This is the fourth in a series of Key Facts sheets that IFPRI has produced based on the fifth Malawi Integrated Household Survey of 2019/20. The purpose of the series is to present data relevant to key policy issues on agriculture, food systems, and development topics in Malawi.
Highlights from this key facts sheet include:
- The proportion of people living below the poverty line declined by one percentage point between 2004 and 2019. In the same period, the incidence of extreme poverty declined by 2 percentage points.
- The depth of poverty declined between 2010 to 2019 at national, urban, and rural levels, implying that the average consumption expenditure of the poor is moving closer to the poverty line (the poor are becoming less poor).
- In contrast with the Northern and Southern regions, where the incidence of poverty declined over the survey years, the proportion of poor people in the Central region increased.
- With an incidence of poverty under 20%, Malawi’s 4 cities (Mzuzu, Lilongwe, Blantyre and Zomba) are considerably less poor than the rest of the country. Twelve districts have a poverty incidence of over 60%, with Mchinji district having the highest rate (68%).
- Based on the international poverty line, the incidence of poverty in Malawi was 68.5% as of 2018, making it the 6th poorest country in Africa.
Read and download the full key facts sheet: Poverty here (PDF 2419 KB)
Authors: Chimwemwe Banda and Jan Duchoslav
