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