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CountriesEastern AfricaMalawi
Country record

Malawi

Malawi reports more, and more often, than most of the continent. Seven of ten datasets here reach 2025; three stop earlier, and this page shows where.

API
Where Malawi ranks in 2024, of 53 · change since 2014
37thGDP$11.3bn2
34thMobile69 per 10014
44thInternet use19.0%4
Last updated 1 Sep 2026 · World Bank · IMF · UNHCR
TanzaniaZambiaMozambiqueLilongweBlantyre
Three land borders, no coast. Hover a neighbour to compare.
CapitalLilongweLanguagesEnglish, ChewaCurrencyMalawian kwacha · MWKArea118,484 km²

At a glance

22.2 million people, half of them under 18, in an economy of $18.2bn in 2026, growing 2.2% a year.

Malawi’s economy is measured monthly and its households are measured by census. That split runs through everything below: exchange rates and market prices arrive within days, while access to water and power is estimated years after the fact.

One of the four figures beside this is modelled rather than reported. The page marks which is which everywhere, so a number you cite is a number you can defend.

How current the record is
721
Current to 2025To 2024Stop by 2023
Population22.2mpeople · Reported · 2025
Median age18.4years · Modelled · 2026
GDP per capita$733current US$ · Reported · 2026
Internet use19.0%of population · Reported · 2024
Coverage — ten datasets, ten years

Seven of ten datasets carry a 2025 figure. Markets and climate stop at 2024; policies stops at 2022. Hatching is the absence of a figure, not a low one.

’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Indicators
FX rates
Markets
Trade
Government
Policies
Prices
Power
Climate
Humanitarian
ReportedModelledNo figure
/v1/data?country_code=mw
Goods trade balanceExports and imports, US$ billions
02.5520142024ImportsExports
Imports have run at roughly 2.7 times exports over the decade; the band is the deficit.World BankSources →
Where exports goTop destinations, 2025
Belgium$0.17bnChina$0.06bnIndia$0.05bn
Belgium takes more of Malawi’s goods than China and India combined.Trade partners recordSources →
Where imports come fromTop origins, 2025
China$0.80bnTanzania$0.53bnSouth Africa$0.53bn
China supplies 43% of the recorded imports.Trade partners recordSources →
GDP per capitaCurrent US$, not inflation-adjusted
$400$600$80020142024$522
Reported every year, including the 2024 dip in dollar terms.IMFSources →
InflationAnnual change in consumer prices
0%20%40%2014202432.2%
32.2% in 2024; the decade’s peak was 32.2% in 2024.IMFSources →
Remittances receivedUS$ billions, current prices
00.20.420142024$0.22bn
5.8 times the 2014 figure.World BankSources →
Goods exports by value2025 · top categories
Tobacco$0.61bnCoffee & tea$0.07bnVegetables$0.06bn
Tobacco alone is 83% of the recorded top categories; services are excluded here.Trade products recordSources →
Public debtGross central government debt, share of GDP
0%50%100%2014202487.6%
Up 54 points since 2014.IMFSources →
Kwacha per US dollarAnnual average exchange rate
050010001500201420241161.1
Stops at 2023; the line ends where the record ends.World Bank GEMSources →
Access to electricityShare of population with a connection
0501002014202415.6%
Up 3.7 points over the decade.World BankSources →
Under-five mortalityDeaths before age five, per 1,000 live births
4060802014202448.8
Falling steadily; modelled between census years.WHOSources →
Life expectancy at birthYears
5065802014202467.6 yrs
The 2021 dip is the pandemic, in vermilion.World BankSources →
Mobile subscriptionsPer 100 people · 100 marks parity
040802014202469
Still below one subscription per person.World BankSources →
Urban populationShare living in urban areas
12%16%20%2014202417.3%
Reported every year the record allows.World BankSources →
Who holds powerSix heads of state across seven terms since 1966, and every office beneath the current one as the record holds it
/v1/government/overview/mw
19662026
The executive as of
Oct 2026Where it stands

Peter Mutharika has held the office of President of Malawi since Oct 2025. The record holds ten current ministers and two junior ministers.

ElectedAppointed
Peter MutharikaPeter MutharikaPresident of Malawiin office since Oct 2025
Michael UsiMichael UsiVice President of Malawiin office since Jun 2024
No third seatno second office is recorded for this date
12 seats confirmed current · 20 recorded for 2025
10Ministersone per portfolio · as the record holds them for this date
DefenceHealth and PopulationTransport and Public WorksFinance, Economic Planning and DevelopmentAgricultureEnergyForeign AffairsWater and SanitationAttorney GeneralHealth
2Junior ministersministers of state, delegates and deputy ministers as the record holds them
EducationAgriculture
Outside the chain
—No subnational recordgovernors and provincial offices are not held

The record follows the national executive only. Governors, provincial administrators and other offices outside this chain are not held for Malawi.

Read this first Coverage varies by country and institution. Recorded offices are not a complete government roster. Marked current is a source claim. Missing dates are shown as uncertain. Office groups are classifications. Connections are recorded Wikidata relationships, not verified reporting lines.

Wikidata · offices, terms and their dates as the record classifies them · structure as of 18 Oct 2026 · Portraits: Wikimedia Commons, licences per imageAll offices and people →Data and sources →
Malawi
The whole table

Nine measures, with the year each one was taken

Reporting periods differ by source
IndicatorLatestYear2014ChangeCertaintySource
Access to electricity15.6%202411.9%+3.7 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Basic drinking water54.9%202452.2%+2.7 ptsReportedUNICEF
Basic sanitation3.1%20242.3%+0.7 ptsReportedUNICEF
Clean cooking fuel2.0%20242.0%+0.0 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Under-five mortality48.8202460.0−11.3 per 1,000ModelledWHO
Life expectancy at birth67.6 yrs202461.7 yrs+5.9 yrsReportedWorld Bank
Urban population17.6%202515.8%+1.8 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Internet use19.0%20245.8%+13.1 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Mobile subscriptions69 / 100202434 / 100+35ReportedWorld Bank

Every indicator we hold for Malawi

162 of 207 indicators carry a figure for Malawi. Each opens its own page with the full history, the source and the API request.

Economy
Trade
Development
Demographics
Health
Child Welfare
Education
Food Security
Agriculture
Governance
Humanitarian
Technology
Infrastructure
Energy
Climate

How Malawi ranks across Africa

Malawi's position on 161 indicators, among the countries with a recent figure for each. A higher place means a higher value, not a better result. Each links to the full ranking.

Economy

Trade

Development

Demographics

Health

Child Welfare

Education

Food Security

Agriculture

Governance

Humanitarian

Technology

Infrastructure

Energy

Climate

Compare Malawi with other African countries

The record for every other African country, by region, and side-by-side comparisons where we publish them.

Southern Africa

Sources, method & citation

Every figure on this page is traceable to a named publication and a retrieval date. Where we model a value we say so; where no one has reported, we leave it empty.

Upstream sources
World Bank2025
IMF2026
UNHCR2025
UNICEF2024
Sources & methods
Cite this page

Africa API (2026) — “Malawi: country record”. Retrieved 18 Oct 2026.

Free to use under CC BY 4.0. Each upstream source keeps its own licence.
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