Lesotho

• temperate;
• cool to cold, dry winters;
• hot, wet summers

total:

0.05 cu km/yr (40%/40%/20%)

per capita:

28 cu m/yr (2000)

• population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion;
• desertification;
• Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

none of the selected agreements

at birth:

1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.96 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.66 male(s)/female

total population:

0.96 male(s)/female (2009 est.)

noun:

Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)

adjective:

Basotho

conventional long form:

Kingdom of Lesotho

conventional short form:

Lesotho

local long form:

Kingdom of Lesotho

local short form:

Lesotho

former:

Basutoland

name:

Maseru

geographic coordinates:

29 19 S, 27 29 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

• based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law;
• judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal;
• accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

chief of state:

King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995 while his father was in exile

head of government:

Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998)

cabinet:

Cabinet

elections:

• according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister;
• the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution that came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers;
• under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to depose the monarch, determine who is next in the line of succession, or who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age

• High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting on the advice of the prime minister);
• Court of Appeal;
• Magistrate Courts;
• customary or traditional court

chief of mission:

Ambassador David Mohlomi RANTEKOA

chancery:

2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536

FAX:

[1] (202) 234-6815

chief of mission:

Ambassador Robert NOLAN

embassy:

254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section)

mailing address:

P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho

telephone:

[266] 22 312666

FAX:

[266] 22 310116

• three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green in the proportions of 3:4:3;
• the colors represent rain, peace, and prosperity respectively;
• centered in the white stripe is a black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people;
• the flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence

agriculture:

86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa

industry and services:

14% (2002 est.)

lowest 10%:

1%

highest 10%:

39.4% (2003)

general assessment:

• rudimentary system consisting of a modest but growing number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a small radiotelephone communication system;
• mobile-cellular telephone system is expanding

domestic:

• privatized in 2001, Telecom Lesotho tasked with providing an additional 50,000 fixed-line connections within five years, a target not met;
• mobile-cellular service is expanding with a subscribership exceeding 25 per 100 persons;
• rural services are scant

international:

country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2008)

total:

7,091 km

country comparison to the world: 147

paved:

1,404 km

unpaved:

5,687 km (2003)

males age 16-49:

525,203

females age 16-49:

522,485 (2008 est.)

males age 16-49:

267,083

females age 16-49:

240,868 (2009 est.)

male:

26,039

female:

25,964 (2009 est.)

• Lesotho's declared policy is maintenance of its independent sovereignty and preservation of internal security;
• in practice, external security is guaranteed by South Africa;
• restructuring of the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) and Ministry of Defense and Public Service over the past five years has focused on subordinating the defense apparatus to civilian control and restoring the LDF's cohesion;
• the restructuring has considerably improved capabilities and professionalism, but the LDF is disproportionately large for a small, poor country;
• the government has outlined a reduction to a planned 1,500-man strength, but these plans have met with vociferous resistance from the political opposition and from inside the LDF (2008)