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Compare Lesotho (2001) - French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2005)
Compare Lesotho (2001) z French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2005)
| Lesotho (2001) | French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2005) | |
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| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US |
| 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.) |
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| Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | - |
| Airports | 29 (2000 est.) | none (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
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| Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
25 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
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| Area | total:
30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 7,829 sq km
land: 7,829 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen; excludes "Adelie Land" claim of about 500,000 sq km in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly less than 1.3 times the size of Delaware |
| 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 Southern Lands consist of two archipelagos, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen, and two volcanic islands, Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul. They contain no permanent inhabitants and are visited only by researchers studying the native fauna. The Antarctic portion consists of "Adelie Land," a thin slice of the Antarctic continent discovered and claimed by the French in 1840. |
| Birth rate | 31.24 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
| Budget | revenues:
$76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY99/00 est.) |
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| Capital | Maseru | - |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | antarctic |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 1,232 km |
| Constitution | 2 April 1993 | - |
| Country name | conventional long form:
Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
conventional long form: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
conventional short form: French Southern and Antarctic Lands local long form: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises local short form: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises |
| Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) | - |
| Death rate | 15.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | - |
| Debt - external | $720 million (2000 est.) | - |
| Dependency status | - | overseas territory of France since 1955; administered from Paris by Administrateur Superieur Michel CHAMPON (since 20 December 2004), assisted by Secretary General Jean-Yves HERMOSO (since NA) |
| 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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
| 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 |
none (overseas territory of France) |
| Disputes - international | none | French claim to "Adelie Land" in Antarctica is not recognized by the United States |
| Economic aid - recipient | $123.7 million (1995) | - |
| 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. | Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion. |
| Electricity - consumption | 55 million kWh (1999) | - |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | - |
| Electricity - imports | 55 million kWh
note: electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) |
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| Electricity - production | 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) | - |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
0% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
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| Elevation extremes | lowest point:
junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Mont Ross on Iles Kerguelen 1,850 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 | NA |
| 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 |
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| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | - |
| 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 | - |
| 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 |
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| Exports | $175 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | - |
| Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (1998) | - |
| Exports - partners | South African Customs Union 65%, North America 34% (1998) | - |
| Fiscal year | 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 | the flag of France is used |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.1 billion (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
18% industry: 38% services: 44% (1999) |
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| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,400 (2000 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2.5% (2000 est.) | - |
| Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 43 00 S, 67 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked; surrounded by South Africa | islands component is widely scattered across remote locations in the southern Indian Ocean |
| 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) |
- |
| Imports | $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | - |
| Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (1995) | - |
| Imports - partners | South African Customs Union 90%, Asia 7% (1998) | - |
| Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | - |
| Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999 est.) | - |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts; construction; tourism | - |
| Infant mortality rate | 82.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | - |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6% (2000 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 | - |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | 30 sq km (1993 est.) | 0 sq km (1998 est.) |
| Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court | - |
| Labor force | 700,000 economically active | - |
| Labor force - by occupation | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa | - |
| 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: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | - |
| 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 | the laws of France, where applicable, apply |
| 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. |
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| Life expectancy at birth | total population:
48.84 years male: 47.97 years female: 49.74 years (2001 est.) |
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| Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.) |
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| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | southeast of Africa, islands in the southern Indian Ocean, about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia; note - French Southern and Antarctic Lands include Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean, along with the French-claimed sector of Antarctica, "Adelie Land"; the US does not recognize the French claim to "Adelie Land" |
| Map references | Africa | Antarctic Region |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm from Iles Kerguelen (does not include the rest of French Southern and Antarctic Lands) |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 75 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,092,387 GRT/5,056,658 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 1, chemical tanker 21, container 19, liquefied gas 7, petroleum tanker 15, roll on/roll off 6, vehicle carrier 4 foreign-owned: 71 (Belgium 5, Denmark 2, France 45, Germany 2, Greece 2, Hong Kong 5, Japan 4, Saudi Arabia 1, Sweden 5) (2005) |
| 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. | defense is the responsibility of France |
| Military branches | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; includes Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police (RLMP) | - |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $34 million (1999) | - |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | - |
| 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.) |
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| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | - |
| Nationality | noun:
Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho |
- |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts | Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals | fish, crayfish |
| Net migration rate | -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 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] | - |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
| 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.) |
no indigenous inhabitants (July 2005 est.)
note: in 2002, there were 145 researchers whose numbers vary from winter (July) to summer (January) (July 2005 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 49.2% (1999 est.) | - |
| Population growth rate | 1.49% (2001 est.) | - |
| Ports and harbors | none | none; offshore anchorage only |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | - |
| 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% | - |
| 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.) |
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| Suffrage | 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) |
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| Telephones - main lines in use | 20,000 (1997) | - |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,262 (1996) | - |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | - |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | volcanic |
| Total fertility rate | 4.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) | - |
| Unemployment rate | 45% (2000 est.) | - |
| Waterways | none | - |
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