Malawi (2007) | French Guiana (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 27 districts; Balaka, Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Likoma, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Phalombe, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba | none (overseas department of France) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 46.1% (male 3,143,724/female 3,130,937)
15-64 years: 51.2% (male 3,491,114/female 3,474,209) 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 155,954/female 207,243) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.2% (male 28,140; female 26,876)
15-64 years: 64.2% (male 63,183; female 53,902) 65 years and over: 5.6% (male 5,192; female 5,040) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses, groundnuts, Macadamia nuts; cattle, goats | corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 39 (2007) | 11 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 6
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2007) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 33
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 16 under 914 m: 16 (2007) |
total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 5 (2002) |
Area | total: 118,480 sq km
land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
total: 91,000 sq km
land: 89,150 sq km water: 1,850 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | slightly smaller 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 under President Hastings Kamuzu BANDA the country held multiparty elections in 1994, under a provisional constitution which came into full effect the following year. Current President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA, elected in May 2004 after a failed attempt by the previous president to amend the constitution to permit another term, struggled to assert his authority against his predecessor, culminating in MUTHARIKA quitting the political party on whose ticket he was elected into office. MUTHARIKA subsequently started his own party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and has continued with a halting anti-corruption campaign against abuses carried out under the previous regime. Increasing corruption, population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, and the spread of HIV/AIDS pose major problems for the country. | First settled by the French in 1604, French Guiana was the site of notorious penal settlements until 1951. The European Space Agency launches its communication satellites from Kourou. |
Birth rate | 42.09 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 21.66 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $1.016 billion
expenditures: $1.097 billion (2006 est.) |
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996) (1996) |
Capital | name: Lilongwe
geographic coordinates: 13 59 S, 33 47 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Cayenne |
Climate | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) | tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 378 km |
Constitution | 18 May 1994 | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Malawi
conventional short form: Malawi local long form: Dziko la Malawi local short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
conventional long form: Department of Guiana
conventional short form: French Guiana local long form: none local short form: Guyane |
Currency | - | euro (EUR); French franc (FRF) |
Death rate | 18.25 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 4.78 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $468 million (2006 est.) | $1.2 billion (1988) (1988) |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Alan EASTHAM
embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi telephone: [265] (1) 773 166 FAX: [265] (1) 770 471 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Hawa NDILOWE
chancery: 1156 15th Street, NW, Suite 320, Washington, DC 20005 telephone: [1] (202) 721-0270 FAX: [1] (202) 721-0288 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | disputes with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and the meandering Songwe River remain dormant | Suriname claims area between Riviere Litani and Riviere Marouini (both headwaters of the Lawa) |
Economic aid - recipient | $575.3 million (2005) | $NA |
Economy - overview | Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with about 85% of the population living in rural areas. Agriculture accounts for about one-third of GDP and four-fifths of export revenues. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth as tobacco accounts for more than half of exports. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. In 2006, Malawi was approved for relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) program. The government faces many challenges, including developing a market economy, improving educational facilities, facing up to environmental problems, dealing with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS, and satisfying foreign donors that fiscal discipline is being tightened. In 2005, President MUTHARIKA championed an anticorruption campaign. Since 2005 President MUTHARIKA'S government has exhibited improved financial discipline under the guidance of Finance Minister Goodall GONDWE. | The economy is tied closely to the French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou, fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.299 billion kWh (2005) | 418.5 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 1.397 billion kWh (2005) | 450 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m
highest point: Sapitwa (Mount Mlanje) 3,002 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Bellevue de l'Inini 851 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, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European | black or mulatto 66%, white 12%, East Indian, Chinese, Amerindian 12%, other 10% |
Exchange rates | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 135.96 (2006), 108.894 (2005), 108.898 (2004), 97.433 (2003), 76.687 (2002) | Euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA (since 24 May 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA (since 24 May 2004) cabinet: 46-member Cabinet named by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 20 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2009) election results: Bingu wa MUTHARIKA elected president; percent of vote - Bingu wa MUTHARIKA 35.9%, John TEMBO 27.1%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA 25.7%, Brown MPINGANJIRA 8.7%, Justin MALEWEZI 2.5% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Ange MANCINI (since 31 July 2002)
head of government: President of the General Council Joseph HO-TEN-YOU (since 26 March 2001); President of the Regional Council Antoine KARAM (since 22 March 1992) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; presidents of the General and Regional Councils are appointed by the members of those councils |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $155 million f.o.b. (1997) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco 53%, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products, apparel | shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing |
Exports - partners | South Africa 12.6%, Germany 9.7%, Egypt 9.6%, US 9.5%, Zimbabwe 8.5%, Russia 5.4%, Netherlands 4.4% (2006) | France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (1997) |
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 | the flag of France is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1 billion (1998 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 36.1%
industry: 18.8% services: 45.1% (2006 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8.5% (2006 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 13 30 S, 34 00 E | 4 00 N, 53 00 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; Lake Nyasa, some 580 km long, is the country's most prominent physical feature | mostly an unsettled wilderness; the only non-independent portion of the South American continent |
Government - note | no party has a majority in the fractured legislature | - |
Highways | - | total: 1,817 km
paved: 817 km unpaved: 1,000 km (1998) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% (2004) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | - | small amount of marijuana grown for local consumption; minor transshipment point to Europe |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $625 million c.i.f. (1997) |
Imports - commodities | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment | food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals |
Imports - partners | South Africa 34.6%, India 8.1%, Zambia 7.8%, US 6.4%, Tanzania 5.8%, Germany 4.6%, China 4.3% (2006) | France 52%, US 14%, Trinidad and Tobago 6% (1997) |
Independence | 6 July 1964 (from UK) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.4% (2006 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods | construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining |
Infant mortality rate | total: 92.1 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 96.27 deaths/1,000 live births female: 87.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
13.22 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 14% (2006 est.) | 2.5% (1992) (1992) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, ONUB, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | FZ, WCL, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 560 sq km (2003) | 20 sq km (1998 est.) |
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 | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel (highest local court based in Martinique with jurisdiction over Martinique, Guadeloupe, and French Guiana) |
Labor force | 4.5 million (2001 est.) | 58,800 (1997) (1997) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 90%
industry and services: 10% (2003 est.) |
services, government, and commerce 61%, industry 21%, agriculture 18% (1980) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,881 km
border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
total: 1,183 km
border countries: Brazil 673 km, Suriname 510 km |
Land use | arable land: 20.68%
permanent crops: 1.18% other: 78.14% (2005) |
arable land: 0.11% NEGL
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 99.86% (90% forest, 10% other) (1998 est.) |
Languages | Chichewa 57.2% (official), Chinyanja 12.8%, Chiyao 10.1%, Chitumbuka 9.5%, Chisena 2.7%, Chilomwe 2.4%, Chitonga 1.7%, other 3.6% (1998 census) | French |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations | French legal system |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20 May 2004 (next to be held in May 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDF 74, MCP 60, independents 24, RP 16, others 18, vacancies 1 |
unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council or Conseil Regional (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Council - last held 15 March 1998 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PSG 5, various left-wing parties 5, independents 7, other 2; Regional Council - percent of vote by party - PS 28.28%, various left parties 22.56%, RPR 15.91%, independents 8.6%, Walwari Committee 6%; seats by party - PS 11, various left parties 9, RPR 6, independents 3, Walwari Committee 2 note: one seat was elected to the French Senate on 27 September 1998 (next to be held NA September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; 2 seats were elected to the French National Assembly on 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP/RPR 1, Walwari Committee 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 42.98 years
male: 43.35 years female: 42.61 years (2007 est.) |
total population: 76.49 years
male: 73.16 years female: 79.99 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 62.7% male: 76.1% female: 49.8% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 83% male: 84% female: 82% (1982 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Zambia | Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Brazil and Suriname |
Map references | Africa | South America |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Malawi Armed Forces: Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment) (2007) | no regular indigenous military forces; French Forces, Gendarmerie |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.3% (2006) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 50,504 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 32,720 (2002 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day (Republic Day), 6 July (1964) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun: Malawian(s)
adjective: Malawian |
noun: French Guianese (singular and plural)
adjective: French Guianese |
Natural hazards | NA | high frequency of heavy showers and severe thunderstorms; flooding |
Natural resources | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite | bauxite, timber, gold (widely scattered), cinnabar, kaolin, fish |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 8.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or AFORD; Congress for National Unity or CONU; Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [Bingu wa MUTHARIKA]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [John TEMBO]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA]; Malawi Forum for Unity and Development or MAFUNDE [George MNESA]; Mgwirizano Coalition or MC [Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA] (coalition of MAFUNDE, MDP, MGODE, NUP, PETRA, PPM, RP); Movement for Genuine Democratic Change or MGODE [Sam Kandodo BANDA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Brown MPINGANJIRA]; National Unity Party or NUP [Harry CHIUME]; People's Progressive Movement or PPM [Aleke BANDA]; People's Transformation Movement or PETRA [Kamuzu CHIBAMBO]; Republican Party or RP [Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA]; United Democratic Front or UDF | Guyanese Democratic Action or ADG [Andre LECANTE]; Guyanese Socialist Party or PSG [Marie-Claude VERDAN]; Guyana Democratic Forces or FDG [Georges OTHILY]; Popular National Guyanese Party or PNPG [Jose DORCY]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Roland HO-WEN-SZE]; Socialist Party or PS [Pierre RIBARDIERE]; Walwari Committee [Christine TAUBIRA-DELANON] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 13,603,181
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 2007 est.) |
182,333 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 53% (2004) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.383% (2007 est.) | 2.57% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Cayenne, Degrad des Cannes, Saint-Laurent du Maroni |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 5 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 2 (plus one shortwave station on standby) (2001) | AM 2, FM 14 (including 6 repeaters), shortwave 6 (including 5 repeaters) (1998) |
Radios | - | 104,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 797 km
narrow gauge: 797 km 1.067-m gauge (2006) |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 79.9%, Muslim 12.8%, other 3%, none 4.3% (1998 census) | Roman Catholic |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.004 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.005 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.753 male(s)/female total population: 0.997 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.13 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: system employs open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations international: country code - 265; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean, 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair open wire and microwave radio relay system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 102,700 (2005) | 47,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 429,300 (2005) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 3 (plus eight low-power repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains | low-lying coastal plains rising to hills and small mountains |
Total fertility rate | 5.74 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 3.13 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 21.4% (1998) (1998) |
Waterways | 700 km (on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire River) (2007) | 3,300 km navigable by native craft
note: 460 km navigable by small oceangoing vessels and coastal and river steamers |