MALAWI
Facts & Figures
Malawi is located between Mozambique and Zambia and borders Tanzania to the north. It is one of the poorest economies in the world. In 2016, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was $295, while the Gross National Product (GNP) per capita was $350 per year. The economy is heavily dependent on financial aid from the IMF, the World Bank, and various donor nations. In 2016, 70.4% of Malawians lived on less than $1.90 per day. According to the 2018 Human Development Index, Malawi ranked 172nd out of 189 countries.
Malawi frequently suffers from severe natural disasters. Most recently, in March 2019, the country was hit by the aftermath of Cyclone Idai, which caused widespread devastation and many casualties, particularly in neighboring Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Before Malawi introduced free primary education in 1995, only half of school-aged children attended school. Since then, the number of primary school students has increased from 1.9 million to 3.4 million, covering 80% of children.
One of the biggest challenges in rural schools is the lack of teachers. On average, 80 children are taught in a single classroom. Over the past decade, many untrained teachers were recruited, and retired teachers were brought back to help alleviate the shortage. Despite these efforts, the teacher deficit was even greater in 2006 than in 2001 due to the retirement of many older teachers. In 2015, Malawi's literacy rate stood at 65.8%.
