Trading Centers
Sprinkled along major highways and throughout the countryside, usually within walking distance of most villages, are the trading centers. These are the local centers of commerce for the village people, most of whom seldom reach cites such as Lilongwe, Blantyre, Salima, Zomba or Mzuzu.
The trading centers will usually support a local PTC (Peoples Trading Center) food store, similar to a smaller convenience store in America, as well as a number of hardware, clothing, and agricultural supply stores. Some have a local branch of a commercial bank, although transactions may have to be small, and the visitor may find the bank only open one or two days a week. Most trading centers contain post offices, and in some cases they will have copy centers and computer supply outlets, though these are a far cry from what the western visitor might expect. The larger primary schools, government rural or district hospitals, and other government and commercial ventures are located in the trading centers.
