Malawi Population Pyramid 2016
Malawi in 2016
The population of Malawi in 2016 was 17,557,739. Over the previous ten years the population grew by 33.0%, up from 13,198,700 in 2006.
The median age was 17.2 years, and for every 100 people of working age (15–64) there were 86.7 children under 15 and 5.7 people aged 65 or over. The pyramid is expansive: its wide base of young cohorts reflects high fertility and a rapidly growing population.
Data source: United Nations World Population Prospects, 2024 revision (medium variant) — last updated July 2024.
The fertility rate of Malawi was 3.65 births per woman in 2023, above the 2.1 needed to replace each generation.
Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, latest available year.
A child born there in 2023 could expect to live 67.4 years on average (70.6 years for girls, 64.1 for boys).
Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, latest available year.
156,059 immigrants live in Malawi, 0.7% of the population.
| Mozambique | 39,156 |
| Zambia | 30,614 |
| D.R. Congo | 27,099 |
| Zimbabwe | 26,561 |
| Burundi | 9,834 |
427,573 people born in Malawi live in other countries.
| South Africa | 220,437 |
| Zimbabwe | 111,872 |
| Mozambique | 65,284 |
| Zambia | 17,796 |
| Tanzania | 6,678 |
Source: United Nations International Migrant Stock 2024.
| Country | Population | Median age | Relative size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malawi | 17,557,739 | 17.2 | |
| Zambia | 16,914,423 | 17.4 | |
| Zimbabwe | 14,600,294 | 18.0 | |
| Somalia | 14,348,740 | 16.1 | |
| Rwanda | 11,919,183 | 19.4 |





