Share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi

Malawi: Share of global plastic waste imports was 0.0% in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
0.0%
Change on year
down 100.0%
World rank
168th
of 183 countries
All-time high
0.0%
in 2001
All-time low
0.0%
in 2023
Years of data
28
1990–2023

Share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi, 1990–2023

00.0050.010.0150.021990200620231990: 0 %1991: 0.001 %1994: 0 %1995: 0 %1999: 0.006 %2000: 0.003 %2001: 0.022 %2002: 0.003 %2003: 0.001 %2004: 0 %2005: 0 %2006: 0 %2007: 0 %2008: 0 %2009: 0 %2010: 0.001 %2011: 0.001 %2012: 0.003 %2013: 0.003 %2014: 0 %2015: 0.003 %2016: 0 %2017: 0.003 %2018: 0.001 %2019: 0.005 %2020: 0.002 %2021: 0.007 %2023: 0 %

Source: United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi is 0.0%, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 28 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 100.0% on the previous year and down 100.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi peaked at 0.0% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2023.

That places Malawi 168th out of 183 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 5
2000s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10
2010s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10
2020s 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 3

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 165 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0.0% compare
  2. 166 Greenland 0.0% compare
  3. 167 Sao Tome and Principe 0.0% compare
  4. 168 Brazil 0.0% compare
  5. 168 Bulgaria 0.0% compare
  6. 168 Ghana 0.0% compare
  7. 168 Greece 0.0% compare
  8. 168 Hungary 0.0% compare
  9. 168 Mexico 0.0% compare
  10. 168 Poland 0.0% compare
  11. 168 Senegal 0.0% compare
  12. 168 Slovakia 0.0% compare
  13. 168 South Korea 0.0% compare
  14. 168 Spain 0.0% compare
  15. 168 Switzerland 0.0% compare
  16. 168 United Kingdom 0.0% compare
  17. 168 United States 0.0% compare
  18. 168 Uzbekistan 0.0% compare

See the full ranking of 183 places →

More environment data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi?
Share of global plastic waste imports in Malawi was 0.0% in 2023, according to United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 0.0% in 2001.
What is the lowest share of global plastic waste imports recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2023.
How does Malawi rank for share of global plastic waste imports?
Malawi ranks 168th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of global plastic waste imports rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is down 100.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of global plastic waste imports. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of global plastic waste imports
Unit
%
Source
United Nations Comtrade Database (2025); United Nations Comtrade Database (2023) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
183 places, 4,496 data points, 1988–2024
Last refreshed

The percentage of global plastic waste imports that a country accounts for.