Malawi (2001) | Korea, South (2008) | |
Administrative divisions | 24 districts; Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba; note - there may be three new districts named Balaka, Likoma, and Phalombe | 9 provinces (do, singular and plural) and 7 metropolitan cities (gwangyoksi, singular and plural)
provinces: Cheju-do, Cholla-bukto (North Cholla), Cholla-namdo (South Cholla), Ch'ungch'ong-bukto (North Ch'ungch'ong), Ch'ungch'ong-namdo (South Ch'ungch'ong), Kangwon-do, Kyonggi-do, Kyongsang-bukto (North Kyongsang), Kyongsang-namdo (South Kyongsang) metropolitan cities: Inch'on-gwangyoksi (Inch'on), Kwangju-gwangyoksi (Kwangju), Pusan-gwangyoksi (Pusan), Soul-t'ukpyolsi (Seoul), Taegu-gwangyoksi (Taegu), Taejon-gwangyoksi (Taejon), Ulsan-gwangyoksi (Ulsan) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.43% (male 2,348,940; female 2,337,290) 15-64 years: 52.78% (male 2,741,622; female 2,825,966) 65 years and over: 2.79% (male 119,283; female 175,149) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 4,714,103/female 4,262,873)
15-64 years: 72.1% (male 18,004,719/female 17,346,594) 65 years and over: 9.6% (male 1,921,803/female 2,794,698) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats | rice, root crops, barley, vegetables, fruit; cattle, pigs, chickens, milk, eggs; fish |
Airports | 44 (2000 est.) | 105 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 68
over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 14 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 19 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
total: 37
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 34 (2007) |
Area | total:
118,480 sq km land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
total: 98,480 sq km
land: 98,190 sq km water: 290 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | slightly larger than Indiana |
Background | Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule, the country held multiparty elections in 1994 under a provisional constitution, which took full effect the following year. National multiparty elections were held again in 1999. | An independent Korean state or collection of states has existed almost continuously for several millennia. Between its initial unification in the 7th century - from three predecessor Korean states - until the 20th century, Korea existed as a single independent country. In 1905, following the Russo-Japanese War, Korea became a protectorate of imperial Japan, and in 1910 it was annexed as a colony. Korea regained its independence following Japan's surrender to the United States in 1945. After World War II, a Republic of Korea (ROK) was set up in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula while a Communist-style government was installed in the north (the DPRK). During the Korean War (1950-53), US troops and UN forces fought alongside soldiers from the ROK to defend South Korea from DPRK attacks supported by China and the Soviet Union. An armistice was signed in 1953, splitting the peninsula along a demilitarized zone at about the 38th parallel. Thereafter, South Korea achieved rapid economic growth with per capita income rising to roughly 14 times the level of North Korea. In 1993, KIM Young-sam became South Korea's first civilian president following 32 years of military rule. South Korea today is a fully functioning modern democracy. In June 2000, a historic first North-South summit took place between the South's President KIM Dae-jung and the North's leader KIM Jong Il. In October 2007, a second North-South summit took place between the South's President ROH Moo-hyun and the North Korean leader. |
Birth rate | 37.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 9.93 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$490 million expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $269.7 billion
expenditures: $256.6 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | Lilongwe | name: Seoul
geographic coordinates: 37 33 N, 126 59 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) | temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,413 km |
Constitution | 18 May 1994 | 17 July 1948; note - amended or rewritten nine times; current constitution approved on 29 October 1987 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Malawi conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
conventional long form: Republic of Korea
conventional short form: South Korea local long form: Taehan-min'guk local short form: Han'guk abbreviation: ROK |
Currency | Malawian kwacha (MWK) | - |
Death rate | 22.81 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.99 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.9 billion (2000 est.) | $342.7 billion (30 September 2007) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Roger A. MEECE embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi telephone: [265] 773 166 FAX: [265] 770 471 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Alexander VERSHBOW
embassy: 32 Sejong-no, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-710 mailing address: US Embassy Seoul, APO AP 96205-5550 telephone: [82] (2) 397-4114 FAX: [82] (2) 738-8845 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Paul Tony Steven KANDIERO chancery: 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1007 |
chief of mission: Ambassador LEE Tae-sik
chancery: 2450 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-5600 FAX: [1] (202) 387-0205 consulate(s) general: Agana (Guam), Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle |
Disputes - international | dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) | Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic incidents with North Korea in the Yellow Sea over the Northern Limiting Line, which South Korea claims as a maritime boundary; South Korea and Japan claim Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima), occupied by South Korea since 1954 |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $455.3 million (2006) |
Economic aid - recipient | $427 million (1999) | $68.07 million (2004) |
Economy - overview | Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 90% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for 37% of GDP and 85% of export revenues. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In late 2000, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. The government faces strong challenges, e.g., to fully develop a market economy, to improve educational facilities, to face up to environmental problems, and to deal with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS. | Since the 1960s, South Korea has achieved an incredible record of growth and integration into the high-tech modern world economy. Four decades ago, GDP per capita was comparable with levels in the poorer countries of Africa and Asia. In 2004, South Korea joined the trillion dollar club of world economies. Today its GDP per capita is roughly the same as that of Greece and Spain. This success was achieved by a system of close government/business ties including directed credit, import restrictions, sponsorship of specific industries, and a strong labor effort. The government promoted the import of raw materials and technology at the expense of consumer goods and encouraged savings and investment over consumption. The Asian financial crisis of 1997-98 exposed longstanding weaknesses in South Korea's development model including high debt/equity ratios, massive foreign borrowing, and an undisciplined financial sector. GDP plunged by 6.9% in 1998, then recovered by 9.5% in 1999 and 8.5% in 2000. Growth fell back to 3.3% in 2001 because of the slowing global economy, falling exports, and the perception that much-needed corporate and financial reforms had stalled. Led by consumer spending and exports, growth in 2002 was an impressive 7%, despite anemic global growth. Between 2003 and 2007, growth moderated to about 4-5% annually. A downturn in consumer spending was offset by rapid export growth. Moderate inflation, low unemployment, and an export surplus in 2007 characterize this solid economy, but inflation and unemployment are increasing in the face of rising oil prices. |
Electricity - consumption | 950 million kWh (1999) | 368.6 billion kWh (2007) |
Electricity - exports | 3 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 1.025 billion kWh (1999) | 403.2 billion kWh (2007) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
2.44% hydro: 97.56% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m highest point: Sapitwa 3,002 m |
lowest point: Sea of Japan 0 m
highest point: Halla-san 1,950 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations | air pollution in large cities; acid rain; water pollution from the discharge of sewage and industrial effluents; drift net fishing |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuko, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European | homogeneous (except for about 20,000 Chinese) |
Exchange rates | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 80.0946 (December 2000), 59.5438 (2000), 44.0881 (1999), 31.0727 (1998), 16.4442 (1997), 15.3085 (1996) | South Korean won per US dollar - 929.2 (2007), 954.8 (2006), 1,024.1 (2005), 1,145.3 (2004), 1,191.6 (2003) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 36-member Cabinet named by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Bakili MULUZI reelected president; percent of vote - Bakili MULUZI (UDF) 51.4%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA (MCP-AFORD) 44.3% |
chief of state: President LEE Myung-bak (since 25 February 2008)
head of government: Prime Minister HAN Seung-soo (since 29 February 2008); Deputy Prime Ministers KIM Woo-sik (since 10 February 2006); KWON O-kyu (since 18 July 2006); KIM Shin-il (since 20 September 2006) cabinet: State Council appointed by the president on the prime minister's recommendation elections: president elected by popular vote for a single five-year term; election last held 19 December 2007 (next to be held on in December 2012); prime minister appointed by president with consent of National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by president on prime minister's recommendation election results: ROH Moo-hyun elected president on 19 December 2002; percent of vote - ROH Moo-hyun (MDP) 48.9%; LEE Hoi-chang (GNP) 46.6%; others 4.5%; LEE Myung-bak elected president on 19 December 2007; percent of vote - LEE Myung-bak (GNP) 48.7%; CHUNG Dong-young (UNDP) 26.1%); LEE Hoi-chang (independent) 15.1; others 10.1% |
Exports | $416 million (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2004) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products | semiconductors, wireless telecommunications equipment, motor vehicles, computers, steel, ships, petrochemicals |
Exports - partners | South Africa 16%, Germany 16%, US 15%, Netherlands 7%, Japan (1999) | China 22%, US 12.5%, Japan 7.1%, Hong Kong 5% (2007) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band | white with a red (top) and blue yin-yang symbol in the center; there is a different black trigram from the ancient I Ching (Book of Changes) in each corner of the white field |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.4 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
37% industry: 29% services: 34% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 3.2%
industry: 39.6% services: 57.2% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 4.9% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 30 S, 34 00 E | 37 00 N, 127 30 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | strategic location on Korea Strait |
Heliports | - | 536 (2007) |
Highways | total:
16,451 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 13,325 km (1997) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 2.9%
highest 10%: 25% (2005 est.) |
Imports | $435 million (f.o.b., 2000) | 2.41 million bbl/day (2006) |
Imports - commodities | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment | machinery, electronics and electronic equipment, oil, steel, transport equipment, organic chemicals, plastics |
Imports - partners | South Africa 43%, Zimbabwe 14%, UK 5%, Germany 5%, Zambia, Japan, US (1999) | China 17.7%, Japan 16%, US 10.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.9%, UAE 4.2% (2006) |
Independence | 6 July 1964 (from UK) | 15 August 1945 (from Japan) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 7.6% (2007 est.) |
Industries | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods | electronics, telecommunications, automobile production, chemicals, shipbuilding, steel |
Infant mortality rate | 121.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 6.05 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.43 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 29.5% (2000) | 2.5% (2007) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ADB, AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAIA, MIGA, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 280 sq km (1993 est.) | 8,780 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Appeal; High Court (chief justice appointed by the president, puisne judges appointed on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission); magistrate's courts | Supreme Court (justices appointed by president with consent of National Assembly); Constitutional Court (justices appointed by president based partly on nominations by National Assembly and Chief Justice of the court) |
Labor force | 3.5 million | 23.99 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 7.5%
industry: 17.3% services: 75.2% (2007) |
Land boundaries | total:
2,881 km border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
total: 238 km
border countries: North Korea 238 km |
Land use | arable land:
34% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 39% other: 7% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 16.58%
permanent crops: 2.01% other: 81.41% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally | Korean, English widely taught in junior high and high school |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | combines elements of continental European civil law systems, Anglo-American law, and Chinese classical thought; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - UDF 48%, MCP 34%, AFORD 15%, others 3%; seats by party - UDF 94, MCP 66, AFORD 29, others 4 |
unicameral National Assembly or Kukhoe (299 seats; 243 members elected in single-seat constituencies, 56 elected by proportional representation; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 April 2004 (next to be held on 9 April 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Uri 51%, GNP 41%, DLP 3%, DP 3%, others 2%; seats by party - Uri 141, GNP 127, DP 12, DLP 9, PFP 5, independents 5 note: percent of vote is for 2004 general election; seats by party reflect results of 2005 and 2006 by-elections; MDP became DP in May 2005; United Liberal Democrats (ULD) merged with GNP in February 2006; URI was disbanded in 2007; DP became part of United Democratic Pary (UDP) in 2008; PFP became part of Liberty Forward Party (LFP) in 2008 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
37.08 years male: 36.61 years female: 37.55 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 77.23 years
male: 73.81 years female: 80.93 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 72.8% female: 43.4% (1999 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9% male: 99.2% female: 96.6% (2002) |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Zambia | Eastern Asia, southern half of the Korean Peninsula bordering the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea |
Map references | Africa | Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the Korea Strait
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: not specified |
Merchant marine | - | total: 738 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,636,466 GRT/17,371,943 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 187, cargo 202, carrier 1, chemical tanker 119, container 81, liquefied gas 26, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 21, petroleum tanker 57, refrigerated cargo 19, roll on/roll off 8, specialized tanker 4, vehicle carrier 8 foreign-owned: 22 (China 2, France 8, Japan 1, Sweden 2, UK 1, US 7, Vietnam 1) registered in other countries: 386 (Belize 4, Cambodia 29, China 1, Cyprus 2, Greece 2, Honduras 6, Hong Kong 6, Indonesia 1, Liberia 4, Malta 3, Marshall Islands 3, Netherlands 1, Panama 316, Russia 1, Singapore 7, unknown 4) (2007) |
Military branches | Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (includes paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) | Army, Navy, Republic of Korea Air Force (Han-guk Kong Goon), Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (coast guard) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9.5 million (FY00/01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.76% (FY00/01) | 2.7% (2006) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,466,708 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,265,893 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 July (1964) | Liberation Day, 15 August (1945) |
Nationality | noun:
Malawian(s) adjective: Malawian |
noun: Korean(s)
adjective: Korean |
Natural hazards | NA | occasional typhoons bring high winds and floods; low-level seismic activity common in southwest |
Natural resources | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite | coal, tungsten, graphite, molybdenum, lead, hydropower potential |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 1,482 km; refined products 827 km (2007) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or AFORD [Chakufwa CHIHANA, president]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [Gwanda CHAKUAMBA, president, John TEMBO, vice president]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA, president]; National Independence Party; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Eston KAKHOME, president]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI] - governing party | Creative Korea Party or CKP [MOON Kook-hyun]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [CHUN Young-se]; Grand National Party or GNP [KANG Jae-sup]; Liberty Forward Party or LFP [SIM Dae-pyung]; United Democratic Party or UDP [SOHN Hak-kyu] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Federation of Korean Industries; Federation of Korean Trade Unions; Korean Confederation of Trade Unions; Korean National Council of Churches; Korean Traders Association; Korean Veterans' Association; National Council of Labor Unions; National Democratic Alliance of Korea; National Federation of Farmers' Associations; National Federation of Student Associations |
Population | 10,548,250
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
49,044,790 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (FY90/91 est.) | 15% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 0.394% (2007 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 4 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 61, FM 150, shortwave 2 (2005) |
Radios | 2.6 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
789 km narrow gauge: 789 km 1.067-m gauge |
total: 3,472 km
standard gauge: 3,472 km 1.435-m gauge (1,342 km electrified) (2006) |
Religions | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs | Christian 26.3% (Protestant 19.7%, Roman Catholic 6.6%), Buddhist 23.2%, other or unknown 1.3%, none 49.3% (1995 census) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.106 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.038 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.688 male(s)/female total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 19 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: fair system of open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
domestic: NA international: country code - 82; numerous submarine cables provide links throughout Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Europe, and US; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean) and 3 Inmarsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 37,000 (1997) | 26.866 million (2006) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,000 (1997) | 40.197 million (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1999) | 43 (plus 59 cable operators and 190 relay cable operators) (2005) |
Terrain | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains | mostly hills and mountains; wide coastal plains in west and south |
Total fertility rate | 5.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.28 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 3.2% (2007 est.) |
Waterways | 144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |
1,608 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007) |