Mwami is a town in the Eastern Province of Zambia in Chipata District, at the eastern end of the Great East Road at the international border with Malawi. It has a border post through which most trade between Zambia and Malawi passes, close to the Malawian city of Mchinji.
Location Mwami is located approximately southeast of the district and provincial capital at Chipata. It is located approximately , east-north-east of Lusaka, the capital city of Zambia. This is approximately , by road west-north-west of Lilongwe, Malawi's capital city.
The geographical coordinates of the border post at Mwami are . (Latitude:-13.750650; Longitude:32.795894).
Mwami sits at an average elevation of above mean sea level.
The Chipata–Mchinji extension to the Sena railway passes within 5 km northeast of Mwami but does not have a station or border post, since border formalities are carried out in Chipata and Mchinji. However as of February 2026 the line was not being used.
One stop border crossing for road transport The Malawi Revenue Authority with Zambian government agreement has built a one-stop road border crossing on the Malawian side of the border. It was built with US$5.8 million, borrowed from the African Development Bank. This reflects the importance of the route as part of the Nacala Logistics corridor providing access for Zambia to the Mozambican port of Nacala, on the Indian Ocean coast.
Population The population of Mwami was estimated at 1,760 in 2015, of whom 1,560 were residents and 200 were transients. By 2023, the town's total population, including transients, is expected to have increased to 2,266, as illustrated in the table below.
Year Residents Transients Population 2015 1,560 200 1,760 2016 1594 200 1,794 2017 1,629 200 1,829 2018 1,665 200 1,865 2019 1,702 200 1,902 2020 1,739 200 1,939 2021 1,777 200 1977 2022 1,816 200 2,016 2023 2,066 200 2,266
Water supply A study carried out in 2015, observed that the town lacked a public piped water supply system and a public sewerage system. In addition, there were no public toilets in the town. The study determined that it would cost £300,735 to establish a public piped water and sewerage system in Mwami, Zambia.
Health Mwami Adventist Hospital, a 210-bed general hospital with an attached 50-bed extended care facility, owned and administered by the Adventist Church lies about 15 km south of the Border Post.
See also Southern African Development Community Economy of Zambia
References
External links "Mwami Border Construction Works Impress Govt" As of 18 December 2019.