Food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi

Malawi: Food, beverages and tobacco was 83.5% in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
83.5%
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
4th
of 157 countries
All-time high
85.5%
in 2018
All-time low
19.5%
in 1993
Years of data
55
1964–2021

Food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi, 1964–2021

20406080196419922021

Source: International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Measured in % of value added in manufacturing.

Analysis

In 2021, food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi stood at 83.5%.

The figure is up 27.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi peaked at 85.5% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 19.5%, in 1993.

Malawi ranks 4th of 157 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 55 years of available data.

Food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi, year by year

Annual values for Food, beverages and tobacco (% of value added in manufacturing) in Malawi, 1964 to 2021.
Year % of value added in manufacturing Change
1964 68.1%
1965 63.4% -6.8%
1966 62.2% -1.9%
1967 56.5% -9.3%
1968 53.8% -4.7%
1969 50.3% -6.5%
1970 50.9% +1.3%
1971 46.1% -9.5%
1972 44.7% -3.0%
1973 44.7% -0.2%
1974 47.4% +6.2%
1975 49.0% +3.2%
1979 43.1% -12.0%
1980 58.1% +34.8%
1981 45.9% -21.1%
1982 50.4% +9.8%
1983 45.2% -10.2%
1984 46.5% +2.9%
1985 25.7% -44.8%
1986 25.0% -2.6%
1987 41.1% +64.2%
1988 31.5% -23.3%
1989 24.6% -21.9%
1990 37.7% +53.3%
1991 46.3% +22.7%
1992 46.3% +0.0%
1993 19.5% -57.9%
1994 39.7% +103.7%
1995 48.3% +21.4%
1996 48.3% +0.0%
1997 52.3% +8.3%
1998 43.7% -16.5%
1999 72.9% +67.0%
2000 70.7% -3.1%
2001 71.1% +0.6%
2002 74.7% +5.1%
2003 72.2% -3.4%
2004 76.6% +6.1%
2005 76.9% +0.5%
2006 68.6% -10.8%
2007 73.2% +6.7%
2008 66.4% -9.2%
2009 61.3% -7.7%
2010 67.0% +9.2%
2011 65.4% -2.4%
2012 65.4% +0.0%
2013 65.4% +0.0%
2014 84.2% +28.9%
2015 84.2% +0.0%
2016 84.2% +0.0%
2017 84.2% -0.0%
2018 85.5% +1.5%
2019 83.5% -2.3%
2020 83.5% +0.0%
2021 83.5% +0.0%

Malawi compared with similar countries

  • Malawi's 83.5% is above the median for low income countries, which is 63.5%, 1.3× the median. (19 countries reporting)
  • Malawi's 83.5% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 56.3%, 1.5× the median. (36 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Food, beverages and tobacco 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.

YearChange FromTo
1994 +103.7% 19.5% 39.7%
1999 +67.0% 43.7% 72.9%
1987 +64.2% 25.0% 41.1%
1993 -57.9% 46.3% 19.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 59.1% 50.3% 68.1% 6
1970s 46.6% 43.1% 50.9% 7
1980s 39.4% 24.6% 58.1% 10
1990s 45.5% 19.5% 72.9% 10
2000s 71.2% 61.3% 76.9% 10
2010s 76.9% 65.4% 85.5% 10
2020s 83.5% 83.5% 83.5% 2

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 1 Marshall Islands 98.1% compare
  2. 2 Burundi 87.6% compare
  3. 3 Eswatini 86.4% compare
  4. 5 Djibouti 78.0% compare
  5. 6 Mali 77.3% compare
  6. 7 Congo 74.5% compare

See the full ranking of 157 places →

More economy & growth data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi?
Food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi was 83.5% in 2021, according to International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
What is the highest food, beverages and tobacco recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 85.5% in 2018.
What is the lowest food, beverages and tobacco recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 19.5% in 1993.
How does Malawi rank for food, beverages and tobacco?
Malawi ranks 4th out of 157 countries with data for 2021.
Is food, beverages and tobacco rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), published as part of Food, beverages and tobacco (% of value added in manufacturing). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Food, beverages and tobacco in Malawi. Statizoid, drawing on International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/food-beverages-and-tobacco-percent-of-value-added-in-manufacturing/malawi/

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About this data

Indicator
Food, beverages and tobacco (% of value added in manufacturing)
Unit
% of value added in manufacturing
Source
International Yearbook of Industrial Statistics, UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
157 places, 5,773 data points, 1963–2024
Last refreshed

Manufacturing of food, beverages, and tobacco includes industries classified in ISIC (Rev. 3) divisions 15 and 16. Value added is the contribution to the economy by a producer or an industry or an institutional sector, which is estimated by the total value of output produced and deducting the total value of intermediate consumption of goods and services used to produce that output. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of value added in manufacturing which is the contribution to the economy by the manufacturing sector (ISIC Rev. 3 major division D).