placestats

Last European coloniser: United Kingdom · Largest religious group: Christians. These are labels that describe the country, not numbers, so they are never compared with other measures. The numbers behind them, such as population shares, are.

Malawi

Against low income countries, Malawi ranks 1st of 25 on governance and 17th of 21 on equality. Each ranking counts only the countries that report that score, so the totals differ and the two ranks can’t be compared directly. Both compare Malawi with countries of similar wealth. That is the only kind of ranking that tells you something a ranking by income does not already show.

How it has changed

Every measure Malawi reports, over all the years it has been published. Pick one. Hover or use the arrow keys to read a year. Gaps in a line are years with no data. They are left open, not filled in.

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Scores by area

Each score averages the measures in one area, such as health. Each measure is first put on a common scale and turned so that higher is always better. Zero is the average country in an average year. One point is a typical gap between countries (a standard deviation), so +1 means about one typical gap above average. These are summaries, not measurements. See how the country scores are built and how the topic scores compare with each other.

ScoreValueRank, all countriesRank, similar incomeMostly income?
Governance score 2025+0.5868 of 1791 of 25moderate +0.53
Health score 2024+0.2358 of 1936 of 25moderate +0.32
Education score 2023-0.55174 of 1996 of 24proxy +0.81
Equality score 2019-1.72158 of 16517 of 21high +0.64
Infrastructure score 2024-0.67204 of 21019 of 25proxy +0.90
Gender score 2024+0.7368 of 1867 of 25moderate +0.37
Environment score 2024+0.6630 of 2135 of 25moderate -0.33
Labour score 2025-0.17131 of 1954 of 25high +0.79

The last column shows how closely each score just tracks national income. The number is its link with GDP per person (the value of everything a country produces, divided by its people), from −1 to +1. A score marked proxy is mostly a measure of how rich the country is. Its rank among all countries says little that GDP per person does not. That is why the rank among similar-income countries sits beside it.

The measures behind them

Every measure reported for Malawi, grouped by area. Some measures have no agreed better direction, such as population growth, inflation and military spending. They are listed here but left out of every score, since there is no fair way to say which way is better. Some names use technical terms: PPP means adjusted for what money buys in each country, HDI is a United Nations score combining life expectancy, schooling and income, and a Gini indexmeasures how unequally income is shared. Each measure’s own page explains it.

crime

Conflict deaths0per 100,000 people2025higher is worse
Armed conflict present01 if any conflict, else 02025higher is worse
Homicide rate1.78per 100,000 population2012higher is worse

culture

Religiously unaffiliated0.941%% of population2020no agreed direction
Christian share87.4%% of population2020no agreed direction
Muslim share11.6%% of population2020no agreed direction
Single-parent households14.7%% of households2019no agreed direction
One-person households7.2%% of households2019no agreed direction
Women in a union62.1%% of women aged 15-492020no agreed direction

demography

Median age17.6years2023no agreed direction
Age at childbearing27.7years2023no agreed direction
Population22,216,120people2025no agreed direction
Population growth2.56%% per year2025no agreed direction
Urbanization17.6%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 65+2.59%% of population2025no agreed direction
Population 0-1440.1%% of population2025no agreed direction
Fertility rate3.59births per woman2024no agreed direction
Birth rate31.1per 1,000 people2024no agreed direction
Net migration-5,628people2025no agreed direction
Migrant share of population0.9%% of population2024no agreed direction

economy

HDI0.517index, 0 to 12023higher is better
Inequality-adjusted HDI0.365index, 0 to 12023higher is better
GDP per capita (PPP)$1,623international $2025higher is better
GNI per capita (PPP)$1,561international $2025higher is better
GDP per capita (market)$548US$2025higher is better
GDP growth1.89%% per year2025no agreed direction
Inflation28.4%% per year2025no agreed direction
Trade openness39.4%% of GDP2025no agreed direction
FDI inflows2.28%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Tax revenue15.6%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Government consumption18.2%% of GDP2025no agreed direction
Government expense20.2%% of GDP2022no agreed direction
Military spending1.02%% of GDP2024no agreed direction
Employment in agriculture65%% of employment2025no agreed direction

education

Primary completion57.7%% of children2025higher is better
Expected schooling9.9years2023higher is better
Mean years of schooling5.24years2023higher is better
Education spending2.75%% of GDP2022no agreed direction
Primary enrollment139%% gross2024higher is better
Secondary enrollment36.6%% gross2023higher is better
Tertiary enrollment2.71%% gross2022higher is better
Adult literacy70.2%% of adults2020higher is better
Compulsory schooling8years2025no agreed direction
Out of school, primary2.09%% of primary-age children2022higher is worse
Pupil-teacher ratio58.7pupils per teacher2018higher is worse
Researchers25.2per million people2019higher is better

environment

CO2 per capita0.221t CO2e per capita2024higher is worse
Forest area22.4%% of land area2023higher is better
Agricultural land64.2%% of land area2023no agreed direction
Protected land23.1%% of land area2025higher is better

gender

Gender Inequality Index0.581index, 0 to 12023higher is worse
Gender Development Index0.925ratio of women's HDI to men's2023no agreed direction
Women's political empowerment0.755index (0-1)2025higher is better
Women ministers33.3%% of ministers2024higher is better
Women in parliament21.4%% of seats2025higher is better
Women in management47.7%% of managers2024higher is better
Married by 1838.7%% of women aged 20-242024higher is worse

governance

Corruption Perceptions Index34index (0-100, higher = cleaner)2024higher is better
Political rights (FH)2rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Civil liberties (FH)3rating (1-7, 1 = most free)2025higher is worse
Pre-trial detainee share17.6%% of prisoners2020higher is worse
Refugees originating2.63per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Electoral democracy0.557index (0-1)2025higher is better
Liberal democracy0.462index (0-1)2025higher is better
Participatory democracy0.366index (0-1)2025higher is better
Free and fair elections0.596index (0-1)2025higher is better
Regime type2regime category (0-3)2025higher is better
Political corruption0.628index (0-1)2025higher is worse
Freedom of expression0.754index (0-1)2025higher is better
Freedom of association0.767index (0-1)2025higher is better
Political civil liberties0.755index (0-1)2025higher is better
Civil society participation0.931index (0-1)2025higher is better
Birth registration67.2%% of children under 52016higher is better
Control of corruption-0.649index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Rule of law-0.146index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Government effectiveness-0.726index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Regulatory quality-0.585index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Voice and accountability-0.109index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better
Political stability-0.38index (approx. -2.5 to 2.5)2024higher is better

health

Life expectancy67.6years2024higher is better
Infant mortality38per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Under-5 mortality48.8per 1,000 live births2024higher is worse
Health spending6.53%% of GDP2023no agreed direction
Suicide rate7.57per 100,0002021higher is worse
Hospital beds1.3per 1,000 people2011no agreed direction
Basic water access73.1%% of population2024higher is better
Basic sanitation49.2%% of population2024higher is better
Child stunting33.2%% of children under 52024higher is worse
Adolescent fertility113births per 1,000 women aged 15-192024higher is worse
Maternal mortality225per 100,000 live births2023higher is worse
Skilled birth attendance96.4%% of births2020higher is better
Alcohol consumption3.61litres per adult per year2020no agreed direction
Tobacco use8.9%% of adults2024higher is worse
Road traffic deaths33.4per 100,000 population2019higher is worse
Physicians0.054per 1,000 people2022higher is better
DTP3 immunisation91%% of children aged 12-23 months2024higher is better
HIV prevalence6.2%% of adults aged 15-492024higher is worse
Tuberculosis incidence113per 100,000 people2024higher is worse
Premature NCD mortality24.9%% probability, ages 30-702021higher is worse
Anaemia in women32.4%% of women aged 15-492023higher is worse
Out-of-pocket health spending12%% of health spending2023higher is worse
Undernourishment21.4%% of population2023higher is worse
Food insecurity81.7%% of population2023higher is worse
Adult obesity8%% of adults2024higher is worse
Health coverage index52index, 0 to 1002023higher is better

inequality

Gini index38.5index (0-100)2019higher is worse
Extreme poverty rate75.4%% of population2019higher is worse

infrastructure

Internet users19%% of population2024higher is better
Mobile subscriptions69.3per 100 people2024higher is better
Electricity access15.6%% of population2024higher is better
Slum share of urban population38%% of urban population2022higher is worse
Fixed broadband0.0864per 100 people2024higher is better

labor

Informal employment92.7%% of employment2024higher is worse
Unemployment5.07%% of labor force2025higher is worse
Female labor participation58.2%% of women 15+2025no agreed direction
Male labor participation67.3%% of men 15+2025no agreed direction
Youth not in work or study39.4%% of 15 to 24 year olds2024higher is worse
Vulnerable employment59.9%% of employment2025higher is worse

wellbeing

Life satisfaction3.28score (0-10)2025higher is better

Values are the most recent in 2010–2025, and different measures can come from different years. The year is shown beside each. Nothing here ranks countries by merit. An area score averages whatever measures its publishers happen to collect, and the choice of what to collect is itself a judgement made by someone else. All countries · How the country data works

Countries to compare with Malawi

Also in Sub-Saharan Africa: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Dem. Rep., Congo, Rep., Cote d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, The, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Fed. Rep., South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Also low income, in other regions: Afghanistan, Korea, Dem. People's Rep., Syrian Arab Republic, Yemen, Rep..