Travel services (% of commercial service imports) in Malawi
Malawi: Travel services (% of commercial service imports) was 11.8% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Travel services in Malawi, 1977–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service imports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for travel services in Malawi is 11.8%, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 5.8% on the previous year and down 63.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, travel services in Malawi peaked at 44.6% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 4.1%, in 1989.
Malawi ranks 145th of 198 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Travel services (% of commercial service imports) in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 4.8% | — |
| 1978 | 5.1% | +5.4% |
| 1979 | 5.8% | +14.3% |
| 1980 | 5.6% | -3.5% |
| 1981 | 5.5% | -1.9% |
| 1982 | 5.7% | +4.0% |
| 1983 | 5.5% | -3.0% |
| 1984 | 5.0% | -8.8% |
| 1985 | 5.6% | +11.9% |
| 1986 | 5.2% | -7.4% |
| 1987 | 4.3% | -18.0% |
| 1988 | 4.4% | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 4.1% | -6.8% |
| 1990 | 5.9% | +43.1% |
| 1991 | 7.7% | +30.3% |
| 1992 | 7.0% | -8.8% |
| 1993 | 4.4% | -37.7% |
| 1994 | 20.2% | +363.5% |
| 1995 | 26.0% | +28.4% |
| 1996 | 27.1% | +4.2% |
| 1997 | 32.1% | +18.6% |
| 1998 | 24.3% | -24.3% |
| 1999 | 25.6% | +5.5% |
| 2000 | 29.9% | +16.4% |
| 2001 | 23.6% | -21.0% |
| 2002 | 35.2% | +48.9% |
| 2003 | 42.2% | +20.0% |
| 2004 | 44.6% | +5.7% |
| 2005 | 38.4% | -13.9% |
| 2006 | 38.5% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 40.6% | +5.2% |
| 2008 | 37.4% | -7.9% |
| 2009 | 31.9% | -14.6% |
| 2010 | 30.0% | -6.0% |
| 2011 | 27.2% | -9.2% |
| 2012 | 32.0% | +17.7% |
| 2013 | 27.9% | -12.9% |
| 2014 | 30.2% | +8.2% |
| 2015 | 32.3% | +7.2% |
| 2016 | 32.0% | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 33.6% | +5.2% |
| 2018 | 33.8% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 36.4% | +8.0% |
| 2020 | 22.0% | -39.7% |
| 2021 | 23.7% | +7.6% |
| 2022 | 15.2% | -35.6% |
| 2023 | 14.6% | -4.4% |
| 2024 | 12.5% | -14.1% |
| 2025 | 11.8% | -5.8% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 11.8% is above the median for low income countries, which is 9.2%, 1.3× the median. (23 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 11.8% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 9.4%, 1.3× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Travel services (% of commercial service imports) 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | +363.5% | 4.4% | 20.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.2% | 4.8% | 5.8% | 3 |
| 1980s | 5.1% | 4.1% | 5.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 18.0% | 4.4% | 32.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 36.2% | 23.6% | 44.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 31.5% | 27.2% | 36.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.6% | 11.8% | 23.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 142 Finland 12.1% compare
- 143 Greece 12.0% compare
- 144 Madagascar 11.9% compare
- 146 Bahrain 11.7% compare
- 147 Netherlands 11.6% compare
- 148 Sao Tome and Principe 11.0% compare
More private sector data for Malawi
- Merchandise trade 30.9% (2025)
- Food imports 11.2% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 64.9% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 3.66 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 1.01 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 93.3% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 5.1% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 947.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 483.71 million current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 42.63 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is travel services in Malawi?
- Travel services in Malawi was 11.8% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest travel services recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 44.6% in 2004.
- What is the lowest travel services recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.1% in 1989.
- How does Malawi rank for travel services?
- Malawi ranks 145th out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
- Is travel services rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is down 63.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malawi data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Travel services (% of commercial service imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Travel services cover goods and services for own use or to give away acquired from an economy by nonresidents during visits to that economy, or acquired from other economies by residents during visits to these other economies. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are commercial services provided by non-residents to residents.