| Malawi is located in Southern
Africa and is bordered by Zambia (837Km) to the West, Tanzania (475 Km) to
the North and East, and Mozambique (1569 Km) to the South. It
covers an area of 118,480 Sq. Km. It's capital City is
Lilongwe.
 Geography
Malawi is a landlocked Country
with varying terrain across it. It has main highland areas of Nyika and
Viphya Plateaus to the North and other parts of the country, with the
highest elevation point on Mount Mulanje called Sapitwa (3002m). Most low
lying areas are found along the lake Shore, with lowest elevation point
located at the junction of the Shire river and the international boundary
with Mozambique (37m). Lake Malawi is the largest lake among
other lakes namely Chirwa, Malombe, and Kazuni.
Malawi
experiences a tropical Climate with dry seasons during the months of May
to November and rainy season during the other months particularly December
to March.
People
Malawi has a population of
about 10,000,416 (July 1999 est.), with 90% of the population living in
the rural areas, and population growth rate of 1.57% (1999
est.).
The ethnic group composition of Malawian Culture includes
Chewa, Nyanja, Yao, Tumbuka, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian and
European. The national language is Chichewa while English is the official
language. Other languages are Tumbuka used in the North and Yao in the
South.
Most people in Malawi are Christians while others still
observe traditional beliefs. The religions of Malawi include Protestants
(55%), Roman Catholic (20%), Muslim (20%), and the remaining for
traditional indigenous beliefs and other minor religions.
Economy
As a land locked
country, Malawi's economy is predominantly based on agriculture which
accounts for about 45 % of Gross National Product and more than 90% of the
country's export earnings. At least 80% of the agricultural produce comes
from smallholder farmers on customary land. The rest is produced by
commercial farmers on estates. the main crops grown in Malawi are Maize,
tobacco, tea, sugarcane, groundnuts, cotton, wheat, coffee, rice, and
pulses.
Malawi is an exporter of primary produce and net importer
of industrial goods. It's major exports include tobacco, sugar, and
groundnuts while it's major imports are intermediate (chemical and allied)
goods for industry.
The economy also depends on substantial inflows
of economic assistance from IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor
nations.
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