ABOUT THIS COUNTRY
Malawi, a landlocked country in southeastern Africa, is defined by its topography of highlands split by the Great Rift Valley and enormous Lake Malawi. The lake’s southern end falls within Lake Malawi National Park – sheltering diverse wildlife from colorful fish to baboons – and its clear waters are popular for diving and boating. Peninsular Cape Maclear is known for its beach resorts.
Malawi’s economy has been heavily impacted by COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Growth is estimated at 1.0% for 2020, compared with earlier projections of 4.8%, but is projected to rebound in 2021 to 2.8%, although the nature of the recovery will depend on the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic and government’s policy actions. The second wave of the pandemic has been more intense than the first. The COVID-19 vaccine is not expected to reach a significant portion of the population until at least mid-2022. As such, stronger social distancing policies and behavior are expected to weigh on economic activity and suppress domestic demand.
Reasons to invest in Malawi:
- Streamlined Investment Establishment Procedures: Malawi operates the One-Stop Service Centre through MITC, where investors get all necessary investment- processing requirements under one roof in just under five days.
- Political Stability & Security: Malawi has no history of civil war and has a vibrant democracy
- Liberalised Economy & Political Commitment: Market-determined interest rates and floating exchange rate. Government Support towards private sector growth and development through reforms and strategic co-investments and turn-key projects.
- Competitive Labour Market: Malawi prides itself on its large, highly educated, skilled, hardworking, trainable English speaking workforce trained within the country and in institutions around the world.
- Preferential Access to Markets: Malawi is signatory to a number of multilateral and bilateral trade agreements as part of its trade policy. These provide preferential access to world markets under COMESA, SADC, EU and AGOA.
- Untapped Investment Opportunities: Malawi is a gold mine, flooded with untapped economic opportunities waiting to be explored. Potential opportunities for investment abound, particularly in the following sectors: agriculture, energy, mining, manufacturing, infrastructure development/ICT, Tourism and finance.
- Investor-Friendly Climate: Malawi offers an increasingly attractive destination for foreign investors, with competitive investors’ tax incentives package. The country is party to investor protection agreements and is becoming the most competitive place to do business in the region.
- Ease of Access: Malawi has modern telecommunication, daily flight connections and access to regional and international markets.
- Growing Economy: The country has been showing an upward trend in economic growth since 2007.
- Developing Infrastructure: Malawi has seen tremendous infrastructure development in the last ten years in sectors such as transport, property development and ICT.
Agriculture
Food and beverages
Pharmaceutical
Forestry
Electricity
Agriculture
- Malawi’s most important export crop is tobacco, which accounted for a third (30%) of export revenue in 2012. In 2000, the country was the tenth-largest producer in the world. The country’s heavy reliance on tobacco places a heavy burden on the economy as world prices decline and the international community increases pressure to limit tobacco production. Malawi’s dependence on tobacco is growing, with the product jumping from 53% to 70% of export revenues between 2007 and 2008.
- The country also relies heavily on tea, sugarcane and coffee, with these three plus tobacco making up more than 90% of Malawi’s export revenue. Tea was first introduced in 1878. Most of it is grown in Mulanje and Thyolo. Other crops include cotton, corn, potatoes, sorghum, cattle and goats. Tobacco and sugar processing are notable secondary industries.
Food and beverages
- Most fruits and vegetables are exported raw, while processed food is imported mainly from South Africa. Carlsberg opened its first brewery outside of Denmark in Blantyre in 1965. The brewery also bottles Coca-Cola products under licence. A mango processing plant for the export of fruit concentrate opened in Salima in 2013. Universal Industries operates several food factories in Blantyre, where it produces sweets, crisps, biscuits, milk powder, soy products and baby food. Coffee and tea are processed by half a dozen of different companies in the regions of Thyolo, Mulanje and around Mzuzu.
Pharmaceutical
- Malawi has four pharmaceutical companies. They manufacture a limited range of drugs, particularly those that are in great demand on the local market. These are Pharmanova Ltd., which is the biggest pharmaceutical manufacturer in Malawi, followed by SADM, Malawi Pharmacies (Pharmaceuticals Limited) and Kentam Products Limited.
Forestry
- Large man-made pine tree forests are located in the Viphya Mountains, around Mulanje and Zomba. Timber production for building materials and furniture is an important industry for these regions. However, most areas in Malawi suffer from deforestation due to illegal logging for charcoal production and the use of firewood.
Electricity
Malawi’s sole power supplier is the state owned Electricity Supply Commission of Malawi (ESCOM), which generates almost all its power from hydroelectric plants along the Shire River. The installed is approximately 351MW. About 12% of the country’s population has access to electricity, according to 2014 World Bank figures
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