To the north, the Nyika Plateau rises to . To the south lie the gently rolling Shire Highlands, and to the extreme south the land falls away towards the Zambezi floodplain. Lake Chilwa, the second biggest lake, is near the Mozambique border and has no outlet.
To the north, the Nyika Plateau ascends to . To the south lie the softly undulating Shire Highlands, and to the extreme south the land slopes downward towards the Zambezi floodplain. Lake Chilwa, the second largest lake, is situated near the Mozambique border and has no outlet.