for a five-year term;
election last held 17 May 1994 (next to be held by May 1999)
election results: Bakili MULUZI elected president; percent of vote -
NA

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (177 seats; members
are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1994 (next to be held by May 1999)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UDF
84, AFORD 33, MCP 55, others 5; note - because of defections and
byelections, the seats in the National Assembly were held at the end
of the year as follows: UDF 84, MCP 47, AFORD 34, independents 8, and
vacant 4
note : the constitution of 18 May 1995, in addition to reducing the
age at which universal suffrage is conferred from 21 to 18 years,
provided for a bicameral legislature; by 1999, in addition to the
existing National Assembly, a Senate of 80 seats is to be elected

Judicial branch: High Court; Supreme Court of Appeal

Political parties and leaders:
ruling party: United Democratic Front or UDF [Bakili MULUZI]
opposition groups: Alliance for Democracy or AFORD [Chakufwa CHIHANA];
Congress for the Second Republic or CSR [Kanyama CHIUME]; Malawi
Congress Party or MCP [Hastings KAMURU BANDA, president/Gwanda
CHAKAUMBA, vice president]; Malawi Democratic Party or MDP [Kampelo
KALUA, president]; People Democratic Party or PDP [Rolf PATEL]; Social
Democratic Party or SDP [Eston KAKHOME, president]

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, SADC, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Willie CHOKANI
chancery: 2408 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 797-1007

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Peter R. CHAVEAS
embassy : address NA, in new capital city development area in Lilongwe
mailing address: P. O. Box 30016, Lilongwe 3, Malawi
telephone: [265] 783 166
FAX: [265] 780 471

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red,
and green with a radiant, rising, red sun centered in the black band

Economy

Economy - overview: Landlocked Malawi ranks among the world's least
developed countries. The economy is predominately agricultural, with
about 90% of the population living