Lesotho

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 that made Basutoland first a British protectorate and, after 1884, a crown colony. After gaining 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, returned to Lesotho in 1992, was reinstated in 1995, and was then succeeded by his son, King LETSIE III, in 1996. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after seven years of military rule. <br><br>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 (SADC). 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 seats were awarded. In 2012, competitive elections 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 2015 after the collapse of THABANE’s coalition government and an alleged attempted military coup. In 2017, THABANE returned to become prime minister but stepped down in 2020 after being implicated in his estranged wife’s murder. He was succeeded by Moseketsi MAJORO. In 2022, Ntsokoane Samuel MATEKANE was inaugurated as prime minister and head of a three-party coalition.

Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa

29 30 S, 28 30 E

Africa

slightly smaller than Maryland

0 km (landlocked)

none (landlocked)

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

mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains

water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone

12 sq km (2013)

Orange river source (shared with South Africa and Namibia [m]) - 2,092 km<br><br><strong>note:</strong> [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth

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

periodic droughts

landlocked, surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 m (5,900 ft) above sea level

Sotho 99.7%, other 0.3% (includes Kwena, Nguni (Hlubi and Phuthi), Zulu)

Sesotho (official), English (official), Phuthi, Xhosa, Zulu

Protestant 47.8% (Pentecostal 23.1%, Lesotho Evangelical 17.3%, Anglican 7.4%), Roman Catholic 39.3%, other Christian 9.1%, non-Christian 1.4%, none 2.3% (2014 est.)

0.73% (2025 est.)

21.68 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

10.2 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

-4.21 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

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

202,000 MASERU (capital) (2018)

20.9 years (2014 est.)

478 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

2.49 children born/woman (2025 est.)

1.23 (2025 est.)

0.24 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

16.6% (2016)

12.5% (2024 est.)

46.9% (2021 est.)

overgrazing; severe soil erosion; soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa

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

17.4 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

3.022 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

parliamentary constitutional monarchy

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

mixed system of English common law and Roman-Dutch law; High Court and Court of Appeal review legislative acts

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

All Basotho Convention or ABC <br>Alliance of Democrats or AD <br>Basotho Action Party or BAP <br>Basotho National Party or BNP <br>Democratic Congress or DC <br>Democratic Party of Lesotho or DPL <br>Lesotho People's Congress or LPC <br>Movement of Economic Change or MEC <br>National Independent Party or NIP <br>Popular Front for Democracy of PFD<br>Reformed Congress of Lesotho or RCL 

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, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

4 October 1966 (from the UK)

Independence Day, 4 October (1966)

<strong>description: </strong>three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green; centered on the white stripe is a black <em>mokorotlo</em>, a traditional Basotho straw hat and national symbol<br><br><strong>meaning:</strong> blue stands for rain, white for peace, and green for prosperity<br><br><strong>history:</strong> the redesigned flag was introduced in 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence

mokorotio (Basotho hat)

blue, white, green, black

lower middle-income economy surrounded by South Africa; environmentally fragile and politically unstable; key infrastructure and renewable energy investments; dire poverty; urban job and income losses due to COVID-19; systemic corruption

$2.272 billion (2024 est.)

milk, potatoes, maize, vegetables, fruits, sorghum, wheat, game meat, beans, wool (2023)

food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism

2.6% (2024 est.)

884,200 (2024 est.)

49.7% (2017 est.)

30.4% (of GDP) (2022 est.)

South Africa 31%, Belgium 26%, USA 20%, UAE 8%, India 8% (2023)

diamonds, garments, wool, power equipment, bedding (2023)

South Africa 78%, China 10%, Taiwan 3%, Japan 1%, India 1% (2023)

refined petroleum, fabric, trucks, garments, cotton fabric (2023)

1 state-owned TV station and 2 state-owned radio stations; most private broadcast media transmitters are connected to government radio signal towers; satellite TV subscription service available; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters obtainable (2019)

.ls

7P

34 (2025)

Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) (2025)

approximately 2,000 active Defense Forces (2025)

the LDF is lightly armed and has a small inventory of mostly older or secondhand equipment of European, South African, and US origin (2025)

20-30 years of age for voluntary military service for both men and women (2026)

the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) is responsible for the maintenance of the country's sovereignty and the preservation of internal security; in practice, external security is guaranteed by South Africa; the LDF is a small force that 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 renamed the Lesotho Defense Force in 1993 (2025)