It was in 1971 that Kwacha was first introduced as the official monetary unit of Malawi. In fact, the introduction of Malawi money was meant to replace the Malawian pound, where 2 Kwachas was equal to the value of 1 pound. The name” Kwacha” was derived from the Bemba and Nyanja words, meaning ‘dawn’.
Malawi coinage system:
The Malawi coins were introduced in 1971, whose available denominations were 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 tambala. The 50 tambala and 1 kwacha coins were introduced later, in the year 1986. It was until recently in 2007, that fresh bi-metallic Malawi coins of 5 and 10 kwacha denominations are added to the existing coinage system. All these denominations of Malawi coins are presently in circulation.After consolidating its position in the financial market of Malawi, the main functions of the Paper notes in Malawi:
The Malawi banknotes were introduced the very same year as the coins, of 50 tambala and 10, 2 and 1 kwacha denominations. It was in 1973 that the 5 kwacha paper note was introduced and 2 kwacha notes were discarded. The year 1983 saw the introduction of 20 kwacha banknotes in Malawi. It was in 1986 that the 50 tambala notes were last introduced, followed by 1 kwacha notes which were last printed in 1988. In the year 1993, 50 kwacha notes were added to the existing Malawi banknotes, followed by the introduction of 100 kwachas notes in 1993, 200 kwachas in 1995 and 500 kwachas notes recently in 2001.
With respect to money of Malawi, all banks in Malawi accept foreign currencies and traveler’s checks. Currency of Malawi is also well accepted by all hotels and other organizations in the country. As far as the exchange of the currency is concerned, the American Dollar is the easiest one to exchange.
Though acceptance of both debit and credit cards with respect to Malawi money is quite limited, yet MasterCard, Visa, Diners Club and American Express can be used. The Malawi banks offer facility for exchange of the traveler’s checks.
The movement of Malawi currency is under certain restrictions. The import of domestic currency is unlimited, though its export is restricted to K200. The import of foreign money is unrestricted at the time of arrival. Its export, however, is permitted upto an amount imported and officially declared at the time of entering the country.
Following are the exchange rates of Malawi money:
Type of Currencies |
Exchange Rate in May, 2004 |
Exchange Rate in August, 2004 |
Exchange Rate in November, 2004 |
Exchange Rate in February, 2005 |
$1.00 |
109.10 |
109.00 |
108.10 |
104.51 |
1.00 |
194.87 |
200.81 |
204.70 |
197.37 |
