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 45% of GDP and 90% of export revenues. The economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the IMF, the World Bank, and individual donor nations. The new government faces strong challenges, e.g., to spur exports, to improve educational and health facilities, and to deal with environmental problems of deforestation and erosion.

GDP purchasing power parity - $8.6 billion (1997 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 6% (1997 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $900 (1997 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 45%
industry: 30%
services: 25% (1995 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index 83.4% (1995)

Labor force
total: 3.5 million
by occupation: agriculture 86%, wage earners 14% (1990 est.)

Unemployment rate NA%

Budget
revenues: $530 million
expenditures: $674 million, including capital expenditures of $129 million (1993)

Industries tea, tobacco, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods

Industrial production growth rate 0.9% (1995)

Electricity - capacity 185,000 kW (1995)

Electricity - production 800 million kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita 82 kWh (1995)

Agriculture - products tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats

Exports
total value: $405 million (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: tobacco, tea, sugar, coffee, peanuts, wood products
partners: US, South Africa, Germany, Japan

Imports
total value: $475 million (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment
partners: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Japan, US, UK, Germany

Debt - external $2.3 billion (1996 est.)

Economic aid
recipient: donor pledges, $332 million (1996)

Currency 1 Malawian kwacha (MK) = 100 tambala

Exchange rates Malawian kwacha (MK) per US$1 - 17.5300 (October 1997), 15.3085 (1996), 15.2837 (1995), 8.7364 (1994), 4.4028 (1993)

Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March

NOTE: The information regarding Malawi on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Malawi Economy 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Malawi Economy 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.