Malawi-South East Afrika / Republic of Malawi
Mfuka la Malawwi (Chichewa); Republic of Malawi - MW- MWI
Overview Malawi
land: 118.484 km2
capital: Lilongwe
official languages: Chichewa, English
GPA (2006): 178,40 €
inhabitants: 13.571.000 = 115 km2
life expectancy (2007): 48.3 years
illiteracy rate (2007): 34.1%
currency: 1 Malawi – Kwacha (MK) = 100 Tambala
exchange rate: 1$ = 141,20 MK, 1 € = 218,98 MK
living expenses / staple foods in Malawi
- rice 5 kg : € 7,17
- flour 1 kg: € 1,93
- milk 1 l: € 1,50
average income: 14.86 euro / month
- > Political situation
- > Economic situation of Malawi
- > Social structure of Malawi
- > Technological challenges and infrastructure
- Type of government: Semi-presidential republic (Commonwealth), Constitution of 1995 by National Assembly
- Head of government / president: since April 2012 Madam Joyce Hilda Mtila Banda (PP)
The German Federal Foreign Office describes Malawi's political situation as follows:
With regard to foreign affairs, Malawi maintains stable relationships with other countries and there is no serious potential for conflicts with neighboring states. For historic reasons, Malawi enjoys and holds on to a very close political friendship with the Commonwealth and also maintains very good relations with other western states as it collaborates with many of them to follow its development policy.
Malawi does not take part in any military alliance. It has a small standing army, which can be used for national defense purposes or to keep its internal order. It also can assist the UN in peacekeeping measures.
BIP (2006): 3.164 Mrd US $
Foreign Trade
- Export mainly to: South Africa (15%), USA (11%), Great Britain (10%), Germany (8%)
- Import mainly from: South Africa (31 %), Mosambique (14%), Great Britain (5%)
Religion
- 75% Christians
- 20% Muslims
- 5% Other
Education
- Primary school: 8 years (free of charge)
- Secondary school: 4 years (tuition fee approx. 30-40 € / month)
Whether or not a child receives basic education in Malawi is a cultural decision and very often neglected for cultural reasons. Informing the poor on school programs and on education itself is an essential part of our work and most successful in combination with the perspective of getting or giving financial support through scholarships for the funding of further education programs.
Nutrition
Farming, high dependency on harvest: maize, pulse, manioc, sorghum
General health
challenges:
- HIV/AIDS
- malaria
- infantile paralysis, tetanus, typhus, yellow fever, hepatitis
- malnourishment (especially children)
- simple infections
- lack of hygiene
technological challenges and infrastructure
-
Installing and maintaining water and electrical supplies are considered the biggest challenges
- Infrastructure: Malawi has a very basic infrastructure, which is one of the biggest challenges when ill people need to seek medical help. Please also have a look at the infrastructure map underneath.
According to the Federal German Foreign Office, the flow of medical supplies is "not comparable to European standards" and emergency supplies cannot be provided in most of the cases. Hospitals can only be found in towns (i.e. urban areas).
Access to public transport is limited, which means that ill people often have to walk long hours in order to receive medical treatments.
In comparison to Europe, bicycles replace ambulances. Transporting the ill with bikes to the hospital is still a very important and common transport measure for the Malawian population.
