The preliminary results of the 1998 Malawi Population and Housing Census (MPHC) indicate that the population of Malawi is 9.8 million. This figure is less than estimates prepared by most national and international institutions including renowned population specialists working on the population of Malawi. Nearly all-available population projections estimated that the population of Malawi in 1998 would be around 11 million. The aforementioned discrepancy has some serious consequences. First the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita may be distorted in such a way as to suggest a general improvement in the quality of life contrary to the situation. Second, the results of the census may be interpreted to indicate the success of the national population program especially the national family planning program. As a result of these consequences there is need to evaluate the census results to verify whether the reported figure is indeed correct or to provide a plausible explanation for the anomaly. Though not prescriptive, the paper offers plausible explanation for the observed differences. In particular, the paper argues that the population figure obtained from the 1998 census, like most other censuses in developing countries, were underreported.