Malawi (2002) | Netherlands Antilles (2005) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 27 districts; Balaka, Blantyre, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu, Chitipa, Dedza, Dowa, Karonga, Kasungu, Likoma, Lilongwe, Machinga (Kasupe), Mangochi, Mchinji, Mulanje, Mwanza, Mzimba, Ntcheu, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Nsanje, Ntchisi, Phalombe, Rumphi, Salima, Thyolo, Zomba | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
note: each island has its own government |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 44% (male 2,358,730; female 2,347,017)
15-64 years: 53.2% (male 2,810,478; female 2,884,601) 65 years and over: 2.8% (male 120,761; female 180,237) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 24.2% (male 27,302/female 26,002)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 70,838/female 77,148) 65 years and over: 8.5% (male 7,673/female 10,995) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava (tapioca), sorghum, pulses; cattle, goats, groundnuts, Macadamia nuts | aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit |
Airports | 44 (2001) | 5 (2004 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 (2002) |
total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 2038 to 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 37
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 22 (2002) |
- |
Area | total: 118,480 sq km
land: 94,080 sq km water: 24,400 sq km |
total: 960 sq km
land: 960 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten (Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin) |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Pennsylvania | more than five 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. | Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion is called Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe (France). |
Birth rate | 37.13 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $490 million
expenditures: $523 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $710.8 million
expenditures: $741.6 million, including capital expenditures of NA (1997 est.) |
Capital | Lilongwe | Willemstad; note - located on Curacao, the largest of the islands |
Climate | sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May to November) | tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 364 km |
Constitution | 18 May 1994 | 29 December 1954, Statute of the Realm of the Netherlands, as amended |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Malawi
conventional short form: Malawi former: British Central African Protectorate, Nyasaland Protectorate, Nyasaland |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Netherlands Antilles local long form: none local short form: Nederlandse Antillen former: Curacao and Dependencies |
Currency | Malawian kwacha (MWK) | - |
Death rate | 23.2 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $2.8 billion (2001 est.) | $1.35 billion (1996) |
Dependency status | - | an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs granted in 1954; Dutch Government responsible for defense and foreign affairs |
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] (1) 773 166 FAX: [265] (1) 770 471 |
chief of mission: Consul General Robert E. SORENSON
consulate(s) general: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Willemstad AN, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: [599] (9) 4613066 FAX: [599] (9) 4616489 |
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 FAX: [1] (202) 265-0976 |
none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Disputes - international | Malawi and Tanzania maintain a largely dormant dispute over the boundary in Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and current location of historical boundary in meandering Songwe River | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $427 million (1999) (1999) | IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its support with $40 million (2000) |
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 40% of GDP and 88% 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. The performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth. | Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world. Although GDP has declined or grown slightly in each of the past eight years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate water supplies hamper the development of agriculture. Budgetary problems hamper reform of the health and pension systems of an aging population. |
Electricity - consumption | 767.25 million kWh (2000) | 934.3 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 825 million kWh (2000) | 1.005 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 3%
hydro: 97% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Shire River and international boundary with Mozambique 37 m
highest point: Sapitwa (Mount Mlanje) 3,002 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Scenery 862 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation; land degradation; water pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes; siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuka, Yao, Lomwe, Sena, Tonga, Ngoni, Ngonde, Asian, European | mixed black 85%, Carib Amerindian, white, East Asian |
Exchange rates | Malawian kwachas per US dollar - 67.3111 (December 2001), 72.1973 (2001), 59.5438 (2000), 44.0881 (1999), 31.0727 (1998), 16.4442 (1997) | Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2004), 1.79 (2003), 1.79 (2002), 1.79 (2001), 1.79 (2000) |
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: 38-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: Queen BEATRIX of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Frits GOEDGEDRAG (since 1 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Etienne YS (since 3 June 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers elected by the Staten (legislature) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch for a six-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party is usually elected prime minister by the Staten; election last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held by NA 2006) note: government coalition - PAR, PNP, PLKP, DP St. Maarten, UP Bonaire, WIPM Saba, DP Statia |
Exports | $415.5 million f.o.b. (2001) | NA |
Exports - commodities | tobacco, tea, sugar, cotton, coffee, peanuts, wood products, apparel | petroleum products |
Exports - partners | South Africa 18%, Germany 13%, US 13%, UK 10%, Japan 7%, Netherlands 3% (2000) | US 20.4%, Panama 11.2%, Guatemala 8.8%, Haiti 7.1%, Bahamas, The 5.6%, Honduras 4.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band | white, with a horizontal blue stripe in the center superimposed on a vertical red band, also centered; five white, five-pointed stars are arranged in an oval pattern in the center of the blue band; the five stars represent the five main islands of Bonaire, Curacao, Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $7 billion (2001 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 40%
industry: 19% services: 41% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15% services: 84% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $660 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% (2001 est.) | 0.5% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 13 30 S, 34 00 E | 12 15 N, 68 45 W |
Geography - note | landlocked; Lake Nyasa, some 580 km long, is the country's most prominent physical feature | the five islands of the Netherlands Antilles are divided geographically into the Leeward Islands (northern) group (Saba, Sint Eustatius, and Sint Maarten) and the Windward Islands (southern) group (Bonaire and Curacao) |
Government - note | the executive exerts considerable influence over the legislature | - |
Highways | total: 14,594 km
paved: 2,773 km unpaved: 11,821 km (2001) |
total: 600 km
paved: 300 km unpaved: 300 km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
Illicit drugs | - | transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money-laundering center |
Imports | $463.6 million f.o.b. (2001) | NA |
Imports - commodities | food, petroleum products, semimanufactures, consumer goods, transportation equipment | crude petroleum, food, manufactures |
Imports - partners | South Africa 40%, UK 11%, Zimbabwe 7%, Japan 5%, Germany 2%, US 1.8%, Zambia (2000) | Venezuela 51.1%, US 21.9%, Netherlands 5% (2004) |
Independence | 6 July 1964 (from UK) | none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands) |
Industrial production growth rate | 2.5% (2001 est.) | NA% |
Industries | tobacco, tea, sugar, sawmill products, cement, consumer goods | tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining (Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire), light manufacturing (Curacao) |
Infant mortality rate | 119.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 10.03 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 28.6% (2001 est.) | 2.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WMO, WToO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 7 (2001) | - |
Irrigated land | 280 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
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 | Joint High Court of Justice (judges appointed by the monarch) |
Labor force | 4.5 million (2001 est.) | 89,000 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 86% (1997 est.) | agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,881 km
border countries: Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km, Zambia 837 km |
total: 10.2 km
border countries: Guadeloupe (Saint-Martin) 10.2 km |
Land use | arable land: 19.93%
permanent crops: 1.33% other: 78.74% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 10%
permanent crops: 0% other: 90% (2001) |
Languages | English (official), Chichewa (official), other languages important regionally | Papiamento 65.4% (a Spanish-Portuguese-Dutch-English dialect), English 15.9% (widely spoken), Dutch 7.3% (official), Spanish 6.1%, Creole 1.6%, other 1.9%, unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
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 Dutch civil law system with some English common law influence |
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 96, MCP 61, AFORD 30, others 6 |
unicameral States or Staten (22 seats - Curacao 14, Bonaire 3, St. Maarten 3, St. Eustatius 1, Saba 1; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 18 January 2002 (next to be held in 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PAR 4, PNP 3, PLKP 2, DP St. M 2, UP Bonaire 2, WIPM 1, DP note: the government of Prime Minister Etienne YS is a coalition of several parties; current government formed after collapse of FOL led government on 4 April 2004 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 36.59 years
male: 36.05 years female: 37.15 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 75.83 years
male: 73.58 years female: 78.2 years (2005 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 can read and write
total population: 96.7% male: 96.7% female: 96.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, east of Zambia | Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of Venezuela, and St. Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the US Virgin Islands |
Map references | Africa | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 12 nm |
Merchant marine | - | total: 168 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,317,007 GRT/1,668,499 DWT
by type: barge carrier 3, bulk carrier 23, cargo 72, chemical tanker 2, container 21, liquefied gas 6, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 30, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 2 foreign-owned: 158 (Belgium 5, Cyprus 1, Denmark 1, Germany 57, Hong Kong 3, Netherlands 71, Peru 1, Sweden 9, Turkey 7, United Kingdom 2, United States 1) (2005) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands |
Military branches | Army (including Air Wing and Naval Detachment), Police (including paramilitary Mobile Force Unit) | National Guard, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $9.5 million (FY00/01) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.76% (FY00/01) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 2,535,207 (2002 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 1,301,625 (2002 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day (Republic Day), 6 July (1964) | Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April |
Nationality | noun: Malawian(s)
adjective: Malawian |
noun: Dutch Antillean(s)
adjective: Dutch Antillean |
Natural hazards | NA | Curacao and Bonaire are south of Caribbean hurricane belt and are rarely threatened; Sint Maarten, Saba, and Sint Eustatius are subject to hurricanes from July to October |
Natural resources | limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite | phosphates (Curacao only), salt (Bonaire only) |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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]; United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI] - governing party | Antillean Restructuring Party or PAR [Etienne YS]; C 93 [Stanley BROWN]; Democratic Party of Bonaire or PDB [Jopi ABRAHAM]; Democratic Party of Curacao or DP [Errol HERNANDEZ]; Democratic Party of Sint Eustatius or DP-St. E [Julian WOODLEY]; Democratic Party of Sint Maarten or DP-St. M [Sarah WESCOTT-WILLIAMS]; Foundation Energetic Management Anti-Narcotics or FAME [Eric LODEWIJKS]; Labor Party People's Crusade or PLKP [Errol COVA]; National Alliance [William MARLIN]; National People's Party or PNP [Susanne F. C. CAMELIA-ROMER]; New Antilles Movement or MAN [Kenneth GIJSBERTHA]; Patriotic Union of Bonaire or UP Bonaire [Ramonsito BOOI]; Patriotic Movement of Sint Maarten or SPA [Vance JAMES, Jr.]; People's Party or PAPU [Richard HODI]; Pro Curacao Party or PPK [Winston LOURENS]; Saba Democratic Labor Movement [Steve HASSELL]; Saba Unity Party [Carmen SIMMONDS]; St. Eustatius Alliance or SEA [Kenneth VAN PUTTEN]; Serious Alternative People's Party or Sapp [Julian ROLLOCKS]; Social Action Cause or KAS [Benny DEMEI]; Windward Islands People's Movement or WIPM [Will JOHNSTON]; Workers' Liberation Front or FOL [Anthony GODETT, Rignald LAK, Editha WRIGHT]
note: political parties are indigenous to each island |
Political pressure groups and leaders | National Democratic Alliance [Brown MPINGANJIRA] | NA |
Population | 10,701,824
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 2002 est.) |
219,958 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 54% (FY90/91 est. ) | NA |
Population growth rate | 1.39% (2002 est.) | 0.82% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chipoka, Monkey Bay, Nkhata Bay, Nkhotakota, Chilumba | Bopec Terminal, Fuik Bay, Kralendijk, Willemstad |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 5 (plus 15 repeater stations), shortwave 2 (plus a third station held in standby status) (2001) | AM 8, FM 19, shortwave 0 (2004) |
Radios | 2.6 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total: 797 km
narrow gauge: 797 km 1.067-m gauge (2001) |
- |
Religions | Protestant 55%, Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs 3%, other 2% | Roman Catholic 72%, Pentecostal 4.9%, Protestant 3.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 3.1%, Methodist 2.9%, Jehovah's Witnesses 1.7%, other Christian 4.2%, Jewish 1.3%, other or unspecified 1.2%, none 5.2% (2001 census) |
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: 0.67 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: system employs 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: generally adequate facilities
domestic: extensive interisland microwave radio relay links international: country code - 599; submarine cables - 2; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 38,000 (1999) | 81,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 49,000 (2000) | 81,000 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2001) | 3 (there is also a cable service, which supplies programs received from various US satellite networks and two Venezuelan channels) (2004) |
Terrain | narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills, some mountains | generally hilly, volcanic interiors |
Total fertility rate | 5.04 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 2 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA% | 15.6% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | 144 km
note: on Lake Nyasa (Lake Malawi) and Shire Riverall |
- |