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Compare Lesotho (2004) - Eritrea (2006)
Compare Lesotho (2004) z Eritrea (2006)
| Lesotho (2004) | Eritrea (2006) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 6 regions (zobatat, singular - zoba); Anseba, Debub (Southern), Debubawi K'eyih Bahri (Southern Red Sea), Gash Barka, Ma'akel (Central), Semenawi Keyih Bahri (Northern Red Sea) |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 37.3% (male 350,288; female 345,815)
15-64 years: 57.2% (male 521,434; female 545,183) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 41,903; female 60,417) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 44% (male 1,059,458/female 1,046,955)
15-64 years: 52.5% (male 1,244,153/female 1,268,189) 65 years and over: 3.5% (male 82,112/female 86,127) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, coffee, sisal; livestock, goats; fish |
| Airports | 28 (2003 est.) | 17 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 4
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2006) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
total: 13
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
| Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 121,320 sq km
land: 121,320 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly larger than Pennsylvania |
| 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. | Eritrea was awarded to Ethiopia in 1952 as part of a federation. Ethiopia's annexation of Eritrea as a province 10 years later sparked a 30-year struggle for independence that ended in 1991 with Eritrean rebels defeating governmental forces; independence was overwhelmingly approved in a 1993 referendum. A two-and-a-half-year border war with Ethiopia that erupted in 1998 ended under UN auspices in December 2000. Eritrea currently hosts a UN peacekeeping operation that is monitoring a 25 km-wide Temporary Security Zone on the border with Ethiopia. An international commission, organized to resolve the border dispute, posted its findings in 2002 but final demarcation is on hold due to Ethiopian objections. |
| Birth rate | 26.91 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 34.33 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $625.4 million
expenditures: $675.2 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (2003 est.) |
revenues: $248.8 million
expenditures: $409.4 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
| Capital | Maseru | name: Asmara (Asmera)
geographic coordinates: 15 20 N, 38 53 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually, heaviest June to September); semiarid in western hills and lowlands |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,234 km (mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands in Red Sea 1,083 km) |
| Constitution | 2 April 1993 | a transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, was replaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yet implemented |
| Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
conventional long form: State of Eritrea
conventional short form: Eritrea local long form: Hagere Ertra local short form: Ertra former: Eritrea Autonomous Region in Ethiopia |
| Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) | - |
| Death rate | 24.79 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.6 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $735 million (2002) | $311 million (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 Scott H. DELISI
embassy: 179 Alaa Street, Asmara mailing address: P. O. Box 211, Asmara telephone: [291] (1) 120004 FAX: [291] (1) 127584 |
| 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 GHIRMAI Ghebremariam
chancery: 1708 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 319-1991 FAX: [1] (202) 319-1304 consulate(s) general: Oakland (California) |
| Disputes - international | none | Eritrea and Ethiopia agreed to abide by 2002 Ethiopia-Eritrea Boundary Commission's (EEBC) delimitation decision, but despite international intervention, mutual animosities, accusations, and armed posturing have prevented demarcation; Ethiopia refuses to withdraw to the delimited boundary until claimed technical errors made by the EEBC that ignored "human geography" are addressed, including the award of Badme, the focus of the 1998-2000 war; Eritrea insists that the EEBC decision be implemented immediately without modifications; in 2005 Eritrea began severely restricting the operations of the UN Peacekeeping Mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) monitoring the 25km-wide Temporary Security Zone in Eritrea since 2000; Sudan sustains over 110,000 Eritrean refugees and accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups |
| Economic aid - donor | ODA $4.4 million | - |
| Economic aid - recipient | $41.5 million (2000) | $77 million (1999) |
| 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 from Ethiopia in 1993, Eritrea has faced the economic problems of a small, desperately poor country. Like the economies of many African nations, the economy is largely based on subsistence agriculture, with 80% of the population involved in farming and herding. The Ethiopian-Eritrea war in 1998-2000 severely hurt Eritrea's economy. GDP growth fell to zero in 1999 and to -12.1% in 2000. The May 2000 Ethiopian offensive into northern Eritrea caused some $600 million in property damage and loss, including losses of $225 million in livestock and 55,000 homes. The attack prevented planting of crops in Eritrea's most productive region, causing food production to drop by 62%. Even during the war, Eritrea developed its transportation infrastructure, asphalting new roads, improving its ports, and repairing war-damaged roads and bridges. Since the war ended, the government has maintained a firm grip on the economy, expanding the use of the military and party-owned businesses to complete Eritrea's development agenda. Erratic rainfall and the delayed demobilization of agriculturalists from the military kept cereal production well below normal, holding down growth in 2002-05. Eritrea's economic future depends upon its ability to master social problems such as illiteracy, unemployment, and low skills, as well as the willingness to open its economy to private enterprise so that the diaspora's money and expertise can foster economic growth. |
| Electricity - consumption | 40 million kWh (2001) | 251.9 million kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - imports | 40 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 0 kWh (2003) |
| Electricity - production | 0 kWh NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2001) | 270.9 million kWh (2003) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m
highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
lowest point: near Kulul within the Denakil depression -75 m
highest point: Soira 3,018 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 | deforestation; desertification; soil erosion; overgrazing; loss of infrastructure from civil warfare |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | Tigrinya 50%, Tigre and Kunama 40%, Afar 4%, Saho (Red Sea coast dwellers) 3%, other 3% |
| Exchange rates | maloti per US dollar - 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001), 6.9398 (2000), 6.1095 (1999) | nakfa (ERN) per US dollar - 14.5 (2005), 13.788 (2004), 13.878 (2003), 13.958 (2002), 11.31 (2001) |
| 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 ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly
head of government: President ISAIAS Afworki (since 8 June 1993); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government and is head of the State Council and National Assembly cabinet: State Council is the collective executive authority; members appointed by the president elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 8 June 1993 (next election date uncertain as the National Assembly did not hold a presidential election in December 2001 as anticipated) election results: ISAIAS Afworki elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - ISAIAS Afworki 95% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
| Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | livestock, sorghum, textiles, food, small manufactures (2000) |
| Exports - partners | US 97.6%, Canada 1.5%, France 0.5% (2003) | Italy 39.3%, US 14.9%, Belarus 7.3%, Germany 5.8%, UK 4.9% (2005) |
| 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 | red isosceles triangle (based on the hoist side) dividing the flag into two right triangles; the upper triangle is green, the lower one is blue; a gold wreath encircling a gold olive branch is centered on the hoist side of the red triangle |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $5.583 billion (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15.3%
industry: 43.3% services: 41.4% (2003) |
agriculture: 10.2%
industry: 25.4% services: 64.3% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2003 est.) | 2% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 15 00 N, 39 00 E |
| Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | strategic geopolitical position along world's busiest shipping lanes; Eritrea retained the entire coastline of Ethiopia along the Red Sea upon de jure independence from Ethiopia on 24 May 1993 |
| 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%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
| Imports | NA (2001) | NA bbl/day |
| Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (2000) | machinery, petroleum products, food, manufactured goods (2000) |
| Imports - partners | Hong Kong 36.6%, Taiwan 36.2%, China 12%, Germany 9.9% (2003) | Germany 22.2%, Italy 20.3%, France 15.9%, US 12.8%, Ireland 8.2% (2005) |
| Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 24 May 1993 (from Ethiopia) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 15.5% (1999) | NA% |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism | food processing, beverages, clothing and textiles, salt, cement, commercial ship repair |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 85.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 90.19 deaths/1,000 live births female: 80.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 46.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 52.22 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 6.1% (2003 est.) | 15% (2005 est.) |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, AU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO |
| Irrigated land | 10 sq km (1998 est.) | 210 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court | High Court - regional, subregional, and village courts; also have military and special courts |
| Labor force | 838,000 (2000) | NA |
| Labor force - by occupation | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa | agriculture: 80%
industry and services: 20% |
| Land boundaries | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
total: 1,626 km
border countries: Djibouti 109 km, Ethiopia 912 km, Sudan 605 km |
| Land use | arable land: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2001) |
arable land: 4.78%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 95.19% (2005) |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | Afar, Arabic, Tigre and Kunama, Tigrinya, other Cushitic languages |
| 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 | primary basis is the Ethiopian legal code of 1957, with revisions; new civil, commercial, and penal codes have not yet been promulgated; also relies on customary and post-independence-enacted laws and, for civil cases involving Muslims, Sharia 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 (150 seats; term limits not established)
elections: in May 1997, following the adoption of the new constitution, 75 members of the PFDJ Central Committee (the old Central Committee of the EPLF), 60 members of the 527-member Constituent Assembly, that had been established in 1997 to discuss and ratify the new constitution, and 15 representatives of Eritreans living abroad were formed into a Transitional National Assembly to serve as the country's legislative body until countrywide elections to a National Assembly were held; although only 75 of 150 members of the Transitional National Assembly were elected, the constitution stipulates that once past the transition stage, all members of the National Assembly will be elected by secret ballot of all eligible voters; National Assembly elections scheduled for December 2001 were postponed indefinitely |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 36.81 years
male: 36.81 years female: 36.81 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 59.03 years
male: 57.44 years female: 60.66 years (2006 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: 58.6% male: 69.9% female: 47.6% (2003 est.) |
| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan |
| Map references | Africa | Africa |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm |
| Merchant marine | - | total: 6 ships (1000 GRT or over) 19,506 GRT/23,649 DWT
by type: cargo 3, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2006) |
| 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; with Army and Air Wing) | Army, Navy, Air Force |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $32.5 million (2003) | $220.1 million (2005 est.) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2003) | 17.7% (2005 est.) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 465,827 (2004 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 253,974 (2004 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Independence Day, 24 May (1993) |
| Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun: Eritrean(s)
adjective: Eritrean |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts | frequent droughts; locust swarms |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals | gold, potash, zinc, copper, salt, possibly oil and natural gas, fish |
| Net migration rate | -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 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] | People's Front for Democracy and Justice or PFDJ, the only party recognized by the government [ISAIAS Afworki]; note - a National Assembly committee drafted a law on political parties in January 2001, but the full National Assembly has not yet debated or voted on it |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Eritrean Islamic Jihad or EIJ (also including Eritrean Islamic Jihad Movement or EIJM (also known as the Abu Sihel Movement)); Eritrean Islamic Salvation or EIS (also known as the Arafa Movement); Eritrean Liberation Front or ELF [ABDULLAH Muhammed]; Eritrean National Alliance or ENA (a coalition including EIJ, EIS, ELF, and a number of ELF factions) [HERUY Tedla Biru]; Eritrean Public Forum or EPF [ARADOM Iyob] |
| Population | 1,865,040
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 2004 est.) |
4,786,994 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | 50% (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.14% (2004 est.) | 2.47% (2006 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | none | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 2, FM NA, shortwave 2 (2000) |
| Railways | - | total: 306 km
narrow gauge: 306 km 0.950-m gauge (2005) |
| Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Muslim, Coptic Christian, Roman Catholic, Protestant |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 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: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: inadequate
domestic: inadequate; most telephones are in Asmara; government is seeking international tenders to improve the system (2002) international: country code - 291; note - international connections exist |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 28,600 (2002) | 37,700 (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 92,000 (2002) | 40,400 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling plains |
| Total fertility rate | 3.44 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 5.08 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | NA% |
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