Malawi

Overview

Malawi is a small country dominated by Lake Malawi with mountains, plateau and low lying plains to the northwest, west and south. The Lake stretches 360 miles along the western arm of the Great African Rift Valley. Its clear waters are home to perhaps the largest variety of fresh water fish in the world (600 to 1000 species) with white sandy beaches, offering excellent swimming, snorkelling and diving. The northern reaches of the Lake are most dramatic with steep escarpments rising 1500-2000m to the shoulders of the Rift Valley on either side. Nkhata Bay is perhaps the most popular lake resort in the north with Chintheche and Nkhotakota further south. Away from the Lake, a spectacular variety of wild animals can be seen on the almost uninhabited Nyika Plateaux and Nyika national park to the northwest. This area is covered by rolling grasslands, broken by wooded ravines and valleys rising to peaks of 2500m. with large herds of roan antelope, zebra, hartebeest, kudu, eland and more timid bushbuck and duiker. Leopards are common and hyena, jackal, porcupines, honey badgers and aardvark can also be seen. The main towns of the region are Mzuzu and Koronga. The central region, west of the Lake, is a broad plateau of over 1000m, largely given over to agriculture. The capital Lilongwe is located in this area. The original 'Old Town' features a bustling African market with many Asian shops restaurants and hotels, while the 'New Town' hosts rather dull Government, Diplomatic and commercial offices...more

History

Established in 1891, the British protectorate of Nyasaland became the independent nation of Malawi in 1964. After three decades of one-party rule under President Hastings Kamuzu BANDA the country held multiparty elections in 1994, under a provisional constitution, which came into full effect the following year. Current President Bingu wa MUTHARIKA, elected in May 2004 after the previous president failed to amend the constitution to permit another term, has struggled to assert his authority against his predecessor, who still leads their shared political party. MATHARIKA's anti-corruption efforts have led to several high-level arrests but no convictions. Increasing corruption, population growth, increasing pressure on agricultural lands, and HIV/AIDS pose major problems for the country.