Governance at a glance
- Government
- Unitary Presidential system
- UN member
- Yes
- Independent
- Yes
- CPI score (2026)
- 34/100
- Press freedom (2025)
- 59.2/100 #76
- Electoral democracy (2025)
- 0.557
- HDI
- 0.517
- Regional blocs
- AU
Government and leaders
- Government type
- Unitary Presidential system
| Title | Name |
|---|---|
| President of Malawi | Peter Mutharika |
| Vice-President of Malawi | Jane Ansah |
Safety and security
- Homicide rate (2012)
- 1.8/100k
- Traffic deaths (2019)
- 33.4/100k
- Military spending (2024)
- 1.0% of GDP
Corruption perceptions index
- CPI score (2026)
- 34 / 100
- Interpretation
- Significant corruption
Democracy index
- Electoral (2025)
- 0.557
- Liberal
- 0.462
- Participatory
- 0.366
- Deliberative
- 0.468
- Egalitarian
- 0.317
Press freedom index
- Overall score (2025)
- 59.2 / 100
- Global rank
- #76 / 180
- Rank change
- -13 vs previous year
- RSF zone
- Afrique
- Political #85
- 47.1
- Economic #96
- 40.7
- Legal #84
- 62.6
- Social #66
- 66.1
- Safety #85
- 79.5
Press freedom historical data
| Year | Score | Rank | Political | Economic | Legal | Social | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 59.2 | 76 | 47.1 | 40.7 | 62.6 | 66.1 | 79.5 |
| 2024 | 64.5 | 63 | 58.8 | 46.1 | 65.0 | 68.1 | 84.4 |
| 2023 | 60.3 | 82 | 52.6 | 47.6 | 66.6 | 60.2 | 74.7 |
| 2022 | 61.4 | 80 | 55.8 | 38.4 | 78.1 | 67.7 | 67.1 |
| 2021 | 71.2 | 62 | - | - | - | - | 82.1 |
| 2020 | 70.7 | 69 | - | - | - | - | 93.1 |
| 2019 | 70.6 | 68 | - | - | - | - | 86.1 |
| 2018 | 72.6 | 64 | - | - | - | - | 100.0 |
| 2017 | 71.0 | 70 | - | - | - | - | 100.0 |
| 2016 | 71.9 | 66 | - | - | - | - | 68.7 |
| 2015 | 73.6 | 59 | - | - | - | - | 100.0 |
| 2014 | 71.7 | 73 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2013 | 71.8 | 75 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2012 | 68.0 | 147 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2010 | 21.0 | 79 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2009 | 15.5 | 62 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2008 | 15.0 | 70 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2007 | 26.8 | 92 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2006 | 25.5 | 102 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2005 | 22.8 | 89 | - | - | - | - | - |