Factbook
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,was elected in May 2004. He was re-elected by a landslide in May of 2009. Malawi's constitution only allows for 2 consecutive terms.
Size : Slightly smaller than Pennsylvania (about 1/3 the size of Wyoming)
Elevation: 37 meters to 3000 meters. Lilongwe (where we live) is a little over 3000 feet in elevation.
Population: 15,000,000
Average Annual Income: $250 - a recent analysis noted Malawi to be the poorest country in the world!
Life Expectancy: 52 years
HIV/AIDS: Nearly 1,000,000 currently infected. Some estimate 40% are infected in urban areas. 14% are infected nation-wide.
Official Languages: English and Chichewa [There are several tribal languages, but the Chewa tribe's language is most common. The is a move to make English the only official language]
Adoption: It is quite difficult to adopt children in Malawi despite the large number of orphans. The law states that the adoptive parent must be resident in Malawi for 18 months. Madonna made international news with her adoption of a child from Malawi (without being resident in the country) and is now in process of adopting another.
Religions: Protestant 50%, Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, Traditional 10% [for a short article on Islam's early history in Malawi and Christian-Muslim relations in Malawi click on Islam in Malawi]