Malawi, a poor southern African country mired in a deep economic crisis, holds presidential and legislative elections on September 16. Here are five things to know about the small country home to around 21 million people. – Dire poverty -It is one of the world’s poorest countries. According to the World Bank, 71 percent of its people lived on less than the poverty threshold of $2.15 per day in 2024. This is expected to increase given Malawi’s economic problems and growing food insecurity. “Despite significant progress in reducing child mortality and fertility rates, hunger remains a critical concern due to successive weak harvests since 2022,” the World Bank says on its website. This kept the rate of stunted children under five at 38 percent since 2015.- Three decades of dictatorship -Formerly called Nyasaland, Malawi gained independence from Britain in 1964. Its first president was a dictator, Hastings Kamuzu Banda, who held power for three decades and was ousted in the first multi-party elections in 1994.Vice President Joyce Banda, no relation, in 2012 became Malawi’s first woman leader — and only the second on the continent at the time — on the death of then-president Bingu wa Mutharika.She left the country in 2014 under a cloud, having lost the presidential election and facing questioning over the “Cashgate” corruption scandal.Banda returned four years later and is among the 17 presidential candidates, alongside the outgoing leader Lazarus Chakwera and his predecessor, Peter Mutharika.- Extreme weather – Malawi’s economy is dependent on rain-fed agriculture, much of it subsistence or smallholding farming, making it vulnerable to climate risks.In 2024 the country suffered severe drought and in 2023 it was hit by Cyclone Freddy, which left more than 1,200 people dead or missing.The disasters contributed to an economic crisis that sparked demonstrations in early 2025, with year-on-year inflation rate passing 27 percent in July.- Tobacco, tea, tourism -Its biggest export is tobacco, which made up 57.5 percent of the total in 2024, according to national statistics.After tobacco and tea, tourism is its third-largest source of foreign currency. To boost the sector, Malawi this year lifted visa requirements for 79 countries, including Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.Lake Malawi, Africa’s third-largest freshwater lake, runs the length of the country and was listed a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.The UN culture agency this year also listed a mountain range dominated by Mount Mulanje, considered a sacred place inhabited by gods, spirits and ancestors.The recent discovery of widely sought-after rare earth minerals is tipped to have the potential to change the country’s fortunes.- Nonagenarian music legend – After a seven-decade music career, Giddes Chalamanda gained global acclaim when he teamed up with young gospel artist Patience Namadingo in 2020 to record a reggae remix titled “Linny Hoo”.The hit racked up more than 6.9 million views on YouTube and over 80 million views on TikTok in late 2021, and spawned mashups and remixes around the world.A black-and-white video shows Chalamanda, now aged 94, jamming with Namadingo in the local language, Chewa.
