Malawi (2001) | Norfolk Island (2006) | |
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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 | none (territory of Australia) |
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: 20.2%
15-64 years: 63.9% 65 years and over: 15.9% (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats | Norfolk Island pine seed, Kentia palm seed, cereals, vegetables, fruit; cattle, poultry |
Airports | 44 (2000 est.) | 1 (2006) |
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: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2006) |
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.) |
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Area | total:
118,480 sq km land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
total: 34.6 sq km
land: 34.6 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | about 0.2 times the size of Washington, DC |
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. | Two British attempts at establishing the island as a penal colony (1788-1814 and 1825-55) were ultimately abandoned. In 1856, the island was resettled by Pitcairn Islanders, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. |
Birth rate | 37.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA |
Budget | revenues:
$490 million expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $4.6 million
expenditures: $4.8 million; including capital expenditures of $2 million (FY99/00) |
Capital | Lilongwe | name: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 29 03 S, 167 58 E time difference: UTC+11.5 (16.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) | subtropical; mild, little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 32 km |
Constitution | 18 May 1994 | Norfolk Island Act of 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Malawi conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
conventional long form: Territory of Norfolk Island
conventional short form: Norfolk Island |
Currency | Malawian kwacha (MWK) | - |
Death rate | 22.81 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $2.9 billion (2000 est.) | $NA |
Dependency status | - | territory of Australia; Canberra administers Commonwealth responsibilities on Norfolk Island through the Department of Environment, Sport, and Territories |
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 |
none (territory of Australia) |
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 |
none (territory of Australia) |
Disputes - international | dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $427 million (1999) | $NA |
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. | Tourism, the primary economic activity, has steadily increased over the years and has brought a level of prosperity unusual among inhabitants of the Pacific islands. The agricultural sector has become self-sufficient in the production of beef, poultry, and eggs. |
Electricity - consumption | 950 million kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 3 million kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
Electricity - production | 1.025 billion kWh (1999) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
2.44% hydro: 97.56% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m highest point: Sapitwa 3,002 m |
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mount Bates 319 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations | NA |
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 |
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Ethnic groups | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuko, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European | descendants of the Bounty mutineers, Australian, New Zealander, Polynesian |
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) | Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3095 (2005), 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001) |
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: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and Australia are represented by Administrator Grant TAMBLING (since 1 November 2003)
head of government: Assembly President and Chief Minister Geoffrey Robert GARDNER (since 5 December 2001) cabinet: Executive Council is made up of four of the nine members of the Legislative Assembly; the council devises government policy and acts as an advisor to the administrator elections: the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia; chief minister elected by the Legislative Assembly for a term of not more than three years; election last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: Geoffrey Robert GARDNER elected chief minister; percent of Legislative Assembly vote - 17.2% |
Exports | $416 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $1.5 million f.o.b. (FY91/92) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products | postage stamps, seeds of the Norfolk Island pine and Kentia palm, small quantities of avocados |
Exports - partners | South Africa 16%, Germany 16%, US 15%, Netherlands 7%, Japan (1999) | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band | three vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green with a large green Norfolk Island pine tree centered in the slightly wider white band |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.4 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
37% industry: 29% services: 34% (1998 est.) |
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GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | - |
Geographic coordinates | 13 30 S, 34 00 E | 29 02 S, 167 57 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | most of the 32 km coastline consists of almost inaccessible cliffs, but the land slopes down to the sea in one small southern area on Sydney Bay, where the capital of Kingston is situated |
Highways | total:
16,451 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 13,325 km (1997) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
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Imports | $435 million (f.o.b., 2000) | $17.9 million c.i.f. (FY91/92) |
Imports - commodities | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment | NA |
Imports - partners | South Africa 43%, Zimbabwe 14%, UK 5%, Germany 5%, Zambia, Japan, US (1999) | Australia, other Pacific island countries, NZ, Asia, Europe (2004) |
Independence | 6 July 1964 (from UK) | none (territory of Australia) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
Industries | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods | tourism, light industry, ready mixed concrete |
Infant mortality rate | 121.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 29.5% (2000) | - |
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 | UPU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 280 sq km (1993 est.) | NA |
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; Court of Petty Sessions |
Labor force | 3.5 million | 1,345 |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) | agriculture: 10%
industry and services: 90% |
Land boundaries | total:
2,881 km border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
34% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 39% other: 7% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005) |
Languages | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally | English (official), Norfolk a mixture of 18th century English and ancient Tahitian |
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 | based on the laws of Australia, local ordinances and acts; English common law applies in matters not covered by either Australian or Norfolk Island law |
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 Legislative Assembly (9 seats; members elected by electors who have nine equal votes each but only four votes can be given to any one candidate; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 20 October 2004 (next to be held by December 2007) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9 (note - no political parties) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
37.08 years male: 36.61 years female: 37.55 years (2001 est.) |
total population: NA
male: NA female: NA |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 72.8% female: 43.4% (1999 est.) |
NA |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Zambia | Oceania, island in the South Pacific Ocean, east of Australia |
Map references | Africa | Oceania |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Australia |
Military branches | Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (includes paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9.5 million (FY00/01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.76% (FY00/01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,466,708 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,265,893 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Independence Day, 6 July (1964) | Bounty Day (commemorates the arrival of Pitcairn Islanders), 8 June (1856) |
Nationality | noun:
Malawian(s) adjective: Malawian |
noun: Norfolk Islander(s)
adjective: Norfolk Islander(s) |
Natural hazards | NA | typhoons (especially May to July) |
Natural resources | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite | fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NA |
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 | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | none |
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.) |
1,828 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (FY90/91 est.) | - |
Population growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | -0.01% (2006 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 1, FM 3, shortwave 0 (2005) |
Radios | 2.6 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
789 km narrow gauge: 789 km 1.067-m gauge |
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Religions | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs | Anglican 34.9%, Roman Catholic 11.7%, Uniting Church in Australia 11.2%, Seventh-Day Adventist 2.8%, Australian Christian 2.4%, Jehovah's Witness 0.9%, other 2.7%, unspecified 15.3%, none 18.1% (2001 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.) |
NA |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 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: adequate
domestic: free local calls international: country code - 672; undersea coaxial cable links with Australia, New Zealand, and Canada; satellite earth station |
Telephones - main lines in use | 37,000 (1997) | 2,532; note - a mix of analog (2500) and digital (32) circuits (2004) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,000 (1997) | 0 (proposed cellular service disallowed in August 2002 island referendum) (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1999) | 1 (local programming station plus two repeaters that bring in Australian programs by satellite) (2005) |
Terrain | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains | volcanic formation with mostly rolling plains |
Total fertility rate | 5.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) | NA |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 0% |
Waterways | 144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |
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