Compare Lesotho (2003) - Madagascar (2007)

Compare Lesotho (2003) z Madagascar (2007)

	Lesotho (2003)	Madagascar (2007)

Administrative divisions	10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka	6 provinces (faritany); Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara
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: 43.9% (male 4,297,985/female 4,243,369) 15-64 years: 53% (male 5,117,874/female 5,190,032) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 270,411/female 329,144) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock	coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products
Airports	28 (2002)	104 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2002)	total: 27 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 17 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 24 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002)	total: 77 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 41 under 914 m: 34 (2007)
Area	total: 30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 587,040 sq km land: 581,540 sq km water: 5,500 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly less than twice the size of Arizona
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.	Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1896, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner.
Birth rate	27.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	38.6 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY 99/00 est.)	revenues: $863.3 million expenditures: $1.132 billion (2006 est.)
Capital	Maseru	name: Antananarivo geographic coordinates: 18 55 S, 47 31 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers	tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	4,828 km
Constitution	2 April 1993	19 August 1992 by national referendum
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland	conventional long form: Republic of Madagascar conventional short form: Madagascar local long form: Republique de Madagascar/Repoblikan'i Madagasikara local short form: Madagascar/Madagasikara former: Malagasy Republic
Currency	loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR)	-
Death rate	24.58 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	8.51 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$735 million (2002)	$4.6 billion (2002)
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 James D. McGEE embassy: 14-16 Rue Rainitovo, Antsahavola, Antananarivo 101 mailing address: B. P. 620, Antsahavola, Antananarivo telephone: [261] (20) 22-212-57, 22-212-73, 22-209-56 FAX: [261] (20) 22-345-39
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 Jocelyn Bertin RADIFERA chancery: 2374 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 265-5525, 5526 FAX: [1] (202) 265-3034 consulate(s) general: New York
Disputes - international	none	claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island (all administered by France)
Economic aid - donor	ODA $4.4 million	-
Economic aid - recipient	$41.5 million (2000)	$929.2 million (2005)
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.	Having discarded past socialist economic policies, Madagascar has since the mid 1990s followed a World Bank- and IMF-led policy of privatization and liberalization. This strategy placed the country on a slow and steady growth path from an extremely low level. Agriculture, including fishing and forestry, is a mainstay of the economy, accounting for more than one-fourth of GDP and employing 80% of the population. Exports of apparel have boomed in recent years primarily due to duty-free access to the US. Deforestation and erosion, aggravated by the use of firewood as the primary source of fuel, are serious concerns. President RAVALOMANANA has worked aggressively to revive the economy following the 2002 political crisis, which triggered a 12% drop in GDP that year. Poverty reduction and combating corruption will be the centerpieces of economic policy for the next few years.
Electricity - consumption	40 million kWh (2001)	973.2 million kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001)	1.046 billion kWh (2005)
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: Maromokotro 2,876 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	soil erosion results from deforestation and overgrazing; desertification; surface water contaminated with raw sewage and other organic wastes; several endangered species of flora and fauna unique to the island
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 Life Conservation, 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%,	Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran
Exchange rates	maloti per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998)	Malagasy ariary per US dollar - 2,161.4 (2006), 2,003 (2005), 1,868.9 (2004), 1,238.3 (2003), 1,366.4 (2002)
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: President Marc RAVALOMANANA (since 6 May 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Charles RABEMANANJARA (25 January 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 3 December 2006 (next to be held in December 2011); prime minister appointed by the president election results: percent of vote - Marc RAVALOMANANA 54.8%, Jean LAHINIRIKO 11.7%, Roland RATSIRAKA 10.1%, Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO 9.1%, Norbert RATSIRAHONANA 4.2%, Ny Hasina ANDRIAMANJATO 4.2%, Elia RAVELOMANANTSOA 2.6%, Pety RAKOTONIAINA 1.7%, other 1.6%
Exports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000)	coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar, cotton cloth, chromite, petroleum products
Exports - partners	US 97.5%, Canada 0.9%, France 0.6% (2002)	France 32.1%, US 25.3%, Germany 6.1%, Italy 5.1%, UK 4.1% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
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	two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green with a vertical white band of the same width on hoist side
GDP	purchasing power parity - $5.106 billion (2002 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 20% industry: 46% services: 34% (2001)	agriculture: 28.2% industry: 16.3% services: 55.5% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	4% (2002 est.)	4.7% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates	29 30 S, 28 30 E	20 00 S, 47 00 E
Geography - note	landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level	world's fourth-largest island; strategic location along Mozambique Channel
Highways	total: 5,940 km paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 0.9% highest 10%: 43.4%	lowest 10%: 1.9% highest 10%: 36.6% (2001)
Illicit drugs	-	illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin
Imports	NA (2001)	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000)	capital goods, petroleum, consumer goods, food
Imports - partners	Hong Kong 51.9%, China 25%, France 3.9% (2002)	France 13.9%, China 12%, Iran 9.3%, Mauritius 5.6%, Hong Kong 4.8% (2006)
Independence	4 October 1966 (from UK)	26 June 1960 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	15.5% (1999)	3% (2000 est.)
Industries	food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism	meat processing, seafood, soap, breweries, tanneries, sugar, textiles, glassware, cement, automobile assembly plant, paper, petroleum, tourism
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.)	total: 57.02 deaths/1,000 live births male: 62.09 deaths/1,000 live births female: 51.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	10% (2002 est.)	10.8% (2006 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	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	10 sq km (1998 est.)	10,860 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 or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Court or Haute Cour Constitutionnelle
Labor force	838,000	7.3 million (2000)
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: 5.03% permanent crops: 1.02% other: 93.95% (2005)
Languages	Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa	English (official), French (official), Malagasy (official)
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 French civil law system and traditional Malagasy law; 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 (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 legislature consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (127 seats - reduced from 160 seats by an April 2007 national referendum; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and a Senate or Senat (100 seats; two-thirds of the seats filled by regional assemblies; the remaining one-third of seats appointed by the president; to serve four-year terms) elections: National Assembly - last held 23 September 2007 (next to be held in 2011) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - TIM 106, LEADER/Fanilo 1, independents 20
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 36.94 years male: 36.76 years female: 37.13 years (2003 est.)	total population: 62.14 years male: 60.23 years female: 64.1 years (2007 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 can read and write total population: 68.9% male: 75.5% female: 62.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Mozambique
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or 100 nm from the 2,500-m deep isobath
Merchant marine	-	total: 9 ships (1000 GRT or over) 13,896 GRT/18,466 DWT by type: cargo 5, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 2 (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	-
Military branches	Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; including Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police	People's Armed Forces: Intervention Force, Development Force, and Aeronaval Force (navy and air); National Gendarmerie
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$34 million (1999)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	NA%	1% (2006)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 459,723 (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 250,560 (2003 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 4 October (1966)	Independence Day, 26 June (1960)
Nationality	noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho	noun: Malagasy (singular and plural) adjective: Malagasy
Natural hazards	periodic droughts	periodic cyclones, drought, and locust infestation
Natural resources	water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals	graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semiprecious stones, mica, fish, hydropower
Net migration rate	-0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	0 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; 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]	Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar or AREMA [Pierrot RAJAONARIVELO]; Democratic Party for Union in Madagascar or PSDUM [Jean LAHINIRIKO]; Economic Liberalism and Democratic Action for National Recovery or LEADER/Fanilo [Herizo RAZAFIMAHALEO]; Fihaonana Party or FP [Guy-Willy RAZANAMASY]; I Love Madagascar or TIM [Marc RAVALOMANANA]; Renewal of the Social Democratic Party or RPSD [Evariste MARSON]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Committee for the Defense of Truth and Justice or KMMR; Committee for National Reconciliation or CRN [Albert Zafy]; National Council of Christian Churches or FFKM
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.)	19,448,815 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	49% (1999)	50% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	0.19% (2003 est.)	3.008% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors	none	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 2 (plus a number of repeater stations), FM 9, shortwave 6 (2001)
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: 854 km narrow gauge: 854 km 1.000-m gauge (2006)
Religions	Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%	indigenous beliefs 52%, Christian 41%, Muslim 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: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.013 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.822 male(s)/female total population: 0.992 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; a cellular mobile telephone system is growing international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: system is above average for the region domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter links connect regions international: country code - 261; submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	22,200 (2000)	129,800 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	21,600 (2000)	1.046 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2000)	1 (plus 36 repeaters) (2001)
Terrain	mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains	narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center
Total fertility rate	3.52 children born/woman (2003 est.)	5.24 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	45% (2002)	-
Waterways	none	600 km (2006)

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