -5,628persons2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Population Growth141 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 2.54% annual2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Female140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 70.96years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
| Life Expectancy Male140 obs · 1950 CE–2025 CE | 64.45years2025 CE · UN World Population Prospects 2024 |
Economy
6 of 155 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita PPP220 obs · 1800 CE–2019 CE | 915.7int'l $ (inflation adj.)2019 CE · Gapminder |
| GDP per capita111 obs · 1904 CE–2022 CE | 1,190.052011 int'l $2022 CE · Maddison Project Database 2023 |
| GDP Current Usd91 obs · 1980 CE–2025 CE | 14.9Bcurrent US$2025 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Fao Asses Stocks64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 7,689head2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Cattle Stocks64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 2.3Mhead2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Cereals Area Harvested64 obs · 1961 CE–2024 CE | 1.7Mha2024 CE · FAOSTAT |
Military
6 of 18 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Military Expenditure % GDP61 obs · 1965 CE–2024 CE | 1.02% of GDP2024 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Military Expenditure Usd60 obs · 1965 CE–2024 CE | 117.6Mcurrent US$2024 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| CINC Score53 obs · 1964 CE–2016 CE | 0.0006CINC (share of world capability)2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Energy Consumption53 obs · 1964 CE–2016 CE | 2.4Mcoal-ton equivalents2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Iron Steel Production53 obs · 1964 CE–2016 CE | 0tons2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
| Military Personnel53 obs · 1964 CE–2016 CE | 5,000persons2016 CE · Correlates of War NMC v6.0 |
Territory & resources
6 of 61 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Arable Land %126 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 42.43% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Forest Area %68 obs · 1990 CE–2023 CE | 22.44% of land area2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Agricultural Land %63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 64.17%2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Arable Land per capita Ha63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 0.1895hectares per person2023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
| Fao Agricultural Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 6Mha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
| Fao Arable Land63 obs · 1961 CE–2023 CE | 4Mha2023 CE · FAOSTAT |
Governance
6 of 29 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Electoral Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.58index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Liberal Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.482index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Participatory Democracy Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.374index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Regime Type125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 2RoW index (0-3)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Rule Of Law Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.583index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Checks And Balances49 obs · 1975 CE–2023 CE | 3count2023 CE · Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023 |
Development
6 of 58 series| Series | Value · year · source |
|---|---|
| Freedom Of Expression Index125 obs · 1900 CE–2024 CE | 0.786index (0-1)2024 CE · V-Dem v15 |
| Tech Railway Line Km90 obs · 1905 CE–1995 CE | 797km1995 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Mail Items69 obs · 1900 CE–1986 CE | 257items1986 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Commercial Vehicles64 obs · 1926 CE–1992 CE | 19count1992 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Tech Passenger Cars64 obs · 1926 CE–1992 CE | 15Kcount1992 CE · CHAT (Comin-Hobijn) |
| Mobile Subscriptions Per 10052 obs · 1960 CE–2023 CE | 61.09per_1002023 CE · World Bank World Development Indicators |
Rulers
13 on record with dated reigns. Reign years follow the house convention: BCE years are negative.
- Hastings BandaPresident of Malawi1966 CE – 1994 CE
- Bakili MuluziPresident of Malawi1994 CE – 2004 CE
- Justin MaleweziVice President of Malawi1994 CE – 2004 CE
- Bingu wa MutharikaPresident of Malawi2004 CE – 2012 CE
- Cassim ChilumphaVice President of Malawi2004 CE – 2009 CE
- Joyce BandaVice President of Malawi2009 CE – 2012 CE
- Joyce BandaPresident of Malawi2012 CE – 2014 CE
- Khumbo KachaliVice President of Malawi2012 CE – 2014 CE
- Peter MutharikaPresident of Malawi2014 CE – 2020 CE
- Saulos ChilimaVice President of Malawi2014 CE – 2019 CE
- Everton ChimulirenjiVice President of Malawi2019 CE – 2020 CE
- Lazarus ChakweraHead of State2020 CE –
- Michael UsiVice President of Malawi2024 CE –
Country profile
From the CIA World Factbook 2024. Long entries are trimmed at a sentence boundary.
- Location
- Southern Africa, east of Zambia, west and north of Mozambique
- Government type
- presidential republic
- Executive branch
- chief of state: President Peter MUTHARIKA (since 4 October 2025); head of government: President Peter MUTHARIKA (since 4 October 2025); cabinet: Cabinet named by the president; election/appointment process: president directly elected by simple-majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term)
- 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 0.3% (2018 est.)
- Natural resources
- limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite
- Economy
- low-income East African economy; primarily agrarian; investing in human capital; urban poverty increasing due to COVID-19; high public debt; endemic corruption and poor property rights; poor hydroelectric grid; localized pharmaceutical industry
Language & currency
- Currency
- Malawian kwachas (MWK)
Memberships
- United NationsUNInternational organisation · member1964 CE –
- SADCSADCEconomic bloc · founding member1992 CE –
- African UnionAUInternational organisation · founding member2002 CE –
Sources
Every figure above comes from one of these. Nothing on this page is estimated, interpolated or model-generated.
CHAT (Comin-Hobijn)2009 (FinalCHAT_72909)
Comin, D. & Hobijn, B. (2009). The CHAT Dataset. NBER Working Paper 15319.
NBER research data, freely downloadable
CIA World Factbook 2024
Seshat Global History Databank. Cliopatria: a historical basemap of polity borders (cliopatria.geojson).
Correlates of War NMC v6.0v6.0
Singer, J.D. (1987). National Material Capabilities Data (NMC), v6.0. Correlates of War Project.
Free academic use, citation
Database of Political Institutions (DPI) 2023DPI 2023
Cruz, C., Keefer, P. & Scartascini, C. (2023). Database of Political Institutions 2023. Inter-American Development Bank.
IDB open data, attribution
FAOSTAT2024 release
FAO (2024). FAOSTAT Statistical Database. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome.
CC BY 4.0
Gapminderv14 / systema globalis
Gapminder Foundation. Gapminder systema globalis dataset.
CC BY 4.0
Maddison Project Database 20232023
Bolt, J. & van Zanden, J.L. (2024). Maddison Project Database 2023. University of Groningen GGDC.
CC BY 4.0
UN World Population Prospects 20242024
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2024). World Population Prospects 2024.
CC BY 3.0 IGO
V-Dem v15v15
Coppedge, M. et al. (2025). V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v15. Varieties of Democracy Project.
Free academic/non-commercial use, attribution
Wikipedia contributors. Article lead sections, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
World Bank World Development Indicators2024 release
World Bank (2024). World Development Indicators. Washington, DC.
CC BY 4.0