Lesotho
Kingdom of Lesotho
parliamentary constitutional monarchyIndependence 4 October 1966 (from the UK)
Lesotho as the 2022 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 159 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Introduction
1 fieldBackground
Paramount chief MOSHOESHOE I consolidated what would become Basutoland in the early 19th century and made himself king in 1822. Continuing encroachments by Dutch settlers from the neighboring Orange Free State caused the king to enter into an 1868 agreement with the UK by which Basutoland became a British protectorate, and after 1884, a crown colony. Upon independence in 1966, the country was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho.
The Basotho National Party ruled the country during its first two decades. King MOSHOESHOE II was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and was reinstated in 1995 and subsequently succeeded by his son, King LETSIE III, in 1996. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after seven years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Batswana military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community.
Subsequent constitutional reforms restored relative political stability. Peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002, but the National Assembly elections in 2007 were hotly contested and aggrieved parties disputed how the electoral law was applied to award proportional seats in the Assembly. In 2012, competitive elections involving 18 parties saw Prime Minister Motsoahae Thomas THABANE form a coalition government - the first in the country's history - that ousted the 14-year incumbent, Pakalitha MOSISILI, who peacefully transferred power the following month.
MOSISILI returned to power in snap elections in February 2015 after the collapse of THABANE’s coalition government and an alleged attempted military coup. In June 2017, THABANE returned to become prime minister.
Geography
Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa
19 fieldsLand useshare of 30,355 sq km
Major rivers (by length in km)
Orange river source (shared with South Africa and Namibia [m]) - 2,092 km; note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Population distribution
relatively higher population density in the western half of the nation, with the capital of Maseru, and the smaller cities of Mafeteng, Teyateyaneng, and Leribe attracting the most people as shown in this population distribution map
Geography - note
landlocked, an enclave of (completely surrounded by) South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 m above sea level
People and Society
38 fieldsAge structuremale left, female right · (2020 est.)
Per 1,000 population(2022 est.)
Male · female
Religions(2014 est.)
Demographic profile
Lesotho faces great socioeconomic challenges. More than half of its population lives below the poverty line, and the country’s HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is the second highest in the world. In addition, Lesotho is a small, mountainous, landlocked country with little arable land, leaving its population vulnerable to food shortages and reliant on remittances.
Lesotho’s persistently high infant, child, and maternal mortality rates have been increasing during the last decade, according to the last two Demographic and Health Surveys. Despite these significant shortcomings, Lesotho has made good progress in education; it is on-track to achieve universal primary education and has one of the highest adult literacy rates in Africa.
Lesotho’s migration history is linked to its unique geography; it is surrounded by South Africa with which it shares linguistic and cultural traits. Lesotho at one time had more of its workforce employed outside its borders than any other country. Today remittances equal about 17% of its GDP. With few job options at home, a high rate of poverty, and higher wages available across the border, labor migration to South Africa replaced agriculture as the prevailing Basotho source of income decades ago.
The majority of Basotho migrants were single men contracted to work as gold miners in South Africa. However, migration trends changed in the 1990s, and fewer men found mining jobs in South Africa because of declining gold prices, stricter immigration policies, and a preference for South African workers.
Although men still dominate cross-border labor migration, more women are working in South Africa, mostly as domestics, because they are widows or their husbands are unemployed. Internal rural-urban flows have also become more frequent, with more women migrating within the country to take up jobs in the garment industry or moving to care for loved ones with HIV/AIDS. Lesotho’s small population of immigrants is increasingly composed of Taiwanese and Chinese migrants who are involved in the textile industry and small retail businesses.
Population distribution
relatively higher population density in the western half of the nation, with the capital of Maseru, and the smaller cities of Mafeteng, Teyateyaneng, and Leribe attracting the most people as shown in this population distribution map
Sex ratio
- at birth:
- 1.03 male(s)/female
- 0-14 years:
- 1.01 male(s)/female
- 15-24 years:
- 1.01 male(s)/female
- 25-54 years:
- 1.02 male(s)/female
- 55-64 years:
- 0.74 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 0.48 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 0.98 male(s)/female (2022 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- intermediate (2020)
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Alcohol consumption per capita
- total:
- 3.56 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- beer:
- 1.98 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- wine:
- 0.44 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- spirits:
- 0.31 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
- other alcohols:
- 0.82 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Child marriage
- women married by age 15:
- 1%
- women married by age 18:
- 16.4%
- men married by age 18:
- 1.9% (2018 est.)
Environment
15 fieldsLand use(2018 est.)
Environment - current issues
- 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
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, 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
Air pollutants
- particulate matter emissions:
- 27.78 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)
- carbon dioxide emissions:
- 2.51 megatons (2016 est.)
- methane emissions:
- 2.56 megatons (2020 est.)
Urbanization
- urban population:
- 30.4% of total population (2023)
- rate of urbanization:
- 2.77% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major infectious diseases
- degree of risk:
- intermediate (2020)
- food or waterborne diseases:
- bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
Food insecurity
- severe localized food insecurity:
- due to poor harvests and increased food prices - according to the latest national food security assessment, 22% of the rural population are expected to face acute food insecurity between October 2022 and March 2023, compared to 15% between July and September 2022;
- the forecasted proportion translates into 320,000 people in rural areas, while an additional 201,000 people in urban areas are foreseen to also need assistance;
- the foreseen increase of acute food insecurity levels is primarily due to the reduced harvest, high food prices in basic food and non‑food commodities and a slow recovery of households’ income reflecting a downturn in economic growth;
- harvesting of the 2022 main-season summer cereal crops, mostly maize and sorghum, is complete;
- production of maize, the main cereal staple, is about one‑third of the average, while the sorghum output is almost negligible;
- the poor harvest was primarily due to torrential rainfalls during January and February 2022, which caused localized flooding and resulted in crop losses (2022)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Orange river source (shared with South Africa and Namibia [m]) - 2,092 km; note – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Total water withdrawal
- municipal:
- 20 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
- industrial:
- 20 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
- agricultural:
- 3.8 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Government
Parliamentary constitutional monarchy; King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); Prime Minister Ntsokoane Samuel MATEKANE (4 November 2022)
22 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
National Assembly, 119 seatsone dot, one seat
Percent of vote
Composition: men 87, women 28, percent of women 23.3%
Country name
- conventional long form:
- Kingdom of Lesotho
- conventional short form:
- Lesotho
- local long form:
- Kingdom of Lesotho
- local short form:
- Lesotho
- former:
- Basutoland
- etymology:
- the name translates as "Land of the Sesotho Speakers"
Capital
- name:
- Maseru
- geographic coordinates:
- 29 19 S, 27 29 E
- time difference:
- UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- etymology:
- in the Sesotho language the name means "[place of] red sandstones"
Administrative divisions
10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka
Constitution
- history:
- previous 1959, 1967; latest adopted 2 April 1993 (effectively restoring the 1967 version)
- amendments:
- proposed by Parliament;
- passage of amendments affecting constitutional provisions, including fundamental rights and freedoms, sovereignty of the kingdom, the office of the king, and powers of Parliament, requires a majority vote by the National Assembly, approval by the Senate, approval in a referendum by a majority of qualified voters, and assent of the king;
- passage of amendments other than those specified provisions requires at least a two-thirds majority vote in both houses of Parliament;
- amended several times, last in 2011
Legal system
mixed legal system of English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal
International law organization participation
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Citizenship
- citizenship by birth:
- yes
- citizenship by descent only:
- yes
- dual citizenship recognized:
- no
- residency requirement for naturalization:
- 5 years
Executive branch
- 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 Ntsokoane Samuel MATEKANE (4 November 2022)
- cabinet:
- consists of the prime minister, appointed by the King on the advice of the Council of State, the deputy prime minister, and 26 other ministers
- elections/appointments:
- the monarchy 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, to determine next in line of succession, or to serve as regent in the event that a successor is not of mature age;
- following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition in the Assembly automatically becomes prime minister
Legislative branch
- description:
- bicameral Parliament consists of:; Senate (33 seats; 22 principal chiefs and 11 other senators nominated by the king with the advice of the Council of State, a 13-member body of key government and non-government officials; members serve 5-year terms); National Assembly (120 seats; 80 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 40 elected through proportional representation; members serve 5-year terms)
- elections:
- Senate - last nominated by the king on July 2022 (next in late July 2027); National Assembly - last held on 7 October 2022 (next to be held on October 2027)
- election results:
- Senate - percent of votes by party - NA, seats by party - NA; composition - men 26, women 7, percent of women 21.2%;
- National Assembly - percent of votes by party - RFP 38.9%, DC 24.7%, ABC 7.1%, BAP 5.4%, AD 4.0%, MEC 3.2%, LCD 2.3%, SR 2.1%, BNP 1.4%, PFD 0.9%, BCM 0.8%, MPS 0.8%, MIP 0.7%;
- seats by party - RFP 56, DC 29, ABC 8, BAP 6, AD 5, MEC 4, LCD 3, SR 2, BNP 1, PFD 1,BCM 1, MPS 1, NIP 1, HOPE 1, TBD 1;
- composition - men 87, women 28, percent of women 23.3%;
- note - total Parliament percent of women 22.9%
Judicial branch
- highest court(s):
- Court of Appeal (consists of the court president, such number of justices of appeal as set by Parliament, and the Chief Justice and the puisne judges of the High Court ex officio);
- High Court (consists of the chief justice and such number of puisne judges as set by Parliament);
- note - both the Court of Appeal and the High Court have jurisdiction in constitutional issues
- judge selection and term of office:
- Court of Appeal president and High Court chief justice appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister;
- puisne judges appointed by the monarch on advice of the Judicial Service Commission, an independent body of judicial officers and officials designated by the monarch;
- judges of both courts can serve until age 75
- subordinate courts:
- Magistrate Courts;
- customary or traditional courts;
- military courts
Political parties and leaders
- All Basotho Convention or ABC [Nkaku KABI]
- Alliance of Democrats or AD [Monyane MOLELEKI]
- Basotho Action Party or BAP [Nqosa MAHAO]
- Basotho National Party or BNP [Thesele MASERIBANE]
- Democratic Congress or DC [Mathibeli MOKHOTHU]
- Democratic Party of Lesotho or DPL [Limpho TAU]
- Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Mothetjoa METSING]
- Movement of Economic Change or MEC [Selibe MOCHOBOROANE]
- National Independent Party or NIP [Kimetso MATHABA]
- Popular Front for Democracy of PFD [Lekhetho RAKUOANE]
- Reformed Congress of Lesotho or RCL [Keketso RANTSO]
International organization participation
ACP, AfDB, AU, C, CD, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador (vacant); Charge d’Affaires Masopha Phoofolo Moses KAO, Counselor (28 May 2021)
- chancery:
- 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
- telephone:
- [1] (202) 797-5533
- FAX:
- [1] (202) 234-6815
- email address and website:
- [email protected]; https://www.gov.ls/
Diplomatic representation from the US
- chief of mission:
- Ambassador Maria E. BREWER (since 10 March 2022)
- embassy:
- 254 Kingsway Avenue, Maseru
- mailing address:
- 2340 Maseru Place, Washington DC 20521-2340
- telephone:
- [266] 22312666
- FAX:
- [266] 22310116
- email address and website:
- [email protected]; https://ls.usembassy.gov/
Flag description
- 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 mokorotlo, a traditional Basotho straw hat and national symbol;
- the redesigned flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence
National anthem
- name:
- "Lesotho fatse la bo ntat'a rona" (Lesotho, Land of Our Fathers)
- lyrics/music:
- Francois COILLARD/Ferdinand-Samuel LAUR
note: adopted 1967; music derives from an 1823 Swiss songbook
National heritage
- total World Heritage Sites:
- 1 (mixed)
- selected World Heritage Site locales:
- Maloti-Drakensberg Park
Economy
Small, mountainous, and completely landlocked by South Africa, Lesotho depends on a narrow economic base of textile manufacturing, agriculture, remittances, and regional customs revenue.
34 fieldsGDP - composition, by sector of origin(2016 est.)
By end use% of GDP · (2017 est.)
Budget(2017 est.)
Economic overview
Small, mountainous, and completely landlocked by South Africa, Lesotho depends on a narrow economic base of textile manufacturing, agriculture, remittances, and regional customs revenue. About three-fourths of the people live in rural areas and engage in animal herding and subsistence agriculture, although Lesotho produces less than 20% of the nation's demand for food. Agriculture is vulnerable to weather and climate variability.
Lesotho relies on South Africa for much of its economic activity; Lesotho imports 85% of the goods it consumes from South Africa, including most agricultural inputs. Households depend heavily on remittances from family members working in South Africa in mines, on farms, and as domestic workers, though mining employment has declined substantially since the 1990s.
Lesotho is a member of the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU), and revenues from SACU accounted for roughly 26% of total GDP in 2016; however, SACU revenues are volatile and expected to decline over the next 5 years. Lesotho also gains royalties from the South African Government for water transferred to South Africa from a dam and reservoir system in Lesotho. However, the government continues to strengthen its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties and other transfers.
The government maintains a large presence in the economy - government consumption accounted for about 26% of GDP in 2017. The government remains Lesotho's largest employer; in 2016, the government wage bill rose to 23% of GDP – the largest in Sub-Saharan Africa. Lesotho's largest private employer is the textile and garment industry - approximately 36,000 Basotho, mainly women, work in factories producing garments for export to South Africa and the US. Diamond mining in Lesotho has grown in recent years and accounted for nearly 35% of total exports in 2015.
Lesotho managed steady GDP growth at an average of 4.5% from 2010 to 2014, dropping to about 2.5% in 2015-16, but poverty remains widespread around 57% of the total population.
Credit ratings
Fitch rating: B (2019) note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.
Labor force - by occupation
- agriculture:
- 86%
- industry and services:
- 14% (2002 est.)
note: most of the resident population is engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa
Exports
$900 million (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars; $1.09 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars; $1.25 billion (2018 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Exports - commodities
diamonds, clothing and apparel, low-voltage protection equipment, wheat products, footwear (2019)
Imports
$1.96 billion (2020 est.) note: data are in current year dollars; $2.2 billion (2019 est.) note: data are in current year dollars; $2.39 billion (2018 est.) note: data are in current year dollars
Imports - commodities
refined petroleum, clothing and apparel, packaged medicines, delivery trucks, poultry meats (2019)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$657.7 million (31 December 2017 est.) · $925.2 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Exchange rates
maloti (LSL) per US dollar - 14.48 (2017 est.) · 14.71 (2016 est.) · 14.71 (2015 est.) · 12.76 (2014 est.) · 10.85 (2013 est.)
Energy
11 fieldsElectrification% of population · (2019)
Installed generating capacity, 74,000 kW(2020 est.)
Coal
- production:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- consumption:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- exports:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- imports:
- 0 metric tons (2020 est.)
- proven reserves:
- 0 metric tons (2019 est.)
Petroleum
- total petroleum production:
- 0 bbl/day (2021 est.)
- refined petroleum consumption:
- 5,100 bbl/day (2019 est.)
- crude oil and lease condensate exports:
- 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
- crude oil and lease condensate imports:
- 0 bbl/day (2018 est.)
- crude oil estimated reserves:
- 0 barrels (2021 est.)
Natural gas
- production:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- consumption:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- exports:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- imports:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
- proven reserves:
- 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions
736,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from coal and metallurgical coke:
- 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from petroleum and other liquids:
- 736,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
- from consumed natural gas:
- 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.)
Communications
7 fieldsPer 100 inhabitants(2020 est.)
Telecommunication systems
- general assessment:
- until late 2020, Lesotho’s telecom regulator maintained a market duopoly which is focused on fixed-line services;
- competition was insufficient to promote effective price reductions for consumers, while the regulator had no mechanisms in place to monitor the telcos to ensure quality of service and fair pricing for consumers;
- the small size of the country’s population provided little incentive for new players to enter the market;
- a positive outcome for consumers was the deployment in early 2021 of a service to monitor traffic and billing;
- this ended the practice whereby the regulator was dependent on telcos submitting data about their performance, billing, and other matters;
- the regulator has also turned its attention to addressing multiple SIM ownership and stem incidences of crimes committed using unregistered SIMs;
- in May 2022, it instructed the country’s MNOs to begin registering SIM cards on their networks from the following month;
- fixed-wireless 5G trials began in early 2019 (2022)
- domestic:
- fixed-line is less than 1 per 100 subscriptions;
- mobile-cellular service subscribership nearly 73 per 100 persons;
- rudimentary system consisting of a modest number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a small radiotelephone communication system (2020)
- international:
- country code - 266;
- Internet accessibility has improved with several submarine fiber optic cables that land on African east and west coasts, but the country's land locked position makes access prices expensive;
- satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) (2019)
note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced a downturn, particularly in mobile device production;
progress toward 5G implementation has resumed, as well as upgrades to infrastructure; consumer spending on telecom services has increased due to the surge in demand for capacity and bandwidth; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home is still evident, and the spike in this area has seen growth opportunities for development of new tools and increased services
Broadcast media
- 1 state-owned TV station and 2 state-owned radio stations;
- government controls most private broadcast media;
- satellite TV subscription service available;
- transmissions of multiple international broadcasters obtainable (2019)
Transportation
5 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right
Military and Security
Lesotho Defense Force (LDF): Army (includes Air Wing) (2022) | note: the Lesotho Mounted Police Service is responsible for internal security and reports to the Minister of Police and Public Safety
6 fieldsPersonnel strengthsone square, 100 people · (2022)
Military and security forces
Lesotho Defense Force (LDF): Army (includes Air Wing) (2022) note: the Lesotho Mounted Police Service is responsible for internal security and reports to the Minister of Police and Public Safety
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the LDF has a small inventory of older and second-hand equipment from a variety of countries (2021)
Military service age and obligation
20-30 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2022)
Military - note
Lesotho's declared policy for its military is the maintenance of the country's sovereignty and the preservation of internal security; in practice, external security is guaranteed by South Africa
the LDF began in 1964 as the Police Mobile Unit (PMU); the PMU was designated as the Lesotho Paramilitary Force in 1980 and became the Royal Lesotho Defense Force in 1986; it was subsequently renamed the Lesotho Defense Force in 1993 (2022)
Transnational Issues
1 fieldDisputes - international
Lesotho-South Africa : South Africa has placed military units to assist police operations along the border of Lesotho, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique to control smuggling, poaching, and illegal migration
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Lesotho.” The World Factbook 2022. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/lesotho/2022.