Lesotho

Airports

total: 28 usable: 28 with permanent-surface runways: 3 with runways over 3,659 m: 0 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 1 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 2

Highways

7,215 km total; 572 km paved; 2,337 km crushed stone, gravel, or stabilized soil; 1,806 km improved earth, 2,500 km unimproved earth

Railroads

2.6 km; owned, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa

Telecommunications

rudimentary system consisting of a few landlines, a small microwave system, and minor radio communications stations; 5,920 telephones; broadcast stations - 3 AM, 2 FM, 1 TV; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Branches

Royal Lesotho Defense Force (RLDF; including Army, Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $55 million, 13% of GDP (1990 est.)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 422,802; fit for military service 228,102 (1993 est.)

Agriculture

accounts for 19% of GDP (1990 est.) and employs 60-70% of all households; exceedingly primitive, mostly subsistence farming and livestock; principal crops corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley

Budget

revenues $388 million; expenditures $399 million, including capital expenditures of $132 million (FY93)

Currency

1 loti (L) = 100 lisente

Economic aid

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $268 million; US, $10.3 million (1992), $10.1 million (1993 est.); Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $819 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $4 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $14 million

Electricity

power supplied by South Africa

Exchange rates

maloti (M) per US$1 - 3.1576 (May 1993), 2.8497 (1992), 2.7563 (1991), 2.5863 (1990), 2.6166 (1989), 2.2611 (1988); note - the Basotho loti is at par with the South African rand

Exports

$57 million (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: wool, mohair, wheat, cattle, peas, beans, corn, hides, skins, baskets partners: South Africa 53%, EC 30%, North and South America 13% (1989)

External debt

$358 million (for public sector) (December 1990/91 est.)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

Imports

$805 million (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: mainly corn, building materials, clothing, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum partners: South Africa 95%, EC 2% (1989)

Industrial production

growth rate 5.0% (1991 est.); accounts for 11% of GDP

Industries

food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts, tourism

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

17.9% (1991)

National product

GDP - exchange rate conversion - $620 million (1991 est.) note: GNP of $1.0 billion (1991 est.)

National product per capita

$340 (1991 est.); GNP $570 (1991 est.)

National product real growth rate

5.3% (1991 est.); GNP 2.2% (1991 est.)

Overview

Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho has no important natural resources other than water. Its economy is based on agriculture, light manufacturing, and remittances from laborers employed in South Africa ($439 million in 1991). The great majority of households gain their livelihoods from subsistence farming and migrant labor. Manufacturing depends largely on farm products to support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries; other industries include textile, clothing, and construction (in particular, a major water improvement project which will permit the sale of water to South Africa). Industry's share of GDP rose from 6% in 1982 to 15% in 1989. Political and economic instability in South Africa raises uncertainty for Lesotho's economy, especially with respect to migrant worker remittances - recently the equivalent of nearly three-fourths of domestic output.

Unemployment rate

at least 55% among adult males (1991 est.)

Area

total area: 30,350 km2 land area: 30,350 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland

Climate

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

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Environment

population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, soil exhaustion; desertification

International disputes

none

Irrigated land

NA km2

Land boundaries

total 909 km, South Africa 909 km

Land use

arable land: 10% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 66% forest and woodland: 0% other: 24%

Location

Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa

Map references

Africa, Standard Time Zones of the World

Maritime claims

none; landlocked

Natural resources

some diamonds and other minerals, water, agricultural and grazing land

Note

landlocked; surrounded by South Africa; Highlands Water Project will control, store, and redirect water to South Africa

Terrain

mostly highland with some plateaus, hills, and mountains

Administrative divisions

10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka

Capital

Maseru

Constitution

4 October 1966, suspended January 1970

Digraph

LT

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission: Ambassador Designate Teboho KITLEI chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 797-5534

Elections

National Assembly: dissolved following the military coup in January 1986; military has pledged elections will take place in March 1993

Executive branch

monarch, chairman of the Military Council, Military Council, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Flag

divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner

Independence

4 October 1966 (from UK)

Judicial branch

High Court, Court of Appeal

Leaders

Chief of State: King LETSIE III (since 12 November 1990 following dismissal of his father, exiled King MOSHOESHOE II, by Maj. Gen. LEKHANYA) Head of Government: Chairman of the Military Council Gen. Elias Phisoana RAMAEMA (since 30 April 1991)

Legal system

based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Legislative branch

none - the bicameral Parliament was dissolved following the military coup in January 1986; note - a National Constituent Assembly convened in June 1990 to rewrite the constitution and debate issues of national importance, but it has no legislative authority

Member of

ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, GATT, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAU, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Names

conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland

National holiday

Independence Day, 4 October (1966)

Political parties and leaders

Basotho National Party (BNP), Evaristus SEKHONYANA; Basutoland Congress Party (BCP), Ntsu MOKHEHLE; National Independent Party (NIP), A. C. MANYELI; Marematlou Freedom Party (MFP), Vincent MALEBO; United Democratic Party, Charles MOFELI; Communist Party of Lesotho (CPL), JCOB M. KENA

Suffrage

21 years of age; universal

Type

constitutional monarchy

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission: Ambassador Leonard H.O. SPEARMAN, Sr. embassy: address NA, Maseru mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100 Lesotho telephone: [266] 312-666 FAX: (266) 310-116

Birth rate

34.64 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)

Death rate

9.44 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Sotho 99.7%, Europeans 1,600, Asians 800

Infant mortality rate

71.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Labor force

689,000 economically active by occupation: 86.2% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 60% of active male labor force works in South Africa

Languages

Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 61.73 years male: 59.91 years female: 63.6 years (1993 est.)

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1966) total population: 59% male: 44% female: 68%

Nationality

noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)

Population

1,896,484 (July 1993 est.)

Population growth rate

2.52% (1993 est.)

Religions

Christian 80%, rest indigenous beliefs

Total fertility rate

4.6 children born/woman (1993 est.)