Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
Jah-Jah.pl / Index countries / Lesotho (2001) - Barbados (2008) / Compare countries
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Lesotho (2001) - Barbados (2008)

Compare Lesotho (2001) z Barbados (2008)

 Lesotho (2001)Barbados (2008)
 LesothoBarbados
Administrative divisions 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka 11 parishes and 1 city*; Bridgetown*, Christ Church, Saint Andrew, Saint George, Saint James, Saint John, Saint Joseph, Saint Lucy, Saint Michael, Saint Peter, Saint Philip, Saint Thomas
Age structure 0-14 years:
39.28% (male 430,147; female 424,994)

15-64 years:
56.03% (male 588,440; female 631,404)

65 years and over:
4.69% (male 43,033; female 59,044) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 19.7% (male 27,659/female 27,573)


15-64 years: 71.4% (male 98,633/female 102,020)


65 years and over: 8.9% (male 9,662/female 15,399) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Airports 29 (2000 est.) 1 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
4

over 3,047 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
1

under 914 m:
2 (2000 est.)
total: 1


over 3,047 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
25

914 to 1,523 m:
4

under 914 m:
21 (2000 est.)
-
Area total:
30,355 sq km

land:
30,355 sq km

water:
0 sq km
total: 431 sq km


land: 431 sq km


water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maryland 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Background Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. The island was uninhabited when first settled by the British in 1627. Slaves worked the sugar plantations established on the island until 1834 when slavery was abolished. The economy remained heavily dependent on sugar, rum, and molasses production through most of the 20th century. The gradual introduction of social and political reforms in the 1940s and 1950s led to complete independence from the UK in 1966. In the 1990s, tourism and manufacturing surpassed the sugar industry in economic importance.
Birth rate 31.24 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 12.61 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$76 million

expenditures:
$80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY99/00 est.)
revenues: $847 million (including grants)


expenditures: $886 million (2000 est.)
Capital Maseru name: Bridgetown


geographic coordinates: 13 06 N, 59 37 W


time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers tropical; rainy season (June to October)
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 97 km
Constitution 2 April 1993 30 November 1966
Country name conventional long form:
Kingdom of Lesotho

conventional short form:
Lesotho

former:
Basutoland
conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Barbados
Currency loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) -
Death rate 15.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 8.61 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $720 million (2000 est.) $668 million (2003)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Katherine H. PETERSON

embassy:
254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section)

mailing address:
P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho

telephone:
[266] 312666

FAX:
[266] 310116
chief of mission: Ambassador Mary M. OURISMAN


embassy: U.S. Embassy, Wildey Business Park, Wildey, St. Michael


mailing address: P. O. Box 302, Bridgetown; CMR 1014, APO AA 34055


telephone: [1] (246) 436-4950


FAX: [1] (246) 429-5246, 429-3379
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO

chancery:
2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:
[1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536

FAX:
[1] (202) 234-6815
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael Ian KING


chancery: 2144 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 939-9200


FAX: [1] (202) 332-7467


consulate(s) general: Miami, New York


consulate(s): Los Angeles
Disputes - international none in April 2006, the Permanent Court of Arbitration issued a decision that delimited a maritime boundary with Trinidad and Tobago and compelled Barbados to enter a fishing agreement limiting Barbadian fishermen's catches of flying fish in Trinidad and Tobago's exclusive economic zone; in 2005, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago agreed to compulsory international arbitration under UNCLOS challenging whether the northern limit of Trinidad and Tobago's and Venezuela's maritime boundary extends into Barbadian waters; joins other Caribbean states to counter Venezuela's claim that Aves Island sustains human habitation, a criterion under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which permits Venezuela to extend its EEZ/continental shelf over a large portion of the eastern Caribbean Sea
Economic aid - recipient $123.7 million (1995) $2.07 million (2005)
Economy - overview Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, and remittances from miners employed in South Africa. The number of such mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of substantial privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. Historically, the Barbadian economy was dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities. However, production in recent years has diversified into light industry and tourism, with nearly three-quarters of GDP and 80% of exports being attributed to services. Growth has rebounded since 2003, bolstered by increases in construction projects and tourism revenues - reflecting its success in the higher-end segment. The country enjoys one of the highest per capita incomes in the region and an investment grade rating which benefits from its political stability and stable institutions. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners and thrive from having the same time zone as eastern US financial centers and a relatively highly educated workforce. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises.
Electricity - consumption 55 million kWh (1999) 886.3 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 55 million kWh

note:
electricity supplied by South Africa (1999)
0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) 953 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
0%

hydro:
0%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m

highest point:
Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Hillaby 336 m
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 pollution of coastal waters from waste disposal by ships; soil erosion; illegal solid waste disposal threatens contamination of aquifers
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:
Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, black 90%, white 4%, Asian and mixed 6%
Exchange rates maloti per US dollar - 7.78307 (January 2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti Barbadian dollars per US dollar - NA (2007), 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003)
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 Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998)

cabinet:
Cabinet

elections:
none; 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 which 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 determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Sir Clifford Straughn HUSBANDS (since 1 June 1996)


head of government: Prime Minister David THOMPSON (since 16 January 2008)


cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister


elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; the prime minister recommends the deputy prime minister
Exports $175 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) 1,666 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (1998) manufactures, sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
Exports - partners South African Customs Union 65%, North America 34% (1998) US 27.6%, Trinidad and Tobago 15%, UK 10.2%, Saint Lucia 7%, Jamaica 6.5%, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4.3% (2006)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March 1 April - 31 March
Flag description 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 three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), gold, and blue with the head of a black trident centered on the gold band; the trident head represents independence and a break with the past (the colonial coat of arms contained a complete trident)
GDP purchasing power parity - $5.1 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
18%

industry:
38%

services:
44% (1999)
agriculture: 6%


industry: 16%


services: 78% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,400 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 2.5% (2000 est.) 4% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 29 30 S, 28 30 E 13 10 N, 59 32 W
Geography - note landlocked; surrounded by South Africa easternmost Caribbean island
Highways total:
4,955 km

paved:
887 km

unpaved:
4,068 km (1996)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
0.9%

highest 10%:
43.4% (1986-87)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs - one of many Caribbean transshipment points for narcotics bound for Europe and the US; offshore financial center
Imports $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) 7,071 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (1995) consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners South African Customs Union 90%, Asia 7% (1998) US 37.7%, Trinidad and Tobago 22.6%, UK 5.9% (2006)
Independence 4 October 1966 (from UK) 30 November 1966 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 15.5% (1999 est.) -3.2% (2000 est.)
Industries food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts; construction; tourism tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Infant mortality rate 82.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 11.55 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 12.88 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 10.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6% (2000 est.) 5.5% (2007 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-77, IADB, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) -
Irrigated land 30 sq km (1993 est.) 50 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court Supreme Court of Judicature (judges are appointed by the Service Commissions for the Judicial and Legal Services); Caribbean Court of Justice is the highest court of appeal
Labor force 700,000 economically active 128,500 (2001 est.)
Labor force - by occupation 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa agriculture: 10%


industry: 15%


services: 75% (1996 est.)
Land boundaries total:
909 km

border countries:
South Africa 909 km
0 km
Land use arable land:
11%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
66%

forests and woodland:
0%

other:
23% (1993 est.)
arable land: 37.21%


permanent crops: 2.33%


other: 60.46% (2005)
Languages Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa English
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 English common law; no judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (80 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 65 to 80 in the May 1998 election; on 28 February 2001, the Senate approved expansion of the Assembly by a further 50 seats in the next election, which may be held as early as January 2002

elections:
last held 23 May 1998 (next to be held NA March 2001)

election results:
percent of vote by party - LCD 60.7%, BNP 24.5%, other 14.8%; seats by party - LCD 79, BNP 1

note:
results contested; opposition parties claimed the election was fraudulent and staged a coup; Southern African Development Community (SADC) forces intervened in September 1998 and restored order; the Interim Political Authority (IPA) was set up in December 1998 to create a new electoral system and conduct new elections.
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (21 seats; members appointed by the governor general - 12 on the advice of the Prime Minister, 2 on the advice of the opposition leader, and 7 at his discretion) and the House of Assembly (30 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: House of Assembly - last held 15 January 2008 (next to be called in 2013)


election results: House of Assembly - percent of vote by party - DLP 52.5%, BLP 47.3%; seats by party - DLP 20, BLP 10
Life expectancy at birth total population:
48.84 years

male:
47.97 years

female:
49.74 years (2001 est.)
total population: 73 years


male: 71.02 years


female: 75.01 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
83%

male:
72%

female:
93% (1999 est.)
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school


total population: 99.7%


male: 99.7%


female: 99.7% (2002 est.)
Location Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa Caribbean, island in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela
Map references Africa Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine - total: 71 ships (1000 GRT or over) 539,579 GRT/793,899 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 13, cargo 39, chemical tanker 6, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 2, specialized tanker 1


foreign-owned: 67 (Bahamas, The 1, Canada 9, Greece 11, India 1, Lebanon 1, Monaco 1, Norway 35, Sweden 5, UK 3)


registered in other countries: 1 (St Vincent and The Grenadines 1) (2007)
Military - note The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs. the Royal Barbados Defense Force includes a land-based Troop Command and a small Coast Guard; the primary role of the land element is to defend the island against external aggression; the Command consists of a single, part-time battalion with a small regular cadre that is deployed throughout the island; it increasingly supports the police in patrolling the coastline to prevent smuggling and other illicit activities (2005)
Military branches Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; includes Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police (RLMP) Royal Barbados Defense Force: Troops Command, Barbados Coast Guard (2007)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $34 million (1999) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% 0.5% (2006 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
515,464 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
277,369 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Independence Day, 4 October (1966) Independence Day, 30 November (1966)
Nationality noun:
Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)

adjective:
Basotho
noun: Barbadian(s) or Bajan (colloquial)


adjective: Barbadian or Bajan (colloquial)
Natural hazards periodic droughts infrequent hurricanes; periodic landslides
Natural resources water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals petroleum, fish, natural gas
Net migration rate -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -0.31 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Political parties and leaders Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Dr. Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] Barbados Labor Party or BLP [Owen ARTHUR]; Democratic Labor Party or DLP [David THOMPSON]; People's Empowerment Party or PEP [David COMISSIONG]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Barbados Secondary Teachers' Union or BSTU [Patrick FROST]; Barbados Union of Teachers or BUT [Herbert GITTENS]; Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados or CTUSAB, which includes the BWU, NUPW, BUT, and BSTU [Leroy TROTMAN]; Barbados Workers Union or BWU [Leroy TROTMAN]; Clement Payne Labor Union [David COMISSIONG]; National Union of Public Workers [Joseph GODDARD]
Population 2,177,062

note:
estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.)
280,946 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 49.2% (1999 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 1.49% (2001 est.) 0.369% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors none -
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 2, FM 6, shortwave 0 (2004)
Radios 104,000 (1997) -
Railways total:
2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa

narrow gauge:
2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995)
-
Religions Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% Protestant 67% (Anglican 40%, Pentecostal 8%, Methodist 7%, other 12%), Roman Catholic 4%, none 17%, other 12%
Sex ratio at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.73 male(s)/female

total population:
0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.01 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.003 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.967 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.627 male(s)/female


total population: 0.938 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
rudimentary system

domestic:
consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment: fixed-line teledensity of roughly 50 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone density of 75 per 100 persons


domestic: island-wide automatic telephone system


international: country code - 1-246; landing point for the East Caribbean Fiber System (ECFS) optic submarine cable with links to 13 other islands in the eastern Caribbean extending from the British Virgin Islands to Trinidad; satellite earth stations - 1 (Intelsat -Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Trinidad and Saint Lucia (2007)
Telephones - main lines in use 20,000 (1997) 134,900 (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 1,262 (1996) 206,200 (2005)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2000) 1 (plus 2 cable channels) (2004)
Terrain mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains relatively flat; rises gently to central highland region
Total fertility rate 4.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.65 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 45% (2000 est.) 10.7% (2003 est.)
Waterways none -
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.