Malawi is #8 in Top 10 Countries with the Highest HIV Infection Rates in the World
The Republic of Malawi is a democratic, densely populated country located in southeastern Africa
The Republic of Malawi is in southern Africa. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast and Mozambique, which surrounds it on the east, south and west and is separated from Malawi by Lake Malawi . The origin of the name Malawi is unclear; it is either derived from that of southern tribes, or from the "glitter of the sun rising across the lake" . Malawi is a densely populated country with a democratically-elected, presidential system of government.
History
Main article: History of Malawi
The area of Africa now known as Malawi was almost completely unpopulated before waves of Bantu immigrants began entering the area from the north around the 10th century. Although most of the Bantu continued south, some stayed as permanent settlers, founding tribes based on common ancestry. By 1500 AD, the tribes had established a kingdom that reached from north of what is now Nkhotakota to the Zambezi River and from Lake Malawi to the Luangwa River in what is now Zambia. Soon after 1600, with the area mostly united under one native ruler, native tribesmen began encountering, trading with and making alliances with Portuguese traders and members of the military. By 1700, however, the empire had reverted to the control of many individual tribes, which was noted by the Portuguese in their information gathering.
Malawi was originally known as Nyasaland under the rule of the British. In a prime example of what is sometimes called the "Thin White Line" of colonial authority in Africa, the colonial government of Nyasaland was formed in 1891. The administrators were given a budget of ?10,000 per year, which was enough to employ ten European civilians, two military officers, seventy Punjab Sikhs, and eighty-five Zanzibar porters. These few employees were then expected to administer and police a territory of around 94,000 square kilometers with between one and two million people.
In 1944 the Nyasaland African Congress was formed to promote African interests that normally played a subordinate role to the interests of European settlers
