city, capital (since 1975) of Malawi (Malaŵi). It is located on the inland plains and is the country's second largest city. An agricultural market centre for the fertile Central Region Plateau, it was selected by Malawi's first president, Hastings Kamuzu Banda (Banda, Hastings Kamuzu), in 1965 as an economic growth point for northern and central Malawi. Lilongwe's development as the new national capital began in 1968.

The city is spread between two centres: the old city, which functions as a service and distribution centre, and Capital Hill, 3 miles (5 km) away, which houses the government buildings and embassies, except for the country's judiciary, which is housed in the city of Blantyre. Development projects of the 1970s and '80s included a new international airport, rail connections to Salima (east) and the Zambian border (west), industrial areas in the northern part of the city, and an agricultural program for the fertile tobacco lands of the Central Region Plateau. Pop. (2003 est.) city, 597,619.