|
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
accounted for nearly 40% of GDP and 88% of export revenues in 2001.
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. In November 2002 the World Bank approved a
$50 million drought recovery package, which is to be used for famine
relief. The government faces strong challenges, e.g., to fully develop
a market economy, to improve educational facilities, to face up to
environmental problems, to deal with the rapidly growing problem of
HIV/AIDS, and to satisfy foreign donors that fiscal discipline is
being tightened. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to
short-term growth as tobacco accounts for over 50% of exports. |
|
GDP: |
purchasing power parity - $6.845 billion (2003
est.) |
|
GDP - real growth
rate: |
1.7% (2003 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $600 (2003 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by
sector: |
agriculture: 51%
industry: 21.8%
services: 27.2% (2003 est.) |
|
Investment (gross
fixed): |
12.3% of GDP (2003) |
|
Population below
poverty line: |
55% (2003 est.) |
|
Household income or
consumption by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
|
Inflation rate
(consumer prices): |
9.5% (2003 est.) |
|
Labor force: |
4.5 million (2001 est.) |
|
Labor force - by
occupation: |
agriculture 90% (2003 est.) |
|
Unemployment rate: |
NA (2003 est.) |
|
Budget: |
revenues: $528.1 million
expenditures: $653.2 million, including capital expenditures of
NA (2003) |
|
Public debt: |
235.7% of GDP (2003) |
|
Agriculture -
products: |
tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes,
cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; groundnuts, Macadamia nuts;
cattle, goats |
|
Industries: |
tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement,
consumer goods |
|
Industrial production
growth rate: |
-1.6% (2003 est.) |
|
Electricity -
production: |
769.2 million kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity -
production by source: |
fossil fuel: 3.3%
hydro: 96.7%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
|
Electricity -
consumption: |
715.3 million kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - exports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - imports: |
0 kWh (2001) |
|
Oil - production: |
0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption: |
5,400 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
|
Oil - exports: |
NA (2001) |
|
Oil - imports: |
NA (2001) |
|
Current account
balance: |
$-58 million (2003) |
|
Exports: |
$455 million f.o.b. (2003 est.)
|
|
Exports - commodities: |
tobacco 60%, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts,
wood products, apparel |
|
Exports - partners: |
South Africa 22.6%, US 13%, Germany 10.9%, Egypt
5.6%, Portugal 4.7%, Japan 4.3%, Netherlands 4%, Poland 4%, Russia 4%
(2003 est.) |
|
Imports: |
$505 million f.o.b. (2003 est.)
|
|
Imports - commodities: |
food, petroleum products, semimanufactures,
consumer goods, transportation equipment |
|
Imports - partners: |
South Africa 48.8%, Zambia 13.4%, India 4.4%
(2003 est.) |
|
Reserves of foreign
exchange & gold: |
$132 million (2003) |
|
Debt - external: |
$3.026 billion (2003) |
|
Economic aid -
recipient: |
$540 million (1999) |
|
Currency: |
Malawian kwacha (MWK) |
|
Currency code: |
MWK |
|
Exchange rates: |
Malawian kwachas per US dollar - NA (2003),
76.6866 (2002), 72.1973 (2001), 59.5438 (2000), 44.0881 (1999) |
|
Fiscal year: |
1 July - 30 June |