The origins for the name Malawi remains unclear; it is held to be either derived from that of southern tribes, or noting the 'glitter of the sun rising across the lake' (as seen in its flag).
Malawi saw its first transition between democratically elected presidents in May 2004, when the UDF’s presidential candidate Bingu wa Mutharika defeated MCP candidate John Tembo and Gwanda Chakuamba, who was backed by a grouping of opposition parties.
Malawi'spresident recently urged farmers to consider growing other crops, such as cotton ([2]), as an alternative to the country's principal crop, tobacco, as cigarette consumption in the West continues to decline.
Ruled by autocratic presidents since independence from France on August 17, 1960, Gabon introduced a multiparty system and a new democratic constitution in the early 1990s that allowed for a more transparent electoral process and for reforms of governmental institutions.
The first president of Gabon, elected in 1961, was Léon M’ba, with Omar Bongo as his vice president.
President El Hadj Omar Bongo was re-elected in December 1998, obtaining 66% of the votes cast.
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