cassava, beans, bananas, peanuts;
cattle raising widespread; not self-sufficient in rice and wheat flour

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild
varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption

Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $118 million; Western
(non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $2.6 billion;
Communist countries (1970-88), $491 million

Currency: Malagasy franc (plural--francs);
1 Malagasy franc (FMG) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates: Malagasy francs (FMG) per US$1--1,531.0 (January 1990),
1603.4 (1989), 1,407.1 (1988), 1,069.2 (1987), 676.3 (1986), 662.5 (1985)

Fiscal year: calendar year

- Communications
Railroads: 1,020 km 1.000-meter gauge

Highways: 40,000 km total; 4,694 km paved, 811 km crushed stone, gravel,
or stabilized soil, 34,495 km improved and unimproved earth (est.)

Inland waterways: of local importance only; isolated streams and small
portions of Canal des Pangalanes

Ports: Toamasina, Antsiranana, Mahajanga, Toliara

Merchant marine: 13 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 58,126
GRT/79,420 DWT; includes 8 cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 1 petroleum,
oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 1 liquefied gas

Civil air: 5 major transport aircraft

Airports: 147 total, 115 usable; 30 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 43 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: above average system includes open-wire lines, coaxial
cables, radio relay, and troposcatter links; submarine cable to Bahrain;
satellite earth stations--1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT;
over 38,200 telephones; stations--14 AM, 1 FM, 7 (30 repeaters) TV

- Defense Forces
Branches: Popular Army, Aeronaval Forces (includes Navy and Air Force),
paramilitary Gendarmerie

Military manpower: males 15-49, 2,550,775; 1,519,084 fit for military
service; 116,438 reach military age (20) annually

Defense expenditures: 2.2% of GDP, or $37 million (1989 est.)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Malawi
- Geography
Total area: 118,480 km2; land area: 94,080 km2

Comparative area: slightly larger than Pennsylvania

Land boundaries: 2,881 km total; Mozambique 1,569 km, Tanzania 475 km,
Zambia 837 km

Coastline: none--landlocked

Maritime claims: none--landlocked

Disputes: dispute with Tanzania over the boundary in Lake Nyasa
(Lake Mala