Malawi Flag

The flag of Malawi is a tricolored flag of red, black, and green. Black is the first stripe followed by red then green. On the first band, there is a rising sun with 31 rays in red color. The Malawian flag was officially adopted on July 6, 1964, after the country got its independence from Britain. Malawi got a new flag under the rule of President Bingu wa Mutharika. However, Malawians rejected the flag. The new flag was used for a short time before it was abolished and the independence flag was adopted once again.

The black color on the flag stands for the Malawian people while the red color is a symbol of the bloodshed during the fight for independence. The last color green represents the evergreen nature of Malawi. The rising sun at the center of the first band stands for the sun setting on Lake Malawi (Lake Nyasa) but also represents the raising hope of the country after gaining independence.

The Malawian flag was designed based on the Pan African party flag designed by Marcus Garvey. The rising sun and the rays were added to differentiate the flag from that of the Pan African flag.

Malawi has only used one other flag variation after gaining independence. The other flag, which was introduced by President Bingu wa Mutharika in 2010, featured stripes that were rearranged to red, black, and green with the center of the flag having the sun and rays around it in white. Though Malawians rejected president Mutharika's flag, it was used anyway. However, parliament voted to use the former flag once again in 2012.