2018 malawi population and housing census main report malawi... · table a1 population of malawi by...

MALAWI POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS REPORT - 2018

2018 Malawi Population and Housing

National Statistical OfficeMay 2019

Main Report


PREFACE The third Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS III) will be

implemented from 2017 to 2022. It is the fourth medium-term national

development strategy aligned to the country's long-term national development

aspirations, which are articulated in Vision 2020. The Government of Malawi

is fully cognizant of the need for quality statistics in policy formulation,

decision making, targeting of resources and in the monitoring and evaluation

of the MGDS III and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Government, through

the National Statistical office, conducts a Population and Housing Census (PHC) every 10 years

in order to address the data requirements of these frameworks.

Malawi has regularly participated in the United Nations Decennial Census programs and the

sixth and latest was the successful conduct of the Population and Housing Census by the National

Statistical Office (NSO) in September 2018. As a primary source of socio-economic and

demographic data, the Census provides the country with important information to foster national

development, good governance and decentralization.

I would like to acknowledge the support received from development partners and individuals

during the whole process of the census operation. Specifically, I wish to thank the United Nations

Population Fund (UNFPA) for providing funding, technical assistance and coordinating all

development partners. I wish to also thank DFID of the British Government, USAID of the US

Government, the Norwegian Government, GIZ from the German Government, the Irish Aid from

the Irish Government, the UN Family and the Standard Bank for providing financial resources

for the 2018 Population and Housing Census. My thanks are also extended to US Census Bureau

for providing technical support for the CAPI census and the Regional Centre for Mapping of

Resources for Development (RCMRD) based in Nairobi Kenya for providing technical support

for the census mapping

My thanks also go to other government ministries and departments for their cooperation and

support during the census process. Finally, I would like to thank staff from the National Statistical

Office for their professionalism and dedication; and all stakeholders who played a key role in

making the Census a success.

Cliff Chiunda Secretary to the Treasury

MALAWI POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS REPORT - 2018i

FOREWORD This report presents the main results of the 2018 Population and Housing

Census (PHC) that was conducted from 3 – 23 September 2018 by the

National Statistical Office (NSO). The Census enumeration was

successfully conducted by the large teams of enumerators and supervisors

after undergoing rigorous training prior to their deployment. The planning

and organizational structure put in place ensured good household coverage.

The 2018 PHC was the first one to be conducted on Computer Assisted Personal Interview

(CAPI) programme. The data was collected and captured on tablets and transmitted to the NSO

server electronically via internet. This process is very efficient and reduces time for data

processing and cleaning as these processes are done at data capture stage in the field.

The report presents basic results of the census: population size, composition and distribution;

population characteristics; population dynamics and household and housing characteristics.

In January 2018, NSO released the Preliminary Census Report, which provided a general picture

of the Malawi Population.

This report is the second of several reports that will be generated from the census data. These

include thematic analysis reports covering interalia fertility; mortality (including maternal

mortality); economic characteristics; migration; marital status and nuptiality; household and

housing conditions; gender; children and youth; elderly population, population with disability,

water and sanitation; education; population projections, and census implementation and

methodology. NSO will also produce district monographs, constituency reports, social atlas and

census data wheels.

I wish to acknowledge the dedication and professionalism portrayed by staff of the NSO in

handling the Census operation. My gratitude also goes to the Government, the cooperating

partners and the general public for the cooperation and support they rendered to make the Census

a success.

Mercy Kanyuka (Mrs) Commissioner of Statistics

MALAWI POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS REPORT - 2018iii


Table of contents PREFACE ................................................................................................................................................................. i FOREWORD .......................................................................................................................................................... iii Table of contents ...................................................................................................................................................... v List of Tables .......................................................................................................................................................... vii List of figures ......................................................................................................................................................... viii 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................. 1

1.1 Census overview ....................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Census management ................................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 The census questionnaire .......................................................................................................................... 2 1.4 Quality of census data ............................................................................................................................... 3 1.5 Organization of the report ......................................................................................................................... 3

2 POPULATION STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION ..................................................................................... 4 2.1 Population size.......................................................................................................................................... 4 2.2 Population growth .................................................................................................................................... 5 2.3 Sex ratio .................................................................................................................................................... 8 2.4 Population distribution ........................................................................................................................... 10

2.4.1 Spatial distribution ............................................................................................................................. 10 2.4.2 Urban population ................................................................................................................................ 11 2.4.3 Population density .............................................................................................................................. 13

2.5 Age and sex distribution ......................................................................................................................... 16 3 POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS ............................................................................................................ 17

3.1 Nationality .............................................................................................................................................. 17 3.2 Emigration .............................................................................................................................................. 17 3.3 Religious denomination .......................................................................................................................... 18 3.4 Population distribution by tribe .............................................................................................................. 20 3.5 Education characteristics ........................................................................................................................ 21

3.5.1 Literacy .............................................................................................................................................. 21 3.5.2 School attendance............................................................................................................................... 23 3.5.3 Out of school Children in primary and secondary school .................................................................. 25

3.6 Orphanhood ............................................................................................................................................ 26 3.7 Persons with disabilities ......................................................................................................................... 28 3.8 Economic activity ................................................................................................................................... 29

3.8.1 Working age population ..................................................................................................................... 29 3.8.2 Employment and unemployment ....................................................................................................... 29 Labour force participation rates (LFPR) .......................................................................................................... 30

4 HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS ........................................................................ 31 4.1 Number of households and average household size ............................................................................... 31 4.2 Housing units characteristics .................................................................................................................. 32

v


4.3 Housing units occupancy ........................................................................................................................ 33 4.4 Main source of energy used for lighting and cooking ............................................................................ 33 4.5 Source of drinking water ........................................................................................................................ 35 4.6 Type of toilet facility .............................................................................................................................. 36 4.7 Household means of communication ...................................................................................................... 37 4.8 Household means of transportation ........................................................................................................ 38 4.9 Household agricultural equipment .......................................................................................................... 38 4.10 Household appliances and furniture ....................................................................................................... 39 4.11 Household with Livestock ...................................................................................................................... 40 4.12 Household business ownership ............................................................................................................... 40

5 POPULATION DYNAMICS .......................................................................................................................... 42 5.1 Fertility ................................................................................................................................................... 42

5.1.1 Crude birth rate .................................................................................................................................. 42 5.1.2 Total fertility rate (TFR) .................................................................................................................... 42

5.2 Mortality ................................................................................................................................................. 44 5.2.1 Crude death rate ................................................................................................................................. 44

vi


List of Tables

Table 2.1: Total population 1966-2018 ..................................................................................................................... 4 Table 2.2 Intercensal annual growth rates .................................................................................................................. 6 Table 2.3: Sex ratio at regional and district levels, 1998, 2008 and 2018 .................................................................. 9 Table 2.4 Percentage distribution of population by region, urban, rural and district ............................................... 12 Table 2.5: Population density by region and district, 1987-2008 ............................................................................. 14 Table 3.1 Non-Malawian population by country of nationality ............................................................................... 17 Table 3.2 Distribution of non-return emigrant by country of destination, 2018 ...................................................... 18 Table 3.3: Distribution of non-return emigrants by reasons of leaving Malawi, 2018 ............................................. 18 Table 3.4: Population distribution by religious denomination, 2018 ....................................................................... 19 Table 3.5 Population distribution by tribe, 2018 ...................................................................................................... 20 Table 3.6 Population aged 5 years and older by literacy status, sex and region, 2018 ............................................. 22 Table 3.7 Distribution of persons aged 5 years and older by school attendance, 2018 ............................................ 24 Table 3.8: Population age 6 to 17 years in school and out of school, 2018 ............................................................. 25 Table 3.9 Orphaned children by region, 2018. ......................................................................................................... 26 Table 3.10 Distribution of persons age 0-17 years and orphaned children by region and district, 2018. ................ 27 Table 3.11: Distribution of the population aged 5 years and older with at list one type of disability, 2018 ............ 28 Table 3.12 Working age population by sex, 2018 .................................................................................................... 29 Table 4.1: Distribution households and household size by region, 2008 and 2018 ................................................. 31 Table 4.2: Type of housing units, 2018 .................................................................................................................... 32 Table 4.3: Housing units occupancy, 2018 .............................................................................................................. 33 Table 4.4: Households by main source of energy used for lighting and Cooking, 2018 .......................................... 34 Table 4.5 : Number and Percentage of population by main source of drinking water during dry season, 2018 ..... 35 Table 4.6 : Number and percentage of population by type of toilet facility, 2018 .................................................. 36 Table 4.7 : Number and percentage of households by means of communication, 2018 ......................................... 37 Table 4.8 Percentage of households by means of transportation, 2018 .................................................................. 38 Table 4.9 : Percentage of households by agricultural equipment, 2018 ................................................................... 39 Table 4.10 : Percentage of households by appliances and furniture, 2018 .............................................................. 39 Table 4.11 Percentage of households with livestock, 2018 .................................................................................... 40 Table 5.1: Number of women aged 15-49 years and number of births in the last 12 months to the census and Age Specific Fertility Rates (ASFR) ............................................................................................................................... 43 Table 5.2 : Total population and number of death by, 2018 .................................................................................. 44

vii


List of figures

Figure 2.1: Annual intercensal growth rates 1966-2018 ............................................................................................ 4 Figure 2.2: Map of Malawi showing annual growth rates by district 2008-2018 ...................................................... 7 Figure 2.3: Sex ratios by region, 1998, 2008 and 2018 .............................................................................................. 8 Figure 2.4: Distribution of population by region, urban and rural, 1998-2018 ........................................................ 10 Figure 2.5: Map of Malawi showing Population Density by district, 2018 ............................................................. 15 Figure 2.6: Population pyramid of Malawi .............................................................................................................. 16 Figure 3.1: Population distribution by religious denomination, 2018 ...................................................................... 19 Figure 3.2: Population distribution by tribe, 2018 ................................................................................................... 21 Figure 3.3: Percentage of population aged 5 years and older by sex and region, 2018 ............................................ 22 Figure 3.4 Percentage of literacy rates by district, 2018 .......................................................................................... 23 Figure 3.5: Percentage of persons 5-29 years never attended school by age and sex, 2018 .................................... 24 Figure 3.6 Out of school children in primary and secondary school ........................................................................ 25 Figure 3.7 Orphaned children by Region, 2018 ....................................................................................................... 26 Figure 3.8: Labour force participation rate by urban, rural and region, 2018 .......................................................... 30 Figure 4.1: Average household size by region, 2008 and 2018 ............................................................................... 32 Figure 4.2 Household by main source of energy for lighting, 2018 ......................................................................... 33 Figure 4.3 Households by main source of energy for lighting by region, 2018 ....................................................... 34 Figure 4.4 : Percentage of households with business by core business activities, 2018 .......................................... 41 Figure 5.2 : Age specific fertility rates (ASFR), 2008 and 2018 ............................................................................. 43 Figure 5.3 : Crude deaths rates for 2018 and 2008 .................................................................................................. 44

viii


List of figures

Figure 2.1: Annual intercensal growth rates 1966-2018 ............................................................................................ 4 Figure 2.2: Map of Malawi showing annual growth rates by district 2008-2018 ...................................................... 7 Figure 2.3: Sex ratios by region, 1998, 2008 and 2018 .............................................................................................. 8 Figure 2.4: Distribution of population by region, urban and rural, 1998-2018 ........................................................ 10 Figure 2.5: Map of Malawi showing Population Density by district, 2018 ............................................................. 15 Figure 2.6: Population pyramid of Malawi .............................................................................................................. 16 Figure 3.1: Population distribution by religious denomination, 2018 ...................................................................... 19 Figure 3.2: Population distribution by tribe, 2018 ................................................................................................... 21 Figure 3.3: Percentage of population aged 5 years and older by sex and region, 2018 ............................................ 22 Figure 3.4 Percentage of literacy rates by district, 2018 .......................................................................................... 23 Figure 3.5: Percentage of persons 5-29 years never attended school by age and sex, 2018 .................................... 24 Figure 3.6 Out of school children in primary and secondary school ........................................................................ 25 Figure 3.7 Orphaned children by Region, 2018 ....................................................................................................... 26 Figure 3.8: Labour force participation rate by urban, rural and region, 2018 .......................................................... 30 Figure 4.1: Average household size by region, 2008 and 2018 ............................................................................... 32 Figure 4.2 Household by main source of energy for lighting, 2018 ......................................................................... 33 Figure 4.3 Households by main source of energy for lighting by region, 2018 ....................................................... 34 Figure 4.4 : Percentage of households with business by core business activities, 2018 .......................................... 41 Figure 5.2 : Age specific fertility rates (ASFR), 2008 and 2018 ............................................................................. 43 Figure 5.3 : Crude deaths rates for 2018 and 2008 .................................................................................................. 44

List of Statistical Tables

Series A: Population Tables ........................................................................................................................... 47Table A1 Population of Malawi by Sex at National, Regional and District Levels, 2008 and 2018Table A2 Population of Malawi by Household Residential Status by Age Group, Sex and Urban/Rural, 2018Table A3 Population of Malawi by Sex for Urban/Rural at National, Region and District, 2018Table A4 Population of Malawi by Region, Age, 2018 Table A5 Population of Malawi in single years by Urban/Rural and Sex, at National and Regional Levels,

2018 Table A6 Population by Age Group at Regional and District levels, 2018 Table A7 Population by 5 year age group, region, district and traditional authority (TA)Table A8 Non-Malawian Population by Nationality, Urban and Rural, 2018

Series B: Fertility Tables ................................................................................................................................ 94Table B1 Population of Women aged 15 - 49 years, Number of Children Born Alive in the 12 Months Prior to

the Census, Children Still Living and Children Dead by Age group and Region, 2018Table B2 Population of Women aged 15 - 49 years, Number of Children Born Alive in the 12 Months Prior to

the Census, Children Still Living and Children Dead by Age group and Urban and Rural, 2018Table B3 Population of Women aged 15 - 49 years, Number of Children Born Alive in the 12 Months Prior to

the Census, Children Still Living and Children Dead by Age group and Marital Status, 2018Table B4 Population of Women aged 15 - 49 years, Number of Children Born Alive in the 12 Months Prior to

the Census, Children Still Living and Children Dead by Age group and level of Education, 2018Table B5 Population of Women aged 15 - 49 years, Number of Children Born Alive in the 12 Months Prior to

the Census, Children Still Living and Children Dead by Age group and Economic Status, 2018

Series C: Education Tables .......................................................................................................................... 97Table C1 Population (5 Years and Older) by School Attendance at National, Regional and District levels,

Malawi, 2018 Table C2 Population (5 Years and Older) by Age, Sex, and School Attendance, 2018Table C3 Population (5 Years and Older) by Sex and Literacy Status, Region and District, 2018Table C4 Population (5 Years and Older) by Sex and Highest Qualification, Region and District, 2018Table C5 Population 3 years and Older by School Attendance, Highest Level of School Attended, Region and

District, 2018Table C6 Population 3 years and Older by Primary School Attendance, Sex, Region and District, 2018Table C7 Population 3 years and Older by Secondary School Attendance, Sex, Region and District, 2018

Series D: Economic Tables .......................................................................................................................... 109Table D1 Population aged 15-64 years by Age, Economically Active and Inactive, and Sex, 2018Table D2 Population aged 15 - 64 years by Economically Active and Inactive, Sex, Urban and Rural, Region

and District, 2018Table D3 Population aged 15 - 64 years by Economically Active and Inactive, Sex, Age Group, Urban and

Rural, 2018Table D4 Population 15-64 Years by Age group, Sex and Unemployment Status, 2018Table D5 Population Aged 15-64 Years by Sex, Age, Labour Force, and Economically Inactive Persons, 2018Table D6 Population Aged 15-64 Years by Total Labour Force, Urban and Rural and Economically Inactive,

2018Table D7 Population Aged 15-64 Years by Industry, Sex and Employment Status, 2018Table D8 Population Aged 15-64 by Industry, Urban and Rural and Sex, 2018Table D9 Population Aged 15-64 Years by Occupation, Urban/Rural Location and Sex, 2018

ix


Series E: Social Tables ............................................................................................................................... 122Table E1 Population Aged 0-17 with and without Birth Certificates by Age, Urban and Rural and Sex, 2018 Table E2 Population Aged 16 Years and Over with and without National ID by Age , Urban and Rural and

Sex, 2018 Table E3 Malawian Population by Tribe, Region, Urban and Rural, 2018Table E4 Malawian Population byTribe, Region and District, 2018Table E5 Population of Malawi by Denomination, Region, and District, 2018Table E6 Population aged 12 years and over by Age Group, Marital Status, Sex, Urban and Rural, 2018Table E7 Population aged 12 years and over by Marital Status, Sex, Region and District, 2018Table E8 Total Population of Age 12 years and above by Age at First Marriage And Current Age, 2018Table E9 Population Ever married aged 12 years and over by Region, Districts and Age at first Marriage,

2018

Series F: Migration Tables .......................................................................................................................... 152Table F1 Total Population by Sex, Malawian and Non Malawian Nationals, and Place of Birth within or

outside Malawi, Region and District, 2018Table F2 Total Population by Sex, Place of Birth, and Region of Enumeration, 2018Table F3 Total Population by Sex, Malawian and Non Malawian Nationals, and Place of Birth within or

outside Malawi, Region and District, 2018

Series G: Disability Tables ......................................................................................................................... 174Table G1 Population 5 years and older with Difficulty in Seeing, Hearing, Walking, Speech Impairment,

Intellectual and Self Care by Region and Sex, 2018Table G2 Population 5 years and older with Difficulty in Seeing, Hearing, Walking, Speech Impairment,

Intellectual and Self Care by Age and Sex, 2018Table G3 Population 5 years and older with Difficulty in Seeing and Cause by Region and District, 2018Table G4 Total Population, Persons with Albinism and Epilepsy by Sex, Region and District, 2018Table G5 Total Population, Persons with Albinism and Epilepsy by Sex, Age group, Urban and Rural, 2018Table G6 Total Population 5 years and Older and Population with Disability by Sex, Urban and Rural, Region

and District, 2018Table G7 Population 15 Years and Older with Disability by Urban and Rural, Sex, Age and Occupation, 2018Table G8 Population 15 Years and Older with Disability by Urban and Rural, Sex, Age and Occupation, 2018

Series H: Orphanhood Tables ...................................................................................................................... 204Table H1 Children aged 0 -17 years and Orphans by Sex, Urban and Rural, and Age group, 2018Table H2 Children aged 0 - 17 years and Orphans by Sex, Region and District, 2018Table H3 Orphans aged 0 -17 years and Type of Orphanhood by Sex, Region and Age group, 2018Table H4 Total Orphans aged 3 years and older and School Attendance by Sex, Region and District, 2018Table H5 Orphans 0 -17 years by ownership of Birth certificate, Sex, Age and Urban and Rural, 2018

Series I: Housing and Household Tables ................................................................................................... 211Table I1 Number of Households by Region, District and Sex of Household Head, 2018Table I2 Number of Housing Units, Type of Housing Unit, Region and District, 2018 Table I3 Population by Type of Dwelling Unit, Region and District, 2018 Table I4 Number of Housing Units by Type of Occupancy, Region and District, 2018 Table I5 Population by Type of Occupancy, Region and District, 2018 Table I6 Number of Sleeping Rooms by Households Region and District 2018Table I7 Population by Number of Sleeping Rooms in Dwelling Units by Region and District, 2018Table I8 Number of Rooms in Dwelling Units by Region and District, 2018Table I9 Number of Sleeping Rooms in Dwelling Units by Region and District, 2018Table I10 Number of Households by Main Source of Energy for Lighting, Region and District, 2018Table I11 Population by Main Source of Energy for Lighting, Region and Didtrict, 2018

x


Table I12 Number of Households by Main Source of Energy for Cooking and Heating, Region and District, 2018

Table I13 Population by main Source of Energy for Cooking and Heating, Region and District, 2018Table I14 Number of Households by main Source of Drinking Water for Household in Dry Season, Region

and District, 2018Table I15 Population by Source of Drinking Water in Dry Season by Region and District, 2018Table I16 Number of Households by Source of Drinking Water in Wet Season, Region and District, 2018Table I17 Population by Source of Water in Wet Season, Region and District, 2018Table I18 Number of Household Ownership of Assets and Access to Internet Region and District, 2018Table I19 Population by Ownership of Assets and Access to Internet, Region and District, 2018Table I20 Number of Households by Type of Toilet Facility Region and District, 2018Table I21 Population by Type of Toilet Facility used Region and District, 2018Table I22 Number of Households with Livestock, Malawi, Region, and District, 2018Table I23 Population of Livestock by Region and District, 2018 Table I24 Households by Source of Livelihood Region and District, 2018Table I25 Population by Source of Livelihood Region and District, 2018Table I26 Number of Households Received Assistance and Source of Assistance Region and District, 2018Table I27 Population that Received Assistance and Source of Assistance Region and District, 2018Table I28 Number of Households Saving and Method of Saving Region and District, 2018Table I29 Population Saving and Method of Saving Region and District, 2018Table I30 Number of Households Access to Credit by Source of Credit Region and District, 2018Table I31 Population in Regular Households Access to Credit by Source of Credit Region and District, 2018Table I32 Households by Method of Waste Disposal Region and District, 2018Table I33 Population in Households by Method of Waste Disposal, 2018

Series J: Business Tables ............................................................................................................................. 259Table J1 Number of Households with Businesses by District, Urban and Rural, Registration Office, 2018Table J2 Number of Households with Businesses by Sex of Household Head and Industry , 2018Table J3 Number of Households with Businesses by Region, Urban and Rural and Core Business Activity ,

2018

Series K: Mortality Tables ........................................................................................................................... 262Table K1 Total Population and Deaths within 12 Months Prior to the Census by Sex, Age group, Urban and

Rural, 2018Table K2 Total Population and Deaths within 12 Months Prior to the Census by Region, Sex and Age group,

2018Table K3 Total Number of Women Aged 12 - 49 years and Maternal Deaths within 12 Months Prior to the

Census by Age group, 2018Table K4 Population of Women aged 12 years and older, Number of Children Ever Born Alive, Children Still

Living and Children Dead by Age and Region, 2018Table K5 Population of Women aged 12 years and older, Number of Children Ever Born Alive, Children Still

Living and Children Dead by Region and District, 2018Table K6 Population of Women aged 12 years and older, Number of Children Ever Born Alive, Children Still

Living and Children Dead, by Age, Urban and Rural, 2018Table K7 Distribution of Women by Number of Children Ever Born, Total Number of Children Ever Born,

Mean Number of Children Ever Born, and Region, 2018Table K8 Distribution of Women by Number of Children Ever Born, Total Number of Children Ever Born,

Mean Number of Children Ever Born, and Urban and Rural, 2018Table K9 Distribution of Women by Number of Children Ever Born, Total Number of Children Ever Born,

Mean Number of Children Ever Born, and Region and District, Malawi, 2018

xi


Series L: Emigration Tables ....................................................................................................................... 278Table L1 Emigrant Sex by Region and District, 2018 Table L2 Emigrant Sex and Age by Region and Rural and Urban, 2018 Table L3 Population that emigrated 10 years prior to census by Urban and Rural, Sex, Country of

Destination, 2018Table L4 Population that Emigrated 10 years prior to Census by Urban and Rural, Sex, Activity, 2018 Table L5 Population that emigrated 10 years prior to census by Region, Urban and Rural, year of departure,

2018

2018 Population and Housing Census Questionnaire ..................................................................................... 283

Census tabulation and report writing team ..................................................................................................... 299

xii

1 MALAWI POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS REPORT - 2018

1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Census overview The 2018 Population and Housing Census (PHC) is the sixth in the series of conducting

censuses in Malawi and it falls under the 2020 round of World population censuses

advocated by the United Nations. The first census in Malawi was conducted in 1966 with

the subsequent ones being conducted in 1977, 1987, 1998 and 2008. Malawi decided to

conduct a Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) census for the first time, a shift

from previous censuses which were conducted using Pen and Paper for data collection. This

entailed thorough preparations from questionnaire and programme design, tool testing,

piloting through to training. National Statistical Office (NSO), implementers of Population

and Housing Censuses in Malawi received technical assistance from the US Census Bureau

who provided technical support for designing a CAPI based census.

The main census process started in 2016 with the drafting of the Main Census Project

Document which was approved by the Cabinet the same year. Prior to this, the Census

Mapping Strategy was developed in 2015 and implementation started the same year.

National Statistical Office conducted census mapping using satellite imagery, the first such

maps to be produced for the whole country. The country was demarcated into Enumeration

Area (EAs) in the computer lab and teams were only sent to the field to verify physical

features. Technical support for census mapping was provided by the Regional Centre for

Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) based in Nairobi, Kenya, a regional

mapping group to which Malawi is a member state.

The design of the questionnaire and CAPI programming started in January 2017. The

programme was pretested three times in June and July 2017 and in April 2018. The CAPI

census was piloted in September 2017 exactly one year prior to the main census. The pilot

census was a dry run of the main census aimed at assessing the completeness of preparations

from technical, to logistical and administrative arrangements. Another key component for

the success of the census was community mobilization and census publicity. The 2018 PHC

publicity and count down campaign was launched by the Minister of Finance, Economic

Planning and Development Honorable Goodall Gondwe in June 2018. Various campaign

tools ware utilized including use of airing of jingles, radio theatre, radio feature programmes,

2MALAWI POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS REPORT - 2018

television adverts, TV debates and live phone-in programmes, newspaper publications and

adverts, printing and distribution of IEC materials which culminated into the community

sensitization week, one week prior to the recruitment of enumerators. Training of

enumerators was conducted between 27th August and 1st September 2018. Field

enumeration was conducted between 3rd and 23rd September 2018. Data was captured

electronically on tablets by Enumerators and was transmitted by Control Centre Supervisors

through a private internet connection directly to the server at NSO.

1.2 Census management The census implementation was highly decentralized with each of the 42 census districts

acting like an autonomous structure. The district was manned by two District Supervisors,

one from NSO and the other from the District Commissioner’s (DC) Office. Below the

census district were Control Centres which were manned by Control Centre Supervisors.

There was a total of 485 Control Centres across the country. Each Control Centre Supervisor

was supervising about 8 Field Supervisors who were in turn supervising around 5

Enumerators each. In total each Control Centre Supervisor had 40 Enumerators and 8 Field

Supervisors. There was a total of 18,772 enumerators manning the same number of

Enumeration Areas (EAs) and 3,791 Field Supervisors in this census. At the national level,

a Steering Committee was constituted chaired by the Minister of Finance, Economic

Planning and Development. The Steering Committee provided direction for the census and

acted as an overseer for the census activities and was very instrumental in resource

mobilization.

1.3 The census questionnaire The questionnaire development was a very consultative process where stakeholders were

consulted on questions they would like to be included in the census bearing in mind the need

to keep the questionnaire short. Topics included in the questionnaire were among others:

household member characteristics like age, sex, literacy and education, migration, mortality,

fertility, economic activities, and disability and housing characteristics. For disability, a set

of questions recommended by the Washington Group on Disability was used. The 2018 PHC

also included questions on albinism and household business activities.


1.4 Quality of census data It was recognized that data quality enhances credibility of census and ensures that

decision- making process is more effective. Efforts were therefore made at ensuring that

the quality of census data was not compromised at critical stages of census

implementation. Specifically, it was necessary to ensure that quality was not compromised

due to use of poor maps, untested methodologies/instruments, inadequate supervision,

poor training, inadequate support from the general public and inadequacies in data

processing.

A number of strategies were therefore put in place to address issues mentioned above.

These strategies involved the demarcation of the country into small administration areas

to ensure complete coverage; preparation of comprehensive supervisors’ and enumerator’

manuals and most importantly CAPI manual; pretesting and piloting questionnaires and

other procedures; providing adequate training to all staff involved in census activities,

more especially enumerators; providing adequate publicity in order to gain public support;

and undertaking key data edits immediately after receiving data from the field.

1.5 Organization of the report

The report is organized into five chapters. Chapter 1: Introduction which includes

background to the census. Chapter 2: Population structure and composition, which

includes population size, population growth since 1966; intercensal population growth

rates, sex ratios, population distribution that is spatial distribution, urban population,

population density and age sex distribution. Chapter 3: Population characteristics covering

nationality, emigration, religion denomination, tribe, education characteristics, persons

with disabilities, orphanhood, and economic activities. Chapter 4: Household and housing

characteristics covering household size housing units characteristics and occupancy, main

source of emerged used for lighting and cooking, source of water for drinking, type of

toilet facility, household means of communication and transportation, household

agricultural equipment, appliances, furniture, livestock and business ownership. Chapter

5: Population dynamics covering fertility and mortality


2 POPULATION STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION 2.1 Population size The Population of 2018 is almost 4 times the size of the population of the 1966 and 1.3 times

of the 2008 census. The total population increased by 35 percent between 2008 and 2018

representing an intercensal growth rate of 2.9 percent per annum. With this growth rate, the

population is expected to double in 2042. Table 2.1 and Figure 2.1 show intercensal population growth rates from 1966 to 2018 for all the censuses conducted since

independence. The general trend is that the population growth rate has remained high in

Malawi except for 1987 to 1998 when the country experienced mass repatriation of refugees

to Mozambique.

Table 2.1: Total population 1966-2018

Year of Census Total PopulationAverage Annual/Intercensal

Growth Rate 1966 4,039,583 3.3 1977 5,547,460 2.9 1987 7,988,507 3.7 1998 9,933,868 2.0 2008 13,077,160 2.8 2018 17,563,749 2.9

Figure 2.1: Annual intercensal growth rates 1966-2018

3.3

2.9

3.7

2.0

2.8 2.9

1 9 6 6 1 9 7 7 1 9 8 7 1 9 9 8 2 0 0 8 2 0 1 8


2.2 Population growth Table 2.2 shows intercensal annual growth rates and intercensal population increase for the period, 2008 – 2018, at national, regional and district levels. At regional level, Central

Region had the highest intercensal growth rate of 3.1 percent per annum followed by the

Northern Region at 3.0 percent and Southern Region at 2.7 percent. Among the cities, Mzuzu

city experienced the highest intercensal growth rate at 5.4 percent followed by Lilongwe city

at 3.8 percent, Zomba city at 2.5 percent and Blantyre city at 2.0 percent.

At district level, Machinga had the highest intercensal growth rate of 3.9 percent followed

by Mangochi at 3.6 percent while Thyolo had the lowest intercensal population growth rate

of 2.0 percent.


Table 2.2 Intercensal annual growth rates

Region and District Intercensal Annual Growth Rate (percent)

2008-2018 Intercensal Population Increase

2008-2018 Total Male Female Total Male Female

Malawi 2.9 2.8 3.0 4,534,251 2,150,521 2,383,730

Northern 3.0 3.0 3.0 607,469 293,598 313,871

Chitipa 2.8 2.8 2.7 58,092 28,680 29,412 Karonga 3.2 3.1 3.2 100,916 48,127 52,789 Nkhata Bay 2.8 2.8 2.7 70,366 34,612 35,754 Rumphi 3.1 3.1 3.2 62,701 30,384 32,317 Mzimba 2.6 2.6 2.6 217,848 104,990 112,858 Likoma 3.0 3.3 2.6 3,813 2,090 1,723 Mzuzu City 5.4 5.2 5.6 93,733 44,715 49,018

Central 3.1 3.0 3.2 2,028,908 965,520 1,063,388 Kasungu 2.9 2.8 3.0 219,361 105,101 114,260 Nkhotakota 2.7 2.6 2.9 96,657 45,343 51,314 Ntchisi 3.5 3.4 3.5 94,695 45,546 49,149 Dowa 3.1 3.1 3.2 212,720 102,076 110,644 Salima 3.4 3.3 3.5 140,418 66,475 73,943 Lilongwe 2.8 2.7 2.9 404,611 189,953 214,658 Mchinji 2.7 2.6 2.9 147,721 69,166 78,555 Dedza 2.8 2.7 2.8 204,684 95,572 109,112 Ntcheu 3.3 3.4 3.2 188,255 93,020 95,235 Lilongwe City 3.8 3.6 4.0 319,786 153,268 166,518

Southern 2.7 2.7 2.8 1,897,874 891,403 1,006,471 Mangochi 3.6 3.5 3.7 352,575 163,270 189,305 Machinga 3.9 3.8 4.0 240,603 112,287 128,316 Zomba 2.5 2.5 2.5 167,958 79,650 88,308 Chiradzulu 2.1 2.2 2.1 69,271 33,704 35,567 Blantyre 2.8 2.8 2.8 111,814 53,719 58,095 Mwanza 3.4 3.5 3.4 38,712 18,933 19,779 Thyolo 2.0 1.9 2.0 130,984 58,945 72,039 Mulanje 2.6 2.7 2.6 160,158 77,545 82,613 Phalombe 3.0 3.1 2.9 114,265 56,561 57,704 Chikwawa 2.5 2.3 2.6 126,792 58,376 68,416 Nsanje 2.1 1.9 2.3 58,061 24,819 33,242 Balaka 3.2 3.1 3.2 121,805 56,939 64,866 Neno 2.4 2.4 2.4 29,952 14,606 15,346 Zomba City 2.5 2.3 2.7 23,512 10,777 12,735 Blantyre City 2.0 1.9 2.2 151,412 71,272 80,140


Figure 2.2: Map of Malawi showing annual growth rates by district 2008-2018


2.3 Sex ratio Sex ratio is defined as the number of males per 100 females. Figure 2.3 shows the sex ratio for 1998, 2008 and 2018 at national and regional levels. In 2018 the sex ratio was

94.2 at national level. At regional level the sex ratio was 94.8 for the Northern Region, 95.7

Central Region and 92.6 for Southern Region.

Figure 2.3: Sex ratios by region, 1998, 2008 and 2018


Table 2.3 further shows that the four cities of Lilongwe, Blantyre, Mzuzu and Zomba had more males than females. The table also shows that there were more females in the rural

areas of the country. Almost similar patterns were observed in the 1998 and 2008 censuses.

Table 2.3: Sex ratio at regional and district levels, 1998, 2008 and 2018

Region/DistrictSex ratio

1998 2008 2018 Malawi 96.1 94.7 94.2 Northern Region 95.2 94.3 94.8 Chitipa 91.8 93.1 94.9 Karonga 92.8 93.7 93.3 Nkhata Bay 94.8 94.8 95.9 Rumphi 97.2 97.0 96.7 Mzimba 95.1 93.1 94.1 Likoma 85.9 89.4 98.3 Mzuzu City 106.4 100.6 96.8

Central Region 98.3 96.6 95.7

Kasungu 106.5 99.6 98.0 Nkhotakota 100.2 98.7 96.1 Ntchisi 99.2 95.7 95.4 Dowa 98.2 96.5 95.9 Salima 96.7 95.5 94.1 Lilongwe 95.4 95.2 94.5 Mchinji 102.0 99.2 97.1 Dedza 89.8 91.0 91.1 Ntcheu 90.2 91.0 93.9 Lilongwe City 110.8 104.7 101.0

Southern Region 94.4 92.9 92.6

Mangochi 92.5 91.2 90.4 Machinga 91.7 90.7 91.2 Zomba 94.7 91.3 91.5 Chiradzulu 89.3 88.3 90.6 Blantyre 96.1 93.6 93.9 Mwanza 93.4 92.6 94.2 Thyolo 90.8 90.0 89.5 Mulanje 88.3 87.9 90.6 Phalombe 89.0 90.1 93.1 Chikwawa 99.9 98.4 96.2 Nsanje 94.0 93.8 92.3 Balaka 91.2 92.0 91.3 Neno 95.6 93.9 95.0 Zomba City 106.9 91.3 96.7 Blantyre City 109.9 103.4 100.5


2.4 Population distribution

2.4.1 Spatialdistribution

Figure 2.4 shows population distribution by region, urban and rural areas. The Southern Region had the highest population with 44 percent of the total population. Central Region is

the second most populous with 43 percent while Northern Region constitutes 13 percent of

the total population.

Table 2.4 shows population distribution by region, urban, rural and district. Lilongwe rural had the highest proportion of the population at 9.3 percent followed by Mangochi at 6.5

percent and Mzimba 5.4 percent. Likoma had the smallest proportion at 0.1 percent

followed by Neno at 0.8 percent and Rumphi 1.3 percent.

Among the four cities, Lilongwe city constituted 5.6 percent of the total population, Blantyre

city 4.6 percent, while Mzuzu city and Zomba city constituted 1.3 percent and 0.6 percent

respectively.

Figure 2.4: Distribution of population by region, urban and rural, 1998-2018


2.4.2 Urbanpopulation

In Malawi, Urban Areas refer to the four major cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu and

Zomba and other towns and Bomas, and gazetted town planning areas. Table 2.4 shows that 16 percent of the population resided in the urban areas of the country in 2018. Of the

total urban population, 12 percent resided in the four major cities and 4 percent resided in

the other towns and Bomas. Urban population in Malawi has been on the increase from

about 850,000 in 1987 to 1.4 million in 1998 to 2.0 million in 2008 to 2.8 million in 2018.

However, the proportionate increase as a proportion of the national population has been

marginal rising from 14.4 percent in 1998 to 15.3 percent in 2008 to 16 percent in 2018.


Table 2.4 Percentage distribution of population by region, urban, rural and district 1998, 2008 and 2018

District/Region Year of the Census

1998 2008 2018 Malawi 100 100 100Urban 14.4 15.3 16.0Rural 85.6 84.7 84.0Northern Region 12.4 13.1 13.0

Chitipa 1.3 1.4 1.3 Karonga 2.0 2.1 2.1Nkhata Bay 1.7 1.7 1.6Rumphi 1.3 1.3 1.3Mzimba 5.3 5.6 5.4Likoma 0.1 0.1 0.1Mzuzu City 0.9 1.0 1.3

Central Region 40.9 42.1 42.8 Kasungu 4.8 4.8 4.8Nkhotakota 2.3 2.3 2.2Ntchisi 1.7 1.7 1.8Dowa 4.1 4.3 4.4Salima 2.5 2.6 2.7Lilongwe Rural 9.1 9.4 9.3Mchinji 3.3 3.5 3.4Dedza 4.9 4.8 4.7Ntcheu 3.7 3.6 3.8Lilongwe City 4.4 5.2 5.6

Southern Region 46.6 44.8 44.1 Mangochi 6.1 6.1 6.5Machinga 3.7 3.8 4.2Zomba Rural 5.5 4.4 4.3Chiradzulu 2.4 2.2 2.0Blantyre Rural 3.1 2.6 2.6Mwanza 0.6 0.7 0.7Thyolo 4.6 4.5 4.1Mulanje 4.3 4.0 3.9Phalombe 2.3 2.4 2.4Chikwawa 3.6 3.3 3.2Nsanje 2.0 1.8 1.7Balaka 2.5 2.4 2.5Neno 0.8 0.8 0.8Zomba City 0.7 0.7 0.6Blantyre City 5.1 5.1 4.6


2.4.3 Populationdensity

Population density is the measurement of average number of persons per square kilometer.

Table 2.5 gives population density by region and district for 2008 and 2018. The population density for the country increased from 138 persons per square kilometer in

2008 to 186 persons per square kilometer in 2018. Across the regions, there were more

persons per square kilometer in the Southern Region (244) followed by Central region

(211) and Northern region (84). Among the districts, Likoma had the highest population

density of 726 persons per square kilometer, Chiradzulu and Thyolo had 469 and 433

persons per square kilometer respectively. Rumphi district had the lowest population

density of 50 persons per square kilometer followed by Chitipa with 54 persons per square

kilometer as shown in Figure 2.5.


Table 2.5: Population density by region and district, 1987-2008

Region/District Land Area Population Census Population Density(Sq. Km.) 2008 2018 2008 2018Malawi 94,552 13,029,498 17,563,749 138 186 Northern Region 27,131 1,679,491 2,289,780 62 84 Chitipa 4,334 176,835 234,927 41 54 Karonga 3,416 264,112 365,028 77 107 Nkhata Bay 4,182 215,429 284,681 52 68 Rumphi 4,560 166,460 229,161 37 50 Mzimba 10,473 718,402 940,184 69 90 Likoma 20 10,714 14,527 536 726 Mzuzu City 146 127,539 221,272 874 1,516 Central Region 35,641 5,497,252 7,523,340 154 211 Kasungu 8,017 623,592 842,953 78 105 Nkhotakota 4,338 299,240 393,077 69 91 Ntchisi 1,709 222,374 317,069 130 186 Dowa 3,077 559,849 772,569 182 251 Salima 2,151 337,928 478,346 157 222 Lilongwe 5,808 1,232,972 1,637,583 212 282 Mchinji 3,131 454,584 602,305 145 192 Dedza 3,754 625,828 830,512 167 221 Ntcheu 3,251 471,353 659,608 145 203 Lilongwe City 403 669,532 989,318 1,661 2,455 Southern Region 31,780 5,852,755 7,750,629 184 244 Mangochi 6,729 796,036 1,148,611 118 171 Machinga 3,582 494,835 735,438 138 205 Zomba 2,363 578,766 746,724 245 316 Chiradzulu 761 287,604 356,875 378 469 Blantyre 1,785 339,406 451,220 190 253 Mwanza 756 92,237 130,949 122 173 Thyolo 1,666 590,472 721,456 354 433 Mulanje 2,005 523,949 684,107 261 341 Phalombe 1,323 315,185 429,450 238 325 Chikwawa 4,878 437,892 564,684 90 116 Nsanje 1,945 241,107 299,168 124 154 Balaka 2,142 316,574 438,379 148 205 Neno 1,561 108,339 138,291 69 89 Zomba City 42 81,501 105,013 1,941 2,500 Blantyre City 240 648,852 800,264 2,704 3,334


Figure 2.5: Map of Malawi showing Population Density by district, 2018


2.5 Age and sex distribution

The census shows that in Malawi 2.6 million people were aged under-five years, 6.3

million people were aged between 5 and 17 years and about 8.7 million were aged 18 years

or more.

Proportionately, the census results revealed that about 3 percent of the total population in

Malawi comprised infants aged less than 1 year, 15 percent were aged under-five years

and about 49 percent were aged 18 years or older, while a further 4 percent were aged 65

years or older. The median age of the population in Malawi is 17 years. The age and sex

pyramid shows that Malawi’s population is still youthful but also transitioning from high

fertility to low fertility as is confirmed by the narrowing base of population aged 0-4 years.

Figure 2.6: Population pyramid of Malawi


3 POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS 3.1 Nationality The Census classified the population by nationality. Table 3.1 shows Non-Malawian population enumerated in Malawi during the time of the census. There were 57,211 Non-

Malawian population representing 0.33 percent. Of those Non-Malawian population, 21

percent were from Zambia, 9 percent were from Mozambique, 5 percent were Zimbabwe, 3

percent were South Africa and 2 percent were Tanzania. Forty-five percent of foreign

nationals came from other African countries while 11 percent came from other countries

outside Africa. United Kingdom and United States of America contributed 1.5 percent and

0.6 percent to the foreign nationals enumerated in Malawi respectively.

Table 3.1 Non-Malawian population by country of nationality

Nationality Number PercentTotal 57,211 100.0 United Kingdom 862 1.5 United States of America 366 0.6 Zambia 12,127 21.2 Zimbabwe 2,875 5.0 Mozambique 5,349 9.3 South Africa 1,736 3.0 United Republic of Tanzania 1,252 2.2 Other Africa Countries 25,876 45.2 Other countries outside Africa 6,768 11.8

3.2 Emigration The census collected information on household members who emigrated from Malawi

between 2008 and 2018 census and reasons why they left Malawi. Table 3.2 shows non-return emigrants by country of destination. Almost 81 percent of Malawians moved to South

Africa, 8 percent to Mozambique, 4 percent to Zimbabwe and 3 percent to Tanzania and 4

percent to other destinations in the world. Table 3.3 shows non-return emigrants by reasons for leaving Malawi. Most emigrants left Malawi looking for work (almost 38 percent), 6

percent were following family, 2 percent were students while 15 percent for other reasons

and 39 percent did not state the reason for leaving the country.


Table 3.2 Distribution of non-return emigrant by country of destination, 2018

Destination Country

Total Male Female

Number Percent Number Percent Number PercentTotal 254,934 100.0 197,501 100.0 57,433 100.0 Zambia 10,170 4.0 7,015 3.6 3,155 5.5 Zimbabwe 1,435 0.6 894 0.5 541 0.9 Mozambique 20,726 8.1 14,208 7.2 6,518 11.3 South Africa 205,730 80.7 164,768 83.4 40,962 71.3 Tanzania 7,811 3.1 4,678 2.4 3,133 5.5 Other African Countries 3,115 1.2 2,321 1.2 794 1.4 United Kingdom 1,198 0.5 642 0.3 556 1.0 United States of America 1,010 0.4 562 0.3 448 0.8

Other Countries Outside Africa 3,739 1.5 2,413 1.2 1,326 2.3

Table 3.3: Distribution of non-return emigrants by reasons of leaving Malawi, 2018

Reasons for leaving Total Male Female

Number Percent Number Percent Number PercentTotal 254,934 100.0 197,501 100.0 57,433 100.0 Working in Mines 2,572 1.0 2,337 1.2 235 0.4 Working in Farms 11,388 4.5 9,643 4.9 1,745 3.0 Working in other sectors 28,147 11.0 23,470 11.9 4,677 8.1 Domestic Worker 23,099 9.1 15,805 8.0 7,294 12.7 Official business 7,132 2.8 5,130 2.6 2,002 3.5 Shop Assistant 24,024 9.4 21,194 10.7 2,830 4.9 Student 5,268 2.1 3,323 1.7 1,945 3.4 For Medical treatment 382 0.1 209 0.1 173 0.3 Following family / Marriage 16,005 6.3 4,192 2.1 11,813 20.6 Other 38,395 15.1 30,307 15.3 8,088 14.1 Don't Know 98,522 38.6 81,891 41.5 16,631 29.0

3.3 Religious denomination

Table 3.4 and Figure 3.1 show distribution of religious denominations Malawians belong to. There were 17,563,749 million usual residents of whom 3.0 million (17.2 percent) were

Roman Catholics, 2.5 million (14.2 percent) belonged to Church of Central African

Presbyterian (CCAP), 2.4 million (13.8 percent) were Moslems, 1.6 million (9.4 percent)

were Seventh Day Adventist/Baptist/Apostolic, 4.7 million (26.6 percent) were other

Christians denominations, 5.6 percent were population with other non-Christian

denominations and 0.4 million (2.1 percent) had no religion.


Table 3.4: Population distribution by religious denomination, 2018

Figure 3.1: Population distribution by religious denomination, 2018

Religious Denomination Total Percent Total 17,563,749 100.0 Roman Catholic 3,028,435 17.2

Church of Central African Presbyterian 2,498,969 14.2

SDA/Baptist/Apostolic 1,644,829 9.4

Anglican 410,633 2.3

Pentecostal 1,332,420 7.6

Other Christians 4,666,337 26.6

Moslem 2,426,754 13.8

Buddhism 5,506 0.0

Hinduism 3,211 0.0

Traditional 186,284 1.1

Other non-Christian Denomination 983,587 5.6

No Religion 376,784 2.1


3.4 Population distribution by tribe The 2018 Population and Housing Census collected information on tribe. Table 3.5 and Figure 3.2 show that 6.0 million people (34.4 percent) were Chewa, 3.3 million people (18.9 percent) were Lomwe, 2.3 million people (13.3 percent) were Yao, 1.8 million people (10.4

percent) were Ngoni. and 1.6 million people (9.2 percent) were Tumbuka.

Table 3.5 Population distribution by tribe, 2018

Tribe Region

Malawi Northern Region Central Region Southern Region

Total 17,506,022 2,283,680 7,486,480 7,735,862

Chewa 6,020,945 158,250 5,351,396 511,299

Tumbuka 1,614,955 1,311,292 236,695 66,968

Lomwe 3,302,634 30,040 229,244 3,043,350

Tonga 310,031 218,758 63,888 27,385

Yao 2,321,763 25,928 367,915 1,927,920

Sena 670,908 3,878 36,242 630,788

Nkhonde 174,430 156,893 11,108 6,429

Ngoni 1,819,347 89,173 1,091,623 638,551

Lambya 106,769 97,035 6,430 3,304

Sukwa 93,762 61,990 30,868 904

Mang'anja 559,887 3,241 30,265 526,381

Nyanja 324,272 12,754 14,711 296,807

Other 186,319 114,448 16,095 55,776


Figure 3.2: Population distribution by tribe, 2018

3.5 Education characteristics The 2018 PHC collected information on literacy, school attendance and highest education

qualification attainment for persons aged 3 years and older. In this section information is

provided for persons aged 5 years and older on literacy, current school attendance and

children out of school.

3.5.1 Literacy

According to the definition adopted by the census of literacy, a person was considered literate

if he or she was reported to be able to read and write a simple sentence in any language.

During the census enumeration, persons eligible to answer this question were those aged 3

years and above. In this report, literacy is reported for persons aged 5 years and over. Table 3.6 shows distribution of persons by literacy status and Figure 3.3 provides literacy rates. There were 15.0 million persons aged 5 years and older and out of these 10.3 million

persons were literate, representing 68.6 percent literacy rate. There were more l i t e ra te

men than women, 71.6 percent and 65.9 percent respectively. The Northern Region had

the highest literacy rate at 79.0 percent then the Central and Southern Regions at 67.0

percent.


At district level, Likoma district had a highest literacy rate of 85 percent followed by Rumphi

(83 percent) and Chitipa (80 percent) while Mangochi had the lowest literacy rate of 53

percent followed by Nsanje (56 percent) and Machinga (57 percent).

Looking at the four cities in Malawi, Mzuzu, Lilongwe, Zomba and Blantyre in terms of

literacy rate; Mzuzu City had the highest literacy rate of 91 percent followed by Zomba and

Blantyre Cities (90 percent) then Lilongwe City at 87 percent as shown in Figure 3.4. Table 3.6 Population aged 5 years and older by literacy status, sex and region, 2018

Population aged 5 years and older Region Total Male FemaleMalawi 15,011,343 7,255,489 7,755,854 Northern Region 1,970,696 956,606 1,014,090 Central Region 6,434,150 3,139,752 3,294,398 Southern Region 6,606,497 3,159,131 3,447,366

LiterateMalawi 10,301,467 5,192,701 5,108,766 Northern Region 1,562,493 769,493 793,000 Central Region 4,310,059 2,190,799 2,119,260 Southern Region 4,428,915 2,232,409 2,196,506

IlliterateMalawi 4,709,876 2,062,788 2,647,088 Northern Region 408,203 187,113 221,090 Central Region 2,124,091 948,953 1,175,138 Southern Region 2,177,582 926,722 1,250,860

Figure 3.3: Percentage of population aged 5 years and older by sex and region, 2018


Figure 3.4 Percentage of literacy rates by district, 2018

3.5.2 Schoolattendance

Table 3.7 shows distribution of persons aged 5 years and older by school attendance. Out

of 15.0 million persons aged 5 years and older, 5.3 million were currently attending school

representing 35.4 percent. In Malawi 81 percent of persons aged 5 years and older have

ever attended school, whilst 19 percent of the persons aged 5 years and older have never

attended school.


Table 3.7 Distribution of persons aged 5 years and older by school attendance, 2018

5 year age

groups Total Never Attended

School

Ever Attended School

TotalNot Currently

AttendingCurrently Attending

Total 15,011,343 2,902,838 12,108,505 6,800,303 5,308,202 5 - 9 2,632,878 599,144 2,033,734 300,547 1,733,187 10 - 14 2,533,303 179,530 2,353,773 236,638 2,117,135 15 - 19 2,035,945 201,152 1,834,793 691,314 1,143,479 20 - 24 1,651,576 216,179 1,435,397 1,192,913 242,484 25 - 29 1,229,411 198,544 1,030,867 987,988 42,879 30 - 34 1,107,226 207,699 899,527 884,498 15,029 35 - 39 968,998 206,025 762,973 755,764 7,209 40 - 44 729,600 197,726 531,874 528,111 3,763 45 - 49 535,868 177,958 357,910 356,013 1,897 50 - 54 387,812 135,629 252,183 251,173 1,010 55+ 1,198,726 583,252 615,474 615,344 130 Figure 3.5 shows distribution of persons 5-29 years who never attended school in their life. Among those who never attended school there is a higher proportion of males than females

in the age group 5 – 9 years who never attended school, 24 percent males and 22 percent

females respectively. Education policy for Malawi makes provision for children to be in

school for at least 12 years. This allows for 8 years of primary school education and 4 years

of secondary school education.

Figure 3.5: Percentage of persons 5-29 years never attended school by age and sex, 2018


3.5.3 OutofschoolChildreninprimaryandsecondaryschool

As is shown in Table 3.8, the total number of out of school children both primary and secondary schools was 2.4 million representing 41.0 percent of the total children of school

going age. Slightly over one million or 24.5 percent were children of primary school going

age (6 to 13 years old) and 1.4 million or 82.2 percent were children of secondary school age

(14 to 17 years old) as shown in Figure 3.6.

Table 3.8: Population age 6 to 17 years in school and out of school, 2018

Total Total Primary (6-13 year old)

TotalSecondary (14-17 year old)

In-School Out-of-school In-School Out-of-SchoolTotal 4,142,872 3,126,670 1,016,202 1,670,145 297,339 1,372,806 Male 2,040,378 1,523,759 516,619 833,466 134,712 698,754 Female 2,102,494 1,602,911 499,583 836,679 162,627 674,052

Figure 3.6 Out of school children in primary and secondary school


3.6 Orphanhood

An orphan is defined as a child under 18 years of age who has lost one or both biological

parents to any cause of death. In 2018 PHC 51 percent (8,894,534) of children were aged

0-17 years and of these children, 11 percent (978,363) were orphans.

Figure 3.7 shows the distribution of orphaned children. Eleven percent of children in the

Northern Region were orphans, 9.9 percent in the Central Region and 12.0 percent in the

Southern Region.

Figure 3.7 Orphaned children by Region, 2018

Table 3.9 shows orphans in Malawi. Out of these 61 percent had lost father only, 27 percent

had lost mother only and 12 percent had lost both parents. The table further shows that

Central Region had highest percentage of children that lost mothers only.

Table 3.9 Orphaned children by region, 2018.

Region Orphaned children

Total Paternal Maternal Both Parents Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Malawi 978,293 100.0 597,302 61.1 267,050 27.3 113,941 11.6North 130,051 100.0 79,534 61.2 34,257 26.3 16,260 12.5Central 373,360 100.0 224,438 60.1 109,540 29.3 39,382 10.5South 474,882 100.0 293,330 61.8 123,253 26.0 58,299 12.3

11.0 11.2

9.9

12.0

Malawi North Central South


Table 3.10 Distribution of persons age 0-17 years and orphaned children by region and district, 2018.

District Children 0-17 yearsTotal Children Orphaned Children PercentMalawi 8,894,534 978,363 11.00 Northern Region 1,160,065 130,075 11.21 Chitipa 120,208 12,309 10.24 Karonga 188,492 24,244 12.86 Nkhata Bay 146,530 17,088 11.66 Rumphi 116,880 11,397 9.75 Mzimba 483,307 54,497 11.28 Likoma 6,471 723 11.17 Mzuzu City 98,177 9,817 10.00 Central Region 3,762,645 373,390 9.92 Kasungu 434,161 38,921 8.96 Nkhotakota 207,446 20,927 10.09 Ntchisi 162,636 13,830 8.50 Dowa 381,637 36,321 9.52 Salima 253,777 27,583 10.87 Lilongwe 825,005 76,769 9.31 Mchinji 309,854 26,387 8.52 Dedza 418,881 50,580 12.08 Ntcheu 332,734 40,698 12.23 Lilongwe City 436,514 41,374 9.48 Southern Region 3,971,824 474,898 11.96 Mangochi 631,635 70,859 11.22 Machinga 407,243 41,536 10.20 Zomba 386,502 44,043 11.40 Chiradzulu 172,870 24,187 13.99 Blantyre 220,710 30,534 13.83 Mwanza 65,966 7,031 10.66 Thyolo 361,868 46,979 12.98 Mulanje 346,782 44,615 12.87 Phalombe 228,492 27,580 12.07 Chikwawa 289,745 34,399 11.87 Nsanje 158,094 22,699 14.36 Balaka 232,958 27,658 11.87 Neno 71,679 7,866 10.97 Zomba City 46,637 5,425 11.63 Blantyre City 350,643 39,487 11.26


3.7 Persons with disabilities

Persons with disabilities were defined as having difficulties or problems in one or all of

the following areas; seeing, hearing, walking/climbing, speaking, intellectual, self-care

and other difficulties. About 10.4 percent of the population aged 5 years and older in

Malawi had at least one type of disability, 10 percent were males and 11 percent females.

Out of the 1,556,670 persons with at least one type difficulty, 49 percent had difficulty

seeing, 24 percent had difficulty hearing, 27 percent had difficulty walking/climbing, 9

percent had difficulty in speaking, as shown in Table 3.11. The table further shows that 16 percent of persons with disabilities, had intellectual difficulties while 8.5 percent had

problems with safe care. The 2018 PHC also collected information on persons with

albinism. Of the total population about 0.8 percent (134,636) were persons with albinism.

Table 3.11: Distribution of the population aged 5 years and older with at least one type of disability, 2018

Type of Difficulty Total Male Female

Number Percent Number Percent Number PercentPerson with disability 1,556,670 10.4 701,484 9.7 855,186 11.0

Difficulty seeing 762,702 49.0 336,358 47.9 426,344 49.9

Difficulty hearing 377,790 24.3 170,524 24.3 207,266 24.2

Difficulty walking 418,669 26.9 151,803 21.6 266,866 31.2

Difficulty speaking 139,619 9.0 81,358 11.6 58,261 6.8

243,812 15.7 102,538 14.6 141,274 16.5 Itellectual difficulty Problems withsafe-care 131,597 8.5 65,889 9.4 65,708 7.7

Other difficulty 283,365 18.2 145,423 20.7 137,942 16.1


3.8 Economic activity The 2018 Population and Housing Census collected information on economic characteristics

of the population aged 10 years and older but in this report information is provided for the

population aged 15 to 64 years. All the eligible household members were asked whether one

worked during the last seven days or not.

3.8.1 Workingagepopulation

In this report working population comprised all persons aged 15 to 64 years. Table 3.12 shows that out of 17,563,749 persons enumerated, 9,188, 275 (52.3 percent) were persons

aged 15 to 64 years. Of these 6,614,065 were economically active (72 percent) and 2,574,210

were economically inactive (28 percent).

Table 3.12 Working age population by sex, 2018

3.8.2 Employmentandunemployment

Table 3.12 shows employed and unemployed persons. Out of the labour force of 6,614,065 persons, 5,389,463 (81.5 percent) were employed and 1,224,602 (18.5 percent) were

unemployed. The unemployed were persons who during the reference period of seven days

did not work even for an hour but were available for work.

Population Total Male Female

Total 17,563,749 8,521,460 9,042,289

Working population 9,188,275 4,431,102 4,757,173

Economically active 6,614,065 3,242,280 3,371,785

Economically inactive 2,574,210 1,188,822 1,385,388

Employed and unemployed

Labour Force 6,614,065 3,242,280 3,371,785

Employed 5,389,463 2,702,506 2,686,957

unemployed 1,224,602 539,774 684,828


Labourforceparticipationrates(LFPR)

Labour force participation rate is the percentage of working population to the total population

aged 15 to 64 years. Figure 3.8 shows labour force participation rates at national, urban, rural and regional levels. Labour force participation rate at national level was 72 percent, 69

percent for urban areas and 73 percent for rural areas. At regional level, the Northern Region

had 72 percent of participation rate, 70 percent for the Central Region and 74 percent for the

Southern Region.

Figure 3.8: Labour force participation rate by urban, rural and region, 2018


4 HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS

4.1 Number of households and average household size Table 4.1 shows number of households and average household sizes by region. There were 3,984,929 households in Malawi in 2018 Population and Housing Census, up from 2,869,933

in 2008 PHC, representing a 39 percent rise. Average household size is defined as total

household population divided by the total number of households in an area. Table 4.1 and Figure 2.1 show the average household size for 2018 PHC was at 4.4 persons per household, a marginal drop from 4.6 in 2008 PHC. The Northern Region had the biggest average

household size of 4.8, followed by the Central Region with household size of 4.4 and

Southern Region with household size of 4.3 persons per household in 2018 PHC.

Table 4.1: Distribution households and household size by region, 2008 and 2018

2008 2018

Region Number of Households

Average Household Size

Number of Households

Average Household Size

Malawi 2,869,933 4.6 3,984,986 4.4 Northern Region 336,602 5.1 472,376 4.8 Central Region 1,192,139 4.6 1,713,010 4.4

Southern Region 1,341,192 4.4 1,799,600 4.3


Figure 4.1: Average household size by region, 2008 and 2018

4.2 Housing units characteristics

There were 4,805,431 housing units enumerated in the 2018 PHC as shown in Table 4.2. Of these housing units, 41.1 percent were permanent, 23.0 percent were semi-permanent

and 35.9 percent were tra

2018 malawi population and housing census main report malawi... · table a1 population of malawi by...

Documents