s: none (landlocked)

Climate: sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season (May
to November)

Terrain: narrow elongated plateau with rolling plains, rounded hills,
some mountains

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: junction of the Shire River and international boundary
with Mozambique 37 m
highest point: Sapitwa 3,002 m

Natural resources: limestone, arable land, hydropower, unexploited
deposits of uranium, coal, and bauxite

Land use:
arable land: 34%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 20%
forests and woodland: 39%
other: 7% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 280 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment - current issues: deforestation; land degradation; water
pollution from agricultural runoff, sewage, industrial wastes;
siltation of spawning grounds endangers fish populations

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

Geography - note: landlocked

@Malawi:People

Population: 10,385,849
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 2000 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (male 2,335,440; female 2,324,012)
15-64 years: 52% (male 2,671,580; female 2,766,560)
65 years and over: 3% (male 117,932; female 170,325) (2000 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.61% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 38.49 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 22.44 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

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: 0.69 male(s)/female
total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 122.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 37.58 years
male: 37.2 years
female: 37.98 years (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5.33 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Malawian(s)
adjective: Malawian

Ethnic groups: Chewa, Nyanja, Tumbuk