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.
Total natural resource rents in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 6.7% | — |
| 1971 | 4.8% | -27.9% |
| 1972 | 5.0% | +4.2% |
| 1973 | 6.4% | +26.7% |
| 1974 | 5.9% | -8.1% |
| 1975 | 9.0% | +52.8% |
| 1976 | 7.6% | -15.0% |
| 1977 | 8.6% | +12.9% |
| 1978 | 7.6% | -12.0% |
| 1979 | 6.7% | -11.5% |
| 1980 | 7.3% | +8.4% |
| 1981 | 6.4% | -11.7% |
| 1982 | 9.0% | +40.1% |
| 1983 | 5.8% | -35.6% |
| 1984 | 5.3% | -8.0% |
| 1985 | 4.5% | -15.8% |
| 1986 | 6.9% | +54.1% |
| 1987 | 7.1% | +3.0% |
| 1988 | 6.9% | -2.9% |
| 1989 | 8.1% | +17.4% |
| 1990 | 8.8% | +8.6% |
| 1991 | 7.2% | -18.9% |
| 1992 | 9.1% | +27.1% |
| 1993 | 7.0% | -23.3% |
| 1994 | 13.7% | +96.1% |
| 1995 | 18.3% | +33.8% |
| 1996 | 10.6% | -41.9% |
| 1997 | 8.3% | -22.0% |
| 1998 | 12.9% | +55.4% |
| 1999 | 9.9% | -23.2% |
| 2000 | 10.2% | +2.5% |
| 2001 | 9.9% | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 5.8% | -41.6% |
| 2003 | 8.6% | +48.8% |
| 2004 | 6.4% | -26.0% |
| 2005 | 6.8% | +6.8% |
| 2006 | 6.8% | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 8.0% | +17.6% |
| 2008 | 8.7% | +9.4% |
| 2009 | 7.0% | -19.3% |
| 2010 | 6.0% | -14.4% |
| 2011 | 6.0% | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 9.0% | +49.8% |
| 2013 | 10.2% | +13.4% |
| 2014 | 9.6% | -5.2% |
| 2015 | 8.9% | -7.5% |
| 2016 | 11.0% | +23.3% |
| 2017 | 7.0% | -36.2% |
| 2018 | 5.2% | -25.6% |
| 2019 | 4.2% | -18.5% |
| 2020 | 4.1% | -3.4% |
| 2021 | 4.2% | +3.0% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 4.2% is below the median for low income countries, which is 10.3%, 41% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 4.2% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 7.7%, 55% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
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
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1596 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.09 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3426 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5353 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.6012 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.87 (2050)
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.