Malawi Delights

ut 1,500 ft above sea level, is its most prominent physical feature. Much of the land surface is plateau between 900 to 1,220 m (3,000 to 4,000 ft) above sea level. Elevations rise to over 2,440 m (8,000 ft) in the Nyika Plateau in the north and in the regions of Mt. Zomba 2,135 m (7,000 ft). The Shire highlands in the south are lower with elevations from 610 m (2,000 ft) to 900 m (3,000 ft). To the north there are rugged highlands with rolling hills in the Nyika and Vwanza plateaux, whilst in the South, traversing the escarpment that forms part of the Great African Rift Valley, lie the lowlands of the Shire Valley. Lake Malawi is the county's centerpiece. Like an inland sea it has endless palm fringed beaches, enclosed by sheer mountains, making it undeniably the focal point for Malawi's tourists. Economy
Malawi's economy is largely based on agriculture which contributes about 40% of GDP but accounts for an estimated 85% of total employment and 90% of export earnings. Most farmers are subsistence smallholders who grow maize as their main crop. Malawi has some of the most fertile land in Southern Africa, but high population density, small size of farms, inadequate access to credit and high dependence on rainfall all act to constrain production. To***co, tea, coffee, and sugar are the leading export crops grown primarily on large commercial estates, with to***co alone representing about 60% of the country's total exports. The government recognises that future prospects for to***co exports are constrained by growing anti-smoking sentiment worldwide and world prices which have fallen sharply. However, efforts to date for diversifying into other cash crops have met with limited success. At the same time, industrial growth remains constrained by inadequate raw materials and poor transport infrastructure, as well as limited engineering skills, marketing capabilities and access to capital