Compare Lesotho (2007) - Sudan (2008)

Compare Lesotho (2007) z Sudan (2008)

	Lesotho (2007)	Sudan (2008)

Administrative divisions	10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka	25 states (wilayat, singular - wilayah); A'ali an Nil (Upper Nile), Al Bahr al Ahmar (Red Sea), Al Buhayrat (Lakes), Al Jazirah (El Gezira), Al Khartum (Khartoum), Al Qadarif (Gedaref), Al Wahdah (Unity), An Nil al Abyad (White Nile), An Nil al Azraq (Blue Nile), Ash Shamaliyah (Northern), Bahr al Jabal (Bahr al Jabal), Gharb al Istiwa'iyah (Western Equatoria), Gharb Bahr al Ghazal (Western Bahr al Ghazal), Gharb Darfur (Western Darfur), Janub Darfur (Southern Darfur), Janub Kurdufan (Southern Kordofan), Junqali (Jonglei), Kassala (Kassala), Nahr an Nil (Nile), Shamal Bahr al Ghazal (Northern Bahr al Ghazal), Shamal Darfur (Northern Darfur), Shamal Kurdufan (Northern Kordofan), Sharq al Istiwa'iyah (Eastern Equatoria), Sinnar (Sinnar), Warab (Warab)
Age structure	0-14 years: 35.7% (male 382,308/female 377,303) 15-64 years: 59.3% (male 613,979/female 645,818) 65 years and over: 5% (male 42,621/female 63,233) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 41.6% (male 8,371,628/female 8,016,880) 15-64 years: 56% (male 11,080,025/female 10,956,458) 65 years and over: 2.4% (male 504,957/female 449,410) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products	corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock	cotton, groundnuts (peanuts), sorghum, millet, wheat, gum arabic, sugarcane, cassava (tapioca), mangos, papaya, bananas, sweet potatoes, sesame; sheep, livestock
Airports	28 (2007)	101 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 3 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 16 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2007)	total: 85 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 37 under 914 m: 27 (2007)
Area	total: 30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 2,505,810 sq km land: 2.376 million sq km water: 129,810 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland	slightly more than one-quarter the size of the US
Background	Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. The Basuto National Party ruled for the first two decades. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990, but returned to Lesotho in 1992 and reinstated in 1995. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 7 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody intervention by South African and Botswanan military forces under the aegis of the Southern African Development Community. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002.	Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics since independence from the UK in 1956. Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged civil wars during most of the remainder of the 20th century. These conflicts were rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of largely non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese. The first civil war ended in 1972 but broke out again in 1983. The second war and famine-related effects resulted in more than 4 million people displaced and, according to rebel estimates, more than 2 million deaths over a period of two decades. Peace talks gained momentum in 2002-04 with the signing of several accords. The final North/South Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in January 2005, granted the southern rebels autonomy for six years. After which, a referendum for independence is scheduled to be held. A separate conflict, which broke out in the western region of Darfur in 2003, has displaced nearly 2 million people and caused an estimated 200,000 to 400,000 deaths. The UN took command of the Darfur peacekeeping operation from the African Union on 31 December 2007. As of early 2008, peacekeeping troops were struggling to stabilize the situation, which has become increasingly regional in scope, and has brought instability to eastern Chad, and Sudanese incursions into the Central African Republic. Sudan also has faced large refugee influxes from neighboring countries, primarily Ethiopia and Chad. Armed conflict, poor transport infrastructure, and lack of government support have chronically obstructed the provision of humanitarian assistance to affected populations.
Birth rate	24.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	34.86 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget	revenues: $995.8 million expenditures: $763.2 million (2006 est.)	revenues: $9.682 billion expenditures: $11.59 billion (2007 est.)
Capital	name: Maseru geographic coordinates: 29 19 S, 27 29 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Khartoum geographic coordinates: 15 36 N, 32 32 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 in south; arid desert in north; rainy season varies by region (April to November)
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	853 km
Constitution	2 April 1993	constitution implemented on 30 June 1998, partially suspended 12 December 1999 by President BASHIR; under the CPA, Interim National Constitution ratified 5 July 2005; Constitution of Southern Sudan signed December 2005
Country name	conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho local long form: Kingdom of Lesotho local short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland	conventional long form: Republic of the Sudan conventional short form: Sudan local long form: Jumhuriyat as-Sudan local short form: As-Sudan former: Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
Death rate	22.49 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	14.39 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external	$652 million (2006 est.)	$29.6 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador June Carter PERRY embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 22 312666 FAX: [266] 22 310116	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Alberto M. Fernandez embassy: Sharia Ali Abdul Latif Avenue, Khartoum mailing address: P. O. Box 699, Khartoum; APO AE 09829 telephone: [249] (183) 774701/2/3 FAX: [249] (183) 774137 note: US Consul in Cairo is providing backup service for Khartoum;
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 (vacant); Charge d'Affaires John UKEC Lueth chancery: 2210 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 338-8565 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2406
Disputes - international	none	the effects of Sudan's almost constant ethnic and rebel militia fighting since the mid-20th century have penetrated all of the neighboring states; as of 2006, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda provided shelter for over half a million Sudanese refugees, which includes 240,000 Darfur residents driven from their homes by Janjawid armed militia and the Sudanese military forces; Sudan, in turn, hosted about 116,000 Eritreans, 20,000 Chadians, and smaller numbers of Ethiopians, Ugandans, Central Africans, and Congolese as refugees; in February 2006, Sudan and DROC signed an agreement to repatriate 13,300 Sudanese and 6,800 Congolese; Sudan accuses Eritrea of supporting Sudanese rebel groups; efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Ethiopia proceed slowly due to civil and ethnic fighting in eastern Sudan; the boundary that separates Kenya and Sudan's sovereignty is unclear in the "Ilemi Triangle," which Kenya has administered since colonial times; while Sudan claims to administer the Hala'ib Triangle north of the 1899 Treaty boundary along the 22nd Parallel; both states withdrew their military presence in the 1990s, and Egypt has invested in and effectively administers the area; periodic violent skirmishes with Sudanese residents over water and grazing rights persist among related pastoral populations along the border with the Central African Republic
Economic aid - recipient	$68.82 million (2005)	$1.829 billion (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. However, the government has recently 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 and also generates royalties for Lesotho. Lesotho produces about 90% of its own electrical power needs. 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, as well as a rapidly expanding apparel-assembly sector. The latter has grown significantly mainly due to Lesotho qualifying for the trade benefits contained in the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act. 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.	Sudan's economy is booming on the back of increases in oil production, high oil prices, and large inflows of foreign direct investment. GDP growth registered more than 10% per year in 2006 and 2007. From 1997 to date, Sudan has been working with the IMF to implement macroeconomic reforms, including a managed float of the exchange rate. Sudan began exporting crude oil in the last quarter of 1999. Agricultural production remains important, because it employs 80% of the work force and contributes a third of GDP. The Darfur conflict, the aftermath of two decades of civil war in the south, the lack of basic infrastructure in large areas, and a reliance by much of the population on subsistence agriculture ensure much of the population will remain at or below the poverty line for years despite rapid rises in average per capita income. In January 2007, the government introduced a new currency, the Sudanese Pound, at an initial exchange rate of $1.00 equals 2 Sudanese Pounds.
Electricity - consumption	338.5 million kWh (2005)	3.298 billion kWh (2005)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports	13 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005)	0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production	350 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005)	3.944 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: Red Sea 0 m highest point: Kinyeti 3,187 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	inadequate supplies of potable water; wildlife populations threatened by excessive hunting; soil erosion; desertification; periodic drought
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%,	black 52%, Arab 39%, Beja 6%, foreigners 2%, other 1%
Exchange rates	maloti per US dollar - 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.541 (2002)	Sudanese dinars per US dollar - 2.06 (2007), 217.2 (2006), 243.61 (2005), 257.91 (2004), 260.98 (2003)
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, that 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 depose the monarch, determine who is next in the line of succession, or who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age	chief of state: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August 2005), Vice President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR (since 16 October 1993); First Vice President Salva KIIR (since 4 August 2005), Vice President Ali Osman TAHA (since 20 September 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president; note - the National Congress Party or NCP (formerly the National Islamic Front or NIF) dominates al-BASHIR's cabinet elections: election last held 13-23 December 2000; next to be held no later than July 2009 under terms of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement election results: Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR reelected president; percent of vote - Umar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR 86.5%, Ja'afar Muhammed NUMAYRI 9.6%, three other candidates received a combined vote of 3.9%; election widely viewed as rigged; all popular opposition parties boycotted elections because of a lack of guarantees for a free and fair election note: al-BASHIR assumed power as chairman of Sudan's Revolutionary Command Council for National Salvation (RCC) in June 1989 and served concurrently as chief of state, chairman of the RCC, prime minister, and minister of defense until mid-October 1993 when he was appointed president by the RCC; he was elected president by popular vote for the first time in March 1996
Exports	NA bbl/day	279,100 bbl/day (2004)
Exports - commodities	manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000)	oil and petroleum products; cotton, sesame, livestock, groundnuts, gum arabic, sugar
Exports - partners	US 81.9%, Belgium 15%, Canada 1.9% (2006)	Japan 48%, China 31%, South Korea 3.8% (2006)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green in the proportions of 3:4:3; the colors represent rain, peace, and prosperity respectively; centered in the white stripe is a black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people; the flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence	three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 18.2% industry: 40.8% services: 41% (2006 est.)	agriculture: 31.5% industry: 35.7% services: 32.8% (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	6.2% (2006 est.)	12.8% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates	29 30 S, 28 30 E	15 00 N, 30 00 E
Geography - note	landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level	largest country in Africa; dominated by the Nile and its tributaries
Heliports	-	4 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 0.9% highest 10%: 43.4% (2002 est.)	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Imports	NA bbl/day	7,945 bbl/day (2004)
Imports - commodities	food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products	foodstuffs, manufactured goods, refinery and transport equipment, medicines and chemicals, textiles, wheat
Imports - partners	Hong Kong 33.4%, China 31.2%, Germany 7.7%, India 7.3% (2006)	China 18.2%, Saudi Arabia 9.2%, UAE 5.8%, Egypt 5.3%, Germany 5.2%, India 4.6%, France 4.1% (2006)
Independence	4 October 1966 (from UK)	1 January 1956 (from Egypt and UK)
Industrial production growth rate	15.5% (1999)	32% (2007 est.)
Industries	food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism	oil, cotton ginning, textiles, cement, edible oils, sugar, soap distilling, shoes, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, armaments, automobile/light truck assembly
Infant mortality rate	total: 79.85 deaths/1,000 live births male: 84.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 75.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 91.78 deaths/1,000 live births male: 91.95 deaths/1,000 live births female: 91.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6.1% (2006 est.)	5.3% (2007 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, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	ABEDA, ACP, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, CAEU, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Irrigated land	30 sq km (2003)	18,630 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch acting on the advice of the Prime Minister); Court of Appeal; Magistrate Courts; customary or traditional court	Constitutional Court of nine justices; National Supreme Court; National Courts of Appeal; other national courts; National Judicial Service Commission will undertake overall management of the National Judiciary
Labor force	838,000 (2000)	7.415 million (1996 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa industry and services: 14% (2002 est.)	agriculture: 80% industry: 7% services: 13% (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 909 km border countries: South Africa 909 km	total: 7,687 km border countries: Central African Republic 1,165 km, Chad 1,360 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo 628 km, Egypt 1,273 km, Eritrea 605 km, Ethiopia 1,606 km, Kenya 232 km, Libya 383 km, Uganda 435 km
Land use	arable land: 10.87% permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2005)	arable land: 6.78% permanent crops: 0.17% other: 93.05% (2005)
Languages	Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa	Arabic (official), Nubian, Ta Bedawie, diverse dialects of Nilotic, Nilo-Hamitic, Sudanic languages, English note: program of "Arabization" in process
Legal system	based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations	based on English common law and Islamic law; as of 20 January 1991, the now defunct Revolutionary Command Council imposed Islamic law in the northern states; Islamic law applies to all residents of the northern states regardless of their religion; however, the CPA establishes some protections for non-Muslims in Khartoum; some separate religious courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; the southern legal system is still developing under the CPA following the civil war; Islamic law will not apply to the southern states
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 popular vote and 40 by proportional vote; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms) elections: last held 17 February 2007 (next to be held in 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LCD 61, NIP 21, ABC 17, LWP 10, ACP 4, BNP 3, other 4	bicameral National Legislature consists of a Council of States (50 seats; members indirectly elected by state legislatures to serve six-year terms) and a National Assembly (450 seats; members presently appointed, but in the future 75% of members to be directly elected and 25% elected in special or indirect elections; to serve six-year terms) elections: last held 13-22 December 2000 (next to be held 2009) election results: NCP 355, others 5; note - replaced by appointments under the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 39.97 years male: 40.73 years female: 39.18 years (2007 est.)	total population: 49.11 years male: 48.24 years female: 50.03 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: 61.1% male: 71.8% female: 50.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa	Northern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Egypt and Eritrea
Map references	Africa	Africa
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Merchant marine	-	total: 3 ships (1000 GRT or over) 21,311 GRT/26,179 DWT by type: cargo 2, livestock carrier 1 (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): Army and Air Wing	Sudanese People's Armed Forces (SPAF): Land Forces, Navy, Air Force, Popular Defense Forces (2007)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.6% (2006)	3% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Independence Day, 4 October (1966)	Independence Day, 1 January (1956)
Nationality	noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho	noun: Sudanese (singular and plural) adjective: Sudanese
Natural hazards	periodic droughts	dust storms and periodic persistent droughts
Natural resources	water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone	petroleum; small reserves of iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver, gold, hydropower
Net migration rate	-0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines	-	gas 156 km; oil 4,070 km; refined products 1,613 km (2007)
Political parties and leaders	Alliance of Congress Parties or ACP; All Basotho Convention or ABC [Thomas THABANE]; Basotholand African Congress or BAC [Khauhelo RALITAPOLE]; Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Ntsukunyane MPHANYA]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justin Metsing LEKHANYA]; Kopanang Basotho Party or KPB [Pheelo MOSALA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD (the governing party) [Pakalitha MOSISILI]; Lesotho Education Party or LEP [Thabo PITSO]; Lesotho Workers Party or LWP [Macaefa BILLY]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP [Vincent MALEBO]; National Independent Party or NIP [Anthony MANYELI]; New Lesotho Freedom Party or NLFP [Manapo MAJARA]; Popular Front for Democracy or PFD [Lekhetho RAKUOANE]; Sefate Democratic Union or SDU [Bofihla NKUEBE]; Social Democratic Party of SDP [Masitise SELESO]	National Congress Party or NCP [Umar Hassan al-BASHIR]; Sudan People's Liberation Movement or SPLM [Salva Mayardit KIIR]; and elements of the National Democratic Alliance or NDA including factions of the Democratic Union Party [Muhammad Uthman al-MIRGHANI] and Umma Party [SADIQ Siddiq al-Mahdi]; note - all political parties listed above in the Government of National Unity
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	Umma Party [Sadiq al-MAHDI]; Popular Congress Party or PCP [Hassan al-TURABI]
Population	2,125,262 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 2007 est.)	39,379,358 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line	49% (1999)	40% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate	0.144% (2007 est.)	2.082% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 1 (1998)
Railways	-	total: 5,978 km narrow gauge: 4,578 km 1.067-m gauge; 1,400 km 0.600-m gauge for cotton plantations (2006)
Religions	Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%	Sunni Muslim 70% (in north), Christian 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum), indigenous beliefs 25%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.013 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.951 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.674 male(s)/female total population: 0.956 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.044 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.011 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.124 male(s)/female total population: 1.027 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	17 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: rudimentary system consisting of a modest but growing number of landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a small radiotelephone communication system; mobile-cellular telephone system is expanding domestic: privatized in 2001, Telecom Lesotho tasked with providing an additional 50,000 fixed-line connections within five years, a target not met; mobile-cellular service is expanding with a subscribership approaching 15 per 100 persons; rural services are scant international: country code - 266; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)	general assessment: large, well-equipped system by regional standards and being upgraded; cellular communications started in 1996 and have expanded substantially domestic: consists of microwave radio relay, cable, radiotelephone communications, tropospheric scatter, and a domestic satellite system with 14 earth stations international: country code - 249; linked to international submarine cable Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Arabsat (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	48,000 (2005)	636,900 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular	249,800 (2005)	4.683 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations	1 (2000)	3 (1997)
Terrain	mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains	generally flat, featureless plain; mountains in far south, northeast and west; desert dominates the north
Total fertility rate	3.21 children born/woman (2007 est.)	4.69 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate	45% (2002)	18.7% (2002 est.)
Waterways	-	4,068 km (1,723 km open year round on White and Blue Nile rivers) (2006)

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