Total natural resource rents in Malawi
Malawi: Total natural resource rents was 4.2% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Total natural resource rents in Malawi, 1970–2021
Source: The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2021, total natural resource rents in Malawi stood at 4.2%.
The figure is up 3.0% on the previous year and down 29.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total natural resource rents in Malawi peaked at 18.3% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 4.1%, in 2020.
That places Malawi 82nd out of 211 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.8% | 4.8% | 9.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.7% | 4.5% | 9.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.6% | 7.0% | 18.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.8% | 5.8% | 10.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.7% | 4.2% | 11.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.2% | 4.1% | 4.2% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
More reference data data for Malawi
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.0372 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.606 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.3659 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.9529 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies -0.5269 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 1,313 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total natural resource rents in Malawi?
- Total natural resource rents in Malawi was 4.2% in 2021, according to The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total natural resource rents recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 18.3% in 1995.
- What is the lowest total natural resource rents recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.1% in 2020.
- How does Malawi rank for total natural resource rents?
- Malawi ranks 82nd out of 211 countries with data for 2021.
- Is total natural resource rents rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Total natural resource rents. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 52 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Natural resources rents are estimated as the difference between the price of a commodity and the average cost of producing it. Total natural resources rents are the sum of oil rents, natural gas rents, coal rents, mineral rents, and forest rents.