Currency - Malawian kwacha

The kwacha (ISO 4217: MWK, official name Malawi Kwacha ) is the currency of Malawi as of 1971, replacing the Malawian pound. It is divided into 100 tambala. The kwacha replaced other types of currency, namely the UK pound sterling, the South African rand and the Rhodesian dollar, that had previously circulated through the Malawian economy. The exchange rate of the kwacha undergoes fixed periodical adjustments, but since 1994 the exchange rate has floated. In 2005, administrative measures were put in place by Bingu wa Mutharika to peg the exchange rate with other currencies. Banknotes are issued by the Reserve Bank of Malawi. In May 2012, the Reserve Bank of Malawi devalued the kwacha by 34% and unpegged it from the United States dollar.

The name kwacha was first used in Zambia where the Zambian kwacha was introduced in 1968. It derives from the Chinyanja or Chichewa word meaning "it has dawned", while tambala translates as "rooster" in Chichewa. The tambala was so named because a hundred roosters announce the dawn.

The kwacha replaced the Malawian pound in 1971 at a rate of two kwacha to one pound.

one British pound sterling was equal to approximately 881 kwachas, one US dollar was equal to 721 kwachas and one South African rand was equal to 52 kwachas. one Euro is equivalent to 833.040 Kwachas.

The first coins introduced in 1971 were in denominations of one, two, five, ten and twenty tambala. In 1986, fifty tambala and one kwacha coins were also introduced. In January 2007, five and ten kwacha coins, which actually bear a mint date of 2006, were also released into circulation. In 2012 new one, five and ten kwacha coins were released into circulation

The one and two tambala coins are composed of copper-plated steel. The five tambala coin is of nickel-plated steel. The fifty tambala and one kwacha coin are composed of brass-plated steel.

In 1971, banknotes dated 1964 were introduced in denominations of 50 tambala, 1, 2 and 10 kwacha. 5 kwacha notes were introduced in 1973 when the 2 kwacha note was discontinued. 20 kwacha notes were introduced in 1983. 50 tambala notes were last issued in 1986, with the last 1 kwacha notes printed in 1992. In 1993, 50 kwacha notes were introduced, followed by 100 kwacha in 1993, 200 kwacha in 1995, 500 kwacha in 2001 and 2000 kwacha in November 2016 to ease desperate cash shortages.

As of 2008, the following banknote denominations are in circulation:

According to an article in the Nyasa Times dated 9 March 2012, within the next six months the Reserve Bank of Malawi would introduce a whole new series of notes, including a 1,000-kwacha note, twice the largest denomination currently in circulation. The notes were announced in Biantyre on 8 March by Governor Dr. Perks Ligoya. The new notes would be much smaller in size than the current notes, which served as a cost-cutting measure. The new 1,000-kwacha note was going to be printed by De La Rue.

On 23 May 2012, the Nyasa Times reported that the Reserve Bank of Malawi introduced the new 1,000 kwacha note into circulation along with the proposed new notes. The new 1,000 kwacha note was valued at around US$4. The new kwacha had the face of the first president Kamuzu Banda on the front and the back carries a depiction of Mzuzu maize silos.

Malawi

Malawi (, or ; or [maláwi] ), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. Malawi is over 118000 km² with an estimated population of (as at July ). Lake Malawi takes up about a third of Malawi's area. Its capital is Lilongwe, which is also Malawi's largest city; the second largest is Blantyre, the third is Mzuzu and the fourth largest is its old capital Zomba. The name Malawi comes from the Maravi, an old name of the Nyanja people that inhabit the area. The country is also nicknamed "The Warm Heart of Africa" because of the friendliness of the people.

The part of Africa now known as Malawi was settled by migrating Bantu groups around the 10th century. Centuries later in 1891 the area was colonised by the British. In 1953 Malawi, then known as Nyasaland, a protectorate of the United Kingdom, became a protectorate within the semi-independent Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. The Federation was dissolved in 1963. In 1964 the protectorate over Nyasaland was ended and Nyasaland became an independent country under Queen Elizabeth II with the new name Malawi. Two years later it became a republic. Upon gaining independence it became a totalitarian one-party state under the presidency of Hastings Banda, who remained president until 1994. Malawi has a democratic, multi-party government headed by an elected president, currently Arthur Peter Mutharika. The country has a Malawian Defence Force that includes an army, a navy and an air wing. Malawi's foreign policy is pro-Western and includes positive diplomatic relations with most countries and participation in several international organisations, including the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and the African Union (AU).