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Compare Lesotho (2003) - Jamaica (2001)

Compare Lesotho (2003) z Jamaica (2001)

 Lesotho (2003)Jamaica (2001)
 LesothoJamaica
Administrative divisions 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka 14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
Age structure 0-14 years: 37.7% (male 353,554; female 349,092)


15-64 years: 56.8% (male 516,017; female 541,694)


65 years and over: 5.5% (male 41,735; female 59,867) (2003 est.)
0-14 years:
29.7% (male 405,189; female 386,555)

15-64 years:
63.52% (male 845,226; female 847,944)

65 years and over:
6.78% (male 80,667; female 100,055) (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, potatoes, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk
Airports 28 (2002) 35 (2000 est.)
Airports - with paved runways total: 4


over 3,047 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 2 (2002)
total:
11

2,438 to 3,047 m:
2

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
3

under 914 m:
5 (2000 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 24


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 20 (2002)
total:
24

914 to 1,523 m:
2

under 914 m:
22 (2000 est.)
Area total: 30,355 sq km


land: 30,355 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total:
10,990 sq km

land:
10,830 sq km

water:
160 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maryland slightly smaller than Connecticut
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. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody South African military intervention. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002. Jamaica gained full independence within the British Commonwealth in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence and a dropoff in tourism. Elections in 1980 saw the democratic socialists voted out of office. Subsequent governments have been open market oriented. Political violence marred elections during the 1990s.
Birth rate 27.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) 18.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Budget revenues: $76 million


expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY 99/00 est.)
revenues:
$2.23 billion

expenditures:
$2.56 billion, including capital expenditures of $232.5 million (FY99/00 est.)
Capital Maseru Kingston
Climate temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 1,022 km
Constitution 2 April 1993 6 August 1962
Country name conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho


conventional short form: Lesotho


former: Basutoland
conventional long form:
none

conventional short form:
Jamaica
Currency loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) Jamaican dollar (JMD)
Death rate 24.58 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Debt - external $735 million (2002) $4.7 billion (2000 est.)
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
chief of mission:
Ambassador Stanley Louis MCLELLAND

embassy:
Jamaica Mutual Life Center, 2 Oxford Road, 3rd floor, Kingston 5

mailing address:
use embassy street address

telephone:
[1] (876) 929-4850 through 4859

FAX:
[1] (876) 926-6743
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Molelekeng E. RAPOLAKI


chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


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


FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815
chief of mission:
Ambassador Richard Leighton BERNAL

chancery:
1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone:
[1] (202) 452-0660

FAX:
[1] (202) 452-0081

consulate(s) general:
Miami and New York
Disputes - international none none
Economic aid - donor ODA $4.4 million -
Economic aid - recipient $41.5 million (2000) $102.7 million (1995)
Economy - overview Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue, but the government has strengthened its tax system to reduce dependency on customs duties. Completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, also generating royalties for Lesotho. As the number of mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years, a small manufacturing base has developed based on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. The economy is still primarily based on subsistence agriculture, especially livestock, although drought has decreased agricultural activity. The extreme inequality in the distribution of income remains a major drawback. Lesotho has signed an Interim Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility with the IMF. Key sectors in this island economy are bauxite (alumina and bauxite account for more than half of exports) and tourism. Since assuming office in 1992, Prime Minister PATTERSON has eliminated most price controls, streamlined tax schedules, and privatized government enterprises. Continued tight monetary and fiscal policies have helped slow inflation - although inflationary pressures are mounting - and stabilize the exchange rate, but have resulted in the slowdown of economic growth (moving from 1.5% in 1992 to 0.5% in 1995). In 1996, GDP showed negative growth (-1.4%) and remained negative through 1999. Serious problems include: high interest rates; increased foreign competition; the weak financial condition of business in general resulting in receiverships or closures and downsizings of companies; the shift in investment portfolios to non-productive, short-term high yield instruments; a pressured, sometimes sliding, exchange rate; a widening merchandise trade deficit; and a growing internal debt for government bailouts to various ailing sectors of the economy, particularly the financial sector. Depressed economic conditions in 1999-2000 led to increased civil unrest, including a mounting crime rate. Jamaica's medium-term prospects will depend upon encouraging investment in the productive sectors, maintaining a competitive exchange rate, stabilizing the labor environment, selling off reacquired firms, and implementing proper fiscal and monetary policies.
Electricity - consumption 40 million kWh (2001) 6.073 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2001) 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports 40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) 0 kWh (1999)
Electricity - production 0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) 6.53 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel:
92.28%

hydro:
1.36%

nuclear:
0%

other:
6.36% (1999)
Elevation extremes lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m


highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m
lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m

highest point:
Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 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 heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions
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, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, 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 90.9%, East Indian 1.3%, white 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%, mixed 7.3%, other 0.1%
Exchange rates maloti per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998) Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 45.557 (January 2001), 42.701 (2000), 39.044 (1999), 36.550 (1998), 35.404 (1997), 37.120 (1996)
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 Howard Felix COOKE (since 1 August 1991)

head of government:
Prime Minister Percival James PATTERSON (since 30 March 1992) and Deputy Prime Minister Seymour MULLINGS (since NA 1993)

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 on the recommendation of the prime minister; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general
Exports NA (2001) $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Exports - commodities manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) alumina, bauxite; sugar, bananas, rum
Exports - partners US 97.5%, Canada 0.9%, France 0.6% (2002) US 35.7%, EU (excluding UK) 15.8%, UK 13%, Canada 10.5% (1999)
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 diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side)
GDP purchasing power parity - $5.106 billion (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $9.7 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 20%


industry: 46%


services: 34% (2001)
agriculture:
7.4%

industry:
35.2%

services:
57.4% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2002 est.) 0.2% (2000 est.)
Geographic coordinates 29 30 S, 28 30 E 18 15 N, 77 30 W
Geography - note landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for Panama Canal
Highways total: 5,940 km


paved: 1,087 km


unpaved: 4,853 km (1999)
total:
19,000 km

paved:
13,433 km

unpaved:
5,567 km (1997)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 0.9%


highest 10%: 43.4%
lowest 10%:
2.9%

highest 10%:
28.9% (1996)
Illicit drugs - major transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern
Imports NA (2001) $3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)
Imports - commodities food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) machinery and transport equipment, construction materials, fuel, food, chemicals, fertilizers
Imports - partners Hong Kong 51.9%, China 25%, France 3.9% (2002) US 47.8%, Caricom countries 12.4%, Latin America 7.2%, EU (excluding UK) 4.7% (1999)
Independence 4 October 1966 (from UK) 6 August 1962 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate 15.5% (1999) -2% (2000 est.)
Industries food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism tourism, bauxite, textiles, food processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products
Infant mortality rate total: 86.21 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 91.28 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 80.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
14.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 10% (2002 est.) 8.8% (2000 est.)
International organization participation ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO ACP, C, Caricom, CCC, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) 21 (2000)
Irrigated land 10 sq km (1998 est.) 350 sq km (1993 est.)
Judicial branch High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal
Labor force 838,000 1.13 million (1998)
Labor force - by occupation 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa services 60%, agriculture 21%, industry 19% (1998)
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:
14%

permanent crops:
6%

permanent pastures:
24%

forests and woodland:
17%

other:
39% (1993 est.)
Languages Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa English, Creole
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 based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated eight seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 18 December 1997 (next to be held by March 2002)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PNP 50, JLP 10
Life expectancy at birth total population: 36.94 years


male: 36.76 years


female: 37.13 years (2003 est.)
total population:
75.42 years

male:
73.45 years

female:
77.49 years (2001 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 84.8%


male: 74.5%


female: 94.5% (2003 est.)
definition:
age 15 and over has ever attended school

total population:
85%

male:
80.8%

female:
89.1% (1995 est.)
Location Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba
Map references Africa Central America and the Caribbean
Maritime claims none (landlocked) measured from claimed archipelagic baselines

contiguous zone:
24 NM

continental shelf:
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
Merchant marine - total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,930 GRT/3,065 DWT

ships by type:
petroleum tanker 1 (2000 est.)
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 -
Military branches Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police Jamaica Defense Force (includes Ground Forces, Coast Guard, and Air Wing), Jamaica Constabulary Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure $34 million (1999) $30 million (FY95/96 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP NA% NA%
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 459,723 (2003 est.) males age 15-49:
736,627 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 250,560 (2003 est.) males age 15-49:
517,077 (2001 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males:
27,729 (2001 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 4 October (1966) Independence Day, first Monday in August (1962)
Nationality noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)


adjective: Basotho
noun:
Jamaican(s)

adjective:
Jamaican
Natural hazards periodic droughts hurricanes (especially July to November)
Natural resources water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals bauxite, gypsum, limestone
Net migration rate -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) -7.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
Pipelines - petroleum products 10 km
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] Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Edward SEAGA]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Percival James PATTERSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists)
Population 1,861,959


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 2003 est.)
2,665,636 (July 2001 est.)
Population below poverty line 49% (1999) 34.2% (1992 est.)
Population growth rate 0.19% (2003 est.) 0.51% (2001 est.)
Ports and harbors none Alligator Pond, Discovery Bay, Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, Rocky Point, Port Esquivel (Longswharf)
Radio broadcast stations AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios - 1.215 million (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)
total:
370 km

standard gauge:
370 km 1.435-m gauge; note - 207 km belong to the Jamaica Railway Corporation in common carrier service, but are no longer operational; the remaining track is privately owned and used to transport bauxite
Religions Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% Protestant 61.3% (Church of God 21.2%, Baptist 8.8%, Anglican 5.5%, Seventh-Day Adventist 9%, Pentecostal 7.6%, Methodist 2.7%, United Church 2.7%, Brethren 1.1%, Jehovah's Witness 1.6%, Moravian 1.1%), Roman Catholic 4%, other, including some spiritual cults 34.7%
Sex ratio at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female

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

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

total population:
1 male(s)/female (2001 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; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing


international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
general assessment:
fully automatic domestic telephone network

domestic:
NA

international:
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); 3 coaxial submarine cables
Telephones - main lines in use 22,200 (2000) 353,000 (1996)
Telephones - mobile cellular 21,600 (2000) 54,640 (1996)
Television broadcast stations 1 (2000) 7 (1997)
Terrain mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain
Total fertility rate 3.52 children born/woman (2003 est.) 2.08 children born/woman (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate 45% (2002) 16% (2000 est.)
Waterways none none
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