Lesotho officially the Kingdom of Lesotho is a landlocked country and enclave entirely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. Formerly Basutoland, it is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Basutoland
was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in
1966. The Basuto National Party ruled the country during its first two
decades. King Moshoeshoe 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 of February 2007 were hotly contested and aggrieved parties
disputed how the electoral law was applied to award proportional seats
in the Assembly. In May 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.
Country Name:
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conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
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conventional short form: Lesotho
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former: Basutoland
Capital:
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name: Maseru
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geographic coordinates: 29 19 S, 27 29 E
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time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Independence:
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4 October 1966 (from the UK)
Government Type:
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parliamentary constitutional monarchy
Executive Branch:
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chief of state: King Letsie III (since 7 February 1996)
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head of government: Prime Minister Motsoahae Thomas Thabane (since 8 June 2012)
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elections: the
leader of the majority party, or coalition of parties, in the Assembly
automatically becomes prime minister; 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, determine next in
line of succession or shall serve as regent in the event that the
successor is not of mature age
Legislative Branch:
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structure: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate and the Assembly
Judicial Branch:
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structure: High Court; Court of Appeal, Magistrate Courts, customary or traditional courts
Population:
Nationality:
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noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
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adjective: Basotho
Major Cities:
Ethnic Groups:
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Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%
Religions:
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Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%
Languages:
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Sesotho (official) (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa
Life Expectancy at Birth:
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total population: 52.65 years (global rank: 211)
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male: 52.55 years
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female: 52.75 years
Infant Mortality:
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total population: 50.48 deaths/1,000 live births (global rank: 37)
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male: 54.38 deaths/1,000 live births
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female: 46.45 deaths/1,000 live births
HIV/AIDS:
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adult prevalence rate: 23.1% (2012 est.) (global rank: 2)
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people living with AIDS: 358,700 (2012 est.) (global rank: 20)
Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
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total population: 89.6%
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male: 83.3%
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female: 95.6%
Overview: Small, mountainous, and completely landlocked by South Africa, Lesotho
is a least developed country in which about three-fourths of the people
live in rural areas and engage in subsistence agriculture. Lesotho
produces less than 20% of the nation's demand for food. Rain-fed
agriculture is vulnerable to weather and climate variability; an
estimated 725,500 people will require food assistance in 2012/13. The
distribution of income in Lesotho remains inequitable. Lesotho relies on
South Africa for much of its economic activity. Lesotho imports 90% 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.
Government revenue depends heavily on transfers from South Africa.
Customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union accounted for 44%
of government revenue in 2012. The South African Government also pays
royalties 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.
Access to credit remains a problem for the private sector. The
government maintains a large presence in the economy - government
consumption accounted for 39% of GDP in 2013 and the government remains
Lesotho's largest employer. 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 may
contribute 8.5% to GDP by 2015, according to current forecasts.
Lesotho's $362.5 million Millennium Challenge Account Compact, which
focused on strengthening the healthcare system, developing the private
sector, and providing access to improved water supplies and sanitation
facilities, will end in September 2013. Despite the 2008/09 global
economic crisis, the economy has had strong, but declining growth since
2010.
Gross Domestic Product:
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GDP (PPP): $4.265 billion (global rank: 175)
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GDP per capita (PPP): $2,200 (global rank: 192)
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real growth rate: 4.1% (global rank: 75)
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composition by sector: agriculture: 7.4%, industry: 34.5%, services: 58.2%
Currency:
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currency: Lesotho Maloti (LSL)
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exchange rate (per US Dollar): 9.575
Poverty:
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unemployment rate: 25%
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population below poverty line: 49%
Agricultural Products:
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corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock
Industries:
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food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism
Export Commodities:
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manufactures (clothing, footwear), wool and mohair, food and live animals, electricity, water, diamonds
Import Commodities:
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food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products
Location:
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Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa
Area:
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total: 30,355 sq km (global rank: 142)
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land: 30,355 sq km
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water: 0 sq km
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comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Climate:
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temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers
Land Use:
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arable land: 10.14%
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permanent crops: 0.13%
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other: 89.72%
Natural Resources:
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water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone
Current Environmental Issues:
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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
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international disputes: 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
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human trafficking: Lesotho
is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children
subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking and for men subjected to
forced labor; Basotho women and children are subjected to domestic
servitude and children, to a lesser extent, commercial sexual
exploitation within Lesotho and South Africa; some Basotho women
willingly migrate to South Africa seeking work in domestic service only
to be forced into prostitution; some Basotho men who voluntarily migrate
to South Africa for work become victims of forced labor in agriculture
and mining or are coerced into committing crimes
Published: Monday, March 30, 2015