Lesotho (2003) | Seychelles (2001) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka |
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:
28.27% (male 11,367; female 11,167) 15-64 years: 65.47% (male 25,453; female 26,737) 65 years and over: 6.26% (male 1,673; female 3,318) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish |
Airports | 28 (2002) | 14 (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:
6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 24
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 20 (2002) |
total:
8 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
455 sq km land: 455 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. 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. | A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. |
Birth rate | 27.26 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 17.66 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $76 million
expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY 99/00 est.) |
revenues:
$249 million expenditures: $262 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.) |
Capital | Maseru | Victoria |
Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 491 km |
Constitution | 2 April 1993 | 18 June 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
conventional long form:
Republic of Seychelles conventional short form: Seychelles |
Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) | Seychelles rupee (SCR) |
Death rate | 24.58 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | 6.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $735 million (2002) | $240 million (1999 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 |
the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Seychelles |
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 Claude Sylvestre MOREL chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
Disputes - international | none | claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) |
Economic aid - donor | ODA $4.4 million | - |
Economic aid - recipient | $41.5 million (2000) | $16.4 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. | Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. The vulnerability of the tourist sector was illustrated by the sharp drop in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war. Although the industry has rebounded, the government recognizes the continuing need for upgrading the sector in the face of stiff international competition. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2000, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have hindered short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles ruppee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. |
Electricity - consumption | 40 million kWh (2001) | 148.8 million 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) | 160 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
100% 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:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 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 | water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater |
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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | Seychellois (mixture of Asians, Africans, Europeans) |
Exchange rates | maloti per US dollar - 10.54 (2002), 8.61 (2001), 6.94 (2000), 6.11 (1999), 5.53 (1998) | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 6.0397 (November 2000), 5.6009 (2000), 5,3426 (1999), 5.2622 (1998), 5.0263 (1997), 4.9700 (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:
President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 20-22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2003) election results: France Albert RENE reelected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 66.7%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 19.5%, Sir James MANCHAM (DP) 13.8% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $111 million (f.o.b., 1999) |
Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) |
Exports - partners | US 97.5%, Canada 0.9%, France 0.6% (2002) | France, UK, Netherlands, Italy, China, Germany, Japan |
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 | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.106 billion (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $610 million (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20%
industry: 46% services: 34% (2001) |
agriculture:
3.1% industry: 26.3% services: 70.6% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2002 est.) | 1.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 4 35 S, 55 40 E |
Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands |
Highways | total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km unpaved: 4,853 km (1999) |
total:
373 km paved: 315 km unpaved: 58 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $440 million (c.i.f., 1999) |
Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | Hong Kong 51.9%, China 25%, France 3.9% (2002) | South Africa, UK, China, Singapore, France, Italy |
Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 29 June 1976 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999) | NA% |
Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism | fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages |
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.) |
17.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 10% (2002 est.) | 6% (1999 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, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president |
Labor force | 838,000 | 30,900 (1996) |
Labor force - by occupation | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa | industry 19%, services 71%, agriculture 10% (1989) |
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:
2% permanent crops: 13% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 11% other: 74% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | English (official), French (official), 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, French civil law, and customary law |
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 |
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least ten percent of the vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20-22 March 1998 (next to be held by NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 61.7%, UO 26.1%, DP 12.1%; seats by party - SPPF 30, UO 3, DP 1 note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the share of each party in the total vote |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 36.94 years
male: 36.76 years female: 37.13 years (2003 est.) |
total population:
70.69 years male: 65.17 years female: 76.37 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 can read and write total population: 58% male: 56% female: 60% (1971 est.) |
Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar |
Map references | Africa | Africa |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,353 GRT/7,638 DWT ships by type: cargo 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 | Army, Coast Guard, air wing, National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit, Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $34 million (1999) | $13 million (FY93) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | NA% | 2.8% (FY93) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 459,723 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
22,951 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 250,560 (2003 est.) | males age 15-49:
11,452 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Constitution Day, 18 June (1993) |
Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun:
Seychellois (singular and plural) adjective: Seychelles |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible |
Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals | fish, copra, cinnamon trees |
Net migration rate | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | -6.15 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; 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] | Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE] - the governing party |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Roman Catholic Church; trade unions |
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.) |
79,715 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.19% (2003 est.) | 0.49% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | none | Victoria |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 42,000 (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) |
0 km |
Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Roman Catholic 90%, Anglican 8%, other 2% |
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: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 17 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:
effective system domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 22,200 (2000) | 19,635 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 21,600 (2000) | 16,316 (1999) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) |
Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs |
Total fertility rate | 3.52 children born/woman (2003 est.) | 1.83 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | NA% |
Waterways | none | none |