Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita in Malawi
Malawi: Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita was 15.6% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, 1992–2024
Source: Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of population.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 15.6% for access to electricity vs. gdp per capita in 2024.
The figure is up 31.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, access to electricity vs. gdp per capita in Malawi peaked at 18.0% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 1993.
Malawi ranks 212th of 214 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 3.2% | — |
| 1993 | 1.6% | -51.5% |
| 1994 | 2.0% | +29.6% |
| 1995 | 2.5% | +22.7% |
| 1996 | 2.9% | +18.4% |
| 1997 | 3.4% | +15.4% |
| 1998 | 3.8% | +13.3% |
| 1999 | 4.3% | +11.6% |
| 2000 | 4.8% | +12.4% |
| 2001 | 5.2% | +8.3% |
| 2002 | 5.6% | +7.7% |
| 2003 | 6.2% | +10.7% |
| 2004 | 6.9% | +11.3% |
| 2005 | 6.6% | -4.3% |
| 2006 | 3.7% | -43.9% |
| 2007 | 7.4% | +100.0% |
| 2008 | 7.8% | +5.4% |
| 2009 | 8.3% | +6.4% |
| 2010 | 8.7% | +4.8% |
| 2011 | 7.6% | -12.6% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | -2.6% |
| 2013 | 9.0% | +21.6% |
| 2014 | 11.9% | +32.2% |
| 2015 | 10.8% | -9.2% |
| 2016 | 11.0% | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 12.7% | +15.5% |
| 2018 | 18.0% | +41.7% |
| 2019 | 11.2% | -37.8% |
| 2020 | 11.5% | +2.7% |
| 2021 | 14.2% | +23.5% |
| 2022 | 14.0% | -1.4% |
| 2023 | 15.6% | +11.4% |
| 2024 | 15.6% | +0.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 15.6% is below the median for low income countries, which is 43.7%, 36% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 15.6% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 57.8%, 27% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita in Malawi changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | +100.0% | 3.7% | 7.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.0% | 1.6% | 4.3% | 8 |
| 2000s | 6.2% | 3.7% | 8.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.8% | 7.4% | 18.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 14.2% | 11.5% | 15.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 209 Niger 21.3% compare
- 210 Burundi 20.1% compare
- 211 Central African Republic 18.2% compare
- 213 Chad 13.4% compare
- 214 South Sudan 5.4% compare
More energy & mining data for Malawi
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 7.18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Fuel imports 16.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is access to electricity vs. gdp per capita in Malawi?
- Access to electricity vs. gdp per capita in Malawi was 15.6% in 2024, according to Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest access to electricity vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 18.0% in 2018.
- What is the lowest access to electricity vs. gdp per capita recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 1993.
- How does Malawi rank for access to electricity vs. gdp per capita?
- Malawi ranks 212th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is access to electricity vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Access to electricity vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Access to electricity means having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.