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

NOTE: The information regarding Malawi on this page is re-published from the 1991 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Malawi Economy 1991 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Malawi Economy 1991 should be addressed to the CIA.