Compare Lesotho (2002) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2003)

Compare Lesotho (2002) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2003)

	Lesotho (2002)	British Indian Ocean Territory (2003)

Administrative divisions	10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka	-
Age structure	0-14 years: 39% (male 433,229; female 427,926) 15-64 years: 56.3% (male 600,476; female 642,538) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 43,691; female 60,094) (2002 est.)	-
Agriculture - products	corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock	-
Airports	28 (2001)	1 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002)	-
Area	total: 30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule.	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.
Birth rate	30.72 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million	-
Capital	Maseru	-
Climate	temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	698 km
Constitution	2 April 1993	-
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT
Currency	loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR)	-
Death rate	16.81 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)	-
Debt - external	$715 million (2001 est.)	-
Dependency status	-	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Robert G. LOFTIS 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 the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. 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 the UK)
Disputes - international	none	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; repatriation is complicated by the US military lease of Diego Garcia, the largest island in the chain
Economic aid - recipient	$123.7 million (1995) (1995)	-
Economy - overview	Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, remittances from miners employed in South Africa, and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The number of 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 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. Lesotho has a marked inequality in income distribution and serious unemployment/underemployment problems that will not yield to short-run solutions.	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.
Electricity - consumption	100 million kWh (2000)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2000)	-
Electricity - imports	100 million kWh note: electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)	-
Electricity - production	0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2000)	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military
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: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 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	-
Ethnic groups	Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%,	-
Exchange rates	maloti per US dollar - 11.58786 (January 2002), 8.60918 (2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997); 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	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Alan HUCKLE (since 2001); Administrator Louise SAVILL (since NA); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
Exports	$250 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)	-
Exports - commodities	manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals	-
Exports - partners	South African Customs Union 53.9%, North America 45.6% (1999)	-
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	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag
GDP	purchasing power parity - $5.3 billion (2001 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 18% industry: 38% services: 44% (2001)	-
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,450 (2001 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	2.6% (2001 est.)	-
Geographic coordinates	29 30 S, 28 30 E	6 00 S, 71 30 E
Geography - note	landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level	archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility
Highways	total: 4,955 km paved: 887 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996)	total: NA km paved: short section of paved road between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 1% highest 10%: 43% (1986-87)	-
Imports	$720 million f.o.b. (2001 est.)	-
Imports - commodities	food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products	-
Imports - partners	South African Customs Union 89.5%, Asia 7% (1999)	-
Independence	4 October 1966 (from UK)	-
Industrial production growth rate	15.5% (1999 est.)	-
Industries	food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism	-
Infant mortality rate	82.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)	-
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.9% (2001 est.)	-
International organization participation	ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO	-
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	1 (2000)
Irrigated land	10 sq km (1998 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: 10.71% permanent crops: 0% other: 89.29% (1998 est.)	arable land: NEGL permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)
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 the UK, 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 (120 seats, 80 by direct popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 80 to 120 in the May 2002 election elections: last held 25 May 2002 (next to be held NA May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 54%, BNP 21%, LPC 7%, other 18%; seats by party - LCD 76, BNP 21, LPC 5, other 18	-
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 47 years male: 46.3 years female: 47.8 years (2002 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.)	-
Location	Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia
Map references	Africa	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM
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 the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016
Military branches	Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police	-
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$34 million (1999)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA%	-
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 526,332 (2002 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 283,203 (2002 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 4 October (1966)	-
Nationality	noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho	-
Natural hazards	periodic droughts	NA
Natural resources	water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals	coconuts, fish, sugarcane
Net migration rate	-0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 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; Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; Lesotho People's Congress or LPC [Kelebone MAOPE]; 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	2,207,954 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 2002 est.)	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles in the 1960's and 1970's, in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; in 2001, there were approximately 1,500 UK and US military personnel and 2,000 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line	49% (1999 est.)	-
Population growth rate	1.33% (2002 est.)	-
Ports and harbors	none	Diego Garcia
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios	NA (2002)	-
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 (2002 est.)	-
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; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	22,200 (2000)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	21,600 (2000)	-
Television broadcast stations	1 (2000)	1 (1997)
Terrain	mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)
Total fertility rate	4.01 children born/woman (2002 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	45% (2000 est.)	-
Waterways	none	none

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