Malawi (2001) | Hong Kong (2004) | |
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Administrative divisions | 24 districts; Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba; note - there may be three new districts named Balaka, Likoma, and Phalombe | none (special administrative region of China) |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
44.43% (male 2,348,940; female 2,337,290) 15-64 years: 52.78% (male 2,741,622; female 2,825,966) 65 years and over: 2.79% (male 119,283; female 175,149) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 14.2% (male 510,702; female 465,145)
15-64 years: 73.3% (male 2,461,914; female 2,560,382) 65 years and over: 12.5% (male 394,697; female 462,285) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats | fresh vegetables, poultry, fish, pork |
Airports | 44 (2000 est.) | 4 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
6 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
38 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
118,480 sq km land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
total: 1,092 sq km
land: 1,042 sq km water: 50 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | six times the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule, the country held multiparty elections in 1994 under a provisional constitution, which took full effect the following year. National multiparty elections were held again in 1999. | Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China has promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system will not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
Birth rate | 37.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.23 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$490 million expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $26.17 billion
expenditures: $32.64 billion, including capital expenditures of $5 billion (2003) |
Capital | Lilongwe | - |
Climate | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) | tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 733 km |
Constitution | 18 May 1994 | Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's National People's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution" |
Country name | conventional long form:
Republic of Malawi conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
conventional long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu local short form: Xianggang abbreviation: HK |
Currency | Malawian kwacha (MWK) | Hong Kong dollar (HKD) |
Death rate | 22.81 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.98 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.9 billion (2000 est.) | $59.21 billion (2003 est.) |
Dependency status | - | special administrative region of China |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Roger A. MEECE embassy: Area 40, Plot 24, Kenyatta Road mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi telephone: [265] 773 166 FAX: [265] 770 471 |
chief of mission: Consul General James KEITH
consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong mailing address: PSC 461, Box 1, FPO AP 96521-0006 telephone: [852] 2523-9011 FAX: [852] 2524-0860 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Paul Tony Steven KANDIERO chancery: 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-1007 |
none (special administrative region of China) |
Disputes - international | dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $427 million (1999) | - |
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 37% of GDP and 85% of export revenues. 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. The government faces strong challenges, e.g., to fully develop a market economy, to improve educational facilities, to face up to environmental problems, and to deal with the rapidly growing problem of HIV/AIDS. | Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on international trade. Natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be imported. Imports and exports, including reexports, each exceed GDP in dollar value. Even before Hong Kong reverted to Chinese administration on 1 July 1997 it had extensive trade and investment ties with China. Hong Kong has been further integrating its economy with China because China's growing openness to the world economy has increased competitive pressure on Hong Kong's service industries, and Hong Kong's re-export business from China is a major driver of growth. Per capita GDP compares with the level in the four big economies of Western Europe. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% in 1989-1997, but Hong Kong suffered two recessions in the past 6 years because of the Asian financial crisis in 1998 and the global downturn of 2001-2002. The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak also battered Hong Kong's economy, but a boom in tourism from the mainland because of China's easing of travel restrictions, a return of consumer confidence, and a solid rise in exports resulted in the resumption of strong growth in late 2003. |
Electricity - consumption | 950 million kWh (1999) | 37.12 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 3 million kWh (1999) | 1.581 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 10.36 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 1.025 billion kWh (1999) | 30.48 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
2.44% hydro: 97.56% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m highest point: Sapitwa 3,002 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations | air and water pollution from rapid urbanization |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Marine Dumping (associate member) |
Ethnic groups | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuko, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European | Chinese 95%, other 5% |
Exchange rates | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 80.0946 (December 2000), 59.5438 (2000), 44.0881 (1999), 31.0727 (1998), 16.4442 (1997), 15.3085 (1996) | Hong Kong dollars per US dollar - 7.7868 (2003), 7.7989 (2002), 7.7988 (2001), 7.7912 (2000), 7.7575 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Bakili MULUZI (since 21 May 1994); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: 36-member Cabinet named by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Bakili MULUZI reelected president; percent of vote - Bakili MULUZI (UDF) 51.4%, Gwandaguluwe CHAKUAMBA (MCP-AFORD) 44.3% |
chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive TUNG Chee-hwa (since 1 July 1997) cabinet: Executive Council consists of seven non-official members and 14 official members; including Chief Secretary Donald TSANG Yam-kuen (since 1 May 2001), Financial Secretary Henry TANG (since 2 August 2003), and Secretary of Justice Elsie LEUNG (since 1 July 1997) elections: TUNG Chee-hwa was elected to a second term in March 2002 by an 800-member election committee dominated by pro-Beijing forces; the next election is scheduled to be held in 2007 |
Exports | $416 million (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | tobacco, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products | electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear, watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones |
Exports - partners | South Africa 16%, Germany 16%, US 15%, Netherlands 7%, Japan (1999) | China 42.6%, US 18.7%, Japan 5.4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band | red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $9.4 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $213 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
37% industry: 29% services: 34% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 12.1% services: 87.9% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $28,800 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 3.3% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 30 S, 34 00 E | 22 15 N, 114 10 E |
Geography - note | landlocked | more than 200 islands |
Heliports | - | 2 (2003 est.) |
Highways | total:
16,451 km paved: 3,126 km unpaved: 13,325 km (1997) |
total: 1,831 km
paved: 1,831 km unpaved: 0 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | Makes strenuous law enforcement efforts, but faces difficult challenges in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine to regional and world markets; modern banking system provides a conduit for money laundering; rising indigenous use of synthetic drugs, especially among young people |
Imports | $435 million (f.o.b., 2000) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment | electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, foodstuffs, transport equipment, raw materials, semimanufactures, petroleum, plastics; a large share is reexported |
Imports - partners | South Africa 43%, Zimbabwe 14%, UK 5%, Germany 5%, Zambia, Japan, US (1999) | China 43.5%, Japan 11.9%, Taiwan 6.9%, US 5.5%, Singapore 5%, South Korea 4.8% (2003) |
Independence | 6 July 1964 (from UK) | none (special administrative region of China) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | -9.2% (2003 est.) |
Industries | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods | textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics, plastics, toys, watches, clocks |
Infant mortality rate | 121.12 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 2.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.16 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 29.5% (2000) | -2.6% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | APEC, AsDB, BIS, ICC, ICFTU, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, ISO (correspondent), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate), WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 8 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 280 sq km (1993 est.) | 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 Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region |
Labor force | 3.5 million | 3.5 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) | manufacturing 8.2%, construction 2.9%, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants, and hotels 43.5%, financing, insurance, and real estate 19.5%, transport and communications 7.8%, community and social services 17.8% (Note: above data exclude public sector) (2002 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
2,881 km border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
total: 30 km
regional border: China 30 km |
Land use | arable land:
34% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 20% forests and woodland: 39% other: 7% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 5.05%
permanent crops: 1.01% other: 93.94% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally | Chinese (Cantonese), English; both are official |
Legal system | based on English common law and customary law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Assembly (193 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 15 June 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - UDF 48%, MCP 34%, AFORD 15%, others 3%; seats by party - UDF 94, MCP 66, AFORD 29, others 4 |
unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; in 2004 30 seats indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30 elected by popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 September 2004 (next to be held in September 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - pro-democracy group 62%; seats by party - (pro-Beijing 34) DAB 12, Liberal Party 10, independents 11, FTU 1; (pro-democracy 25) independents 11, Democratic Party 9, CTU 2, ADPL 1, Frontier Party 1, NWSC 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
37.08 years male: 36.61 years female: 37.55 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 81.39 years
male: 78.72 years female: 84.3 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 58% male: 72.8% female: 43.4% (1999 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 93.5% male: 96.9% female: 89.6% (2002) |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Zambia | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
Map references | Africa | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 3 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 663 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 20,478,042 GRT/34,554,455 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk 364, cargo 78, chemical tanker 23, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 3, container 97, liquefied gas 20, multi-functional large load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 60, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea/passenger 1, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 4 foreign-owned: Australia 2, Belgium 1, British Virgin Islands 1, China 178, Cyprus 1, Denmark 3, France 2, Germany 14, Greece 4, India 9, Indonesia 2, Japan 22, South Korea 2, Malaysia 3, Monaco 9, Norway 16, Panama 4, Philippines 17, Singapore 22, Taiwan 3, Thailand 1, United Kingdom 22, United States 1 registered in other countries: 569 (2004 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of China |
Military branches | Army (includes Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (includes paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) | no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) including elements of the PLA Ground Forces, PLA Navy, and PLA Air Force; these forces are under the direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and under administrative control of the adjacent Guangzhou Military Region |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9.5 million (FY00/01) | Hong Kong garrison is funded by China; figures are NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.76% (FY00/01) | NA (FY02) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
2,466,708 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,878,574 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,265,893 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 1,404,705 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 41,821 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 6 July (1964) | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated as Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
Nationality | noun:
Malawian(s) adjective: Malawian |
noun: Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong |
Natural hazards | NA | occasional typhoons |
Natural resources | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite | outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Alliance for Democracy or AFORD [Chakufwa CHIHANA, president]; Malawi Congress Party or MCP [Gwanda CHAKUAMBA, president, John TEMBO, vice president]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo KALUA, president]; National Independence Party; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Eston KAKHOME, president]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI] - governing party | Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick FUNG Kin-kee, chairman]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong or DAB [MA Lik, chairman]; Democratic Party [LEE Wing-tat, chairman]; Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing, chairwoman]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun, chairman]
note: political blocs include: pro-democracy - Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood, Democratic Party, Frontier Party; pro-Beijing - Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Progressive Alliance, Liberal Party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade Unions (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong Industries; Federation of Trade Unions (pro-China) [CHENG Yiu-tong, executive councilor]; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China [Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG Man-kwong, president]; The Alliance [Bernard CHAN, exco member] |
Population | 10,548,250
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 2001 est.) |
6,855,125 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (FY90/91 est.) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 0.65% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba | Hong Kong |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 4 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 2.6 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
789 km narrow gauge: 789 km 1.067-m gauge |
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Religions | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs | eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10% |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | direct election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election limited to about 200,000 members of functional constituencies and an 800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: fair system of open-wire lines, microwave radio relay links, and radiotelephone communications stations international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and international services
domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic network international: country code - 852; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China; access to 5 international submarine cables providing connections to ASEAN member nations, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe |
Telephones - main lines in use | 37,000 (1997) | 3,801,300 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7,000 (1997) | 7,241,400 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (1999) | 4 (2004) |
Terrain | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains | hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north |
Total fertility rate | 5.18 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 0.91 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 7.9% (2003) |
Waterways | 144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |
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