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Compare Lesotho (2008) - Sierra Leone (2001)
Compare Lesotho (2008) z Sierra Leone (2001)
| Lesotho (2008) | Sierra Leone (2001) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka | 3 provinces and 1 area*; Eastern, Northern, Southern, Western* |
| 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:
44.73% (male 1,190,207; female 1,237,326) 15-64 years: 52.12% (male 1,351,455; female 1,477,155) 65 years and over: 3.15% (male 84,364; female 86,111) (2001 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock | rice, coffee, cocoa, palm kernels, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, cattle, sheep, pigs; fish |
| Airports | 28 (2007) | 11 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 3
over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 25
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2007) |
total:
10 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
| Area | total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
71,740 sq km land: 71,620 sq km water: 120 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland | slightly smaller than South Carolina |
| 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 was reinstated in 1995. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after seven 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. Subsequent constitutional reforms restored relative political stability. Peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002, but the National Assembly elections of February 2007 were hotly contested and aggrieved parties continue to periodically demonstrate their distrust of the results. | Since 1991, civil war between the government and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (well over one-third of the population) many of whom are now refugees in neighboring countries. A peace agreement, signed in July 1999, collapsed in May 2000 after the RUF took over 500 UN peacekeepers hostage. The RUF stepped up attacks on Guinea in December 2000, despite a cease-fire that it signed with the Freetown government one month earlier. As of late 2000, up to 13,000 UN peacekeepers were protecting the capital and key towns in the south. A UK force of 750 was helping to reinforce security and train the Sierra Leone army. |
| Birth rate | 24.72 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 45.11 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $951.4 million
expenditures: $855.4 million (2007 est.) |
revenues:
$96 million expenditures: $351 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 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) |
Freetown |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers | tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May to December); winter dry season (December to April) |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 402 km |
| Constitution | 2 April 1993 | 1 October 1991; subsequently amended several times |
| 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 Sierra Leone conventional short form: Sierra Leone |
| Currency | - | leone (SLL) |
| Death rate | 22.49 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 19.19 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
| Debt - external | $693 million (31 December 2007 est.) | $1.28 billion (1999) |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Robert NOLAN
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 Joseph H. MELROSE, Jr. embassy: Corner of Walpole and Siaka Stevens Streets, Freetown mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [232] (22) 226481 through 226485 FAX: [232] (22) 225471 |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mabasia MOHOBANE
chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador John Ernest LEIGH chancery: 1701 19th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 939-9261 through 9263 FAX: [1] (202) 483-1793 |
| Disputes - international | none | civil war has engendered massive refugee movements into neighboring Guinea and Liberia |
| Economic aid - recipient | $68.82 million (2005) | $203.7 million (1995) |
| Economy - overview | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho relies on remittances from miners employed in South Africa and customs duties from the Southern Africa Customs Union for the majority of government revenue. 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. In July 2007 Lesotho signed a Millennium Challenge Account Compact with the US worth $362.5 million. | Sierra Leone is an extremely poor African nation with tremendous inequality in income distribution. It does have substantial mineral, agricultural, and fishery resources. However, the economic and social infrastructure is not well developed, and serious social disorders continue to hamper economic development. About two-thirds of the working-age population engages in subsistence agriculture. Manufacturing consists mainly of the processing of raw materials and of light manufacturing for the domestic market. Bauxite and rutile mines have been shut down by civil strife. The major source of hard currency is found in the mining of diamonds, the large majority of which are smuggled out of the country. The resurgence of internal warfare in 1999 brought another substantial drop in GDP, with GNP recovering part of the way in 2000. The fate of the economy depends upon the maintenance of domestic peace and the continued receipt of substantial aid from abroad. |
| Electricity - consumption | 338.5 million kWh (2005) | 223.2 million kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - imports | 13 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
| Electricity - production | 350 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2005) | 240 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:
Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Loma Mansa (Bintimani) 1,948 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 | rapid population growth pressuring the environment; overharvesting of timber, expansion of cattle grazing, and slash-and-burn agriculture have resulted in deforestation and soil exhaustion; civil war depleting natural resources; overfishing |
| 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, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, | 20 native African tribes 90% (Temne 30%, Mende 30%, other 30%), Creole 10% (descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area in the late-18th century), refugees from Liberia's recent civil war, small numbers of Europeans, Lebanese, Pakistanis, and Indians |
| Exchange rates | maloti per US dollar - 7.25 (2007), 6.85 (2006), 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003) | leones per US dollar - 1,653.39 (January 2001), 2,092.13 (2000), 1,804.20 (1999), 1,563.62 (1998), 981.48 (1997), 920.73 (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, 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 Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (since 29 March 1996, reinstated 10 March 1998); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Ministers of State appointed by the president with the approval of the House of Representatives; the cabinet is responsible to the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election held 26-27 February and 15 March 1996 (next to be held NA September 2001); note - president's tenure of office is limited to two five-year terms election results: Ahmad Tejan KABBAH elected president; percent of vote - Ahmad Tejan KABBAH (SLPP) 59.5%, John KAREFA-SMART (UNPP) 40.5% |
| Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $65 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (2000) | diamonds, rutile, cocoa, coffee, fish |
| Exports - partners | US 81.9%, Belgium 15%, Canada 1.9% (2006) | Belgium 38%, US 6%, Italy 4%, UK 4% (1999) |
| 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 light green (top), white, and light blue |
| GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $2.7 billion (2000 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 15.2%
industry: 45% services: 39.7% (2007 est.) |
agriculture:
43% industry: 26% services: 31% (1999) |
| GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $510 (2000 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.8% (2007 est.) | 4.2% (2000 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E | 8 30 N, 11 30 W |
| Geography - note | landlocked, completely surrounded by South Africa; mountainous, more than 80% of the country is 1,800 meters above sea level | - |
| Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
| Highways | - | total:
11,300 km paved: 904 km unpaved: 10,396 km (1997) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 0.9%
highest 10%: 43.4% (2002 est.) |
lowest 10%:
0.5% highest 10%: 43.6% (1989) |
| Imports | 1,400 bbl/day (2004) | $145 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels and lubricants, chemicals |
| Imports - partners | Hong Kong 33.4%, China 31.2%, Germany 7.7%, India 7.3% (2006) | UK 34%, US 8%, Italy 7%, Nigeria 5% (1999) |
| Independence | 4 October 1966 (from UK) | 27 April 1961 (from UK) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 12% (2007 est.) | NA% |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism | mining (diamonds); small-scale manufacturing (beverages, textiles, cigarettes, footwear); petroleum refining |
| 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.) |
146.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 12% (2007 est.) | 15% (2000 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 | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
| Irrigated land | 30 sq km (2003) | 290 sq km (1993 est.) |
| 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 | Supreme Court; Appeals Court; High Court |
| Labor force | 838,000 (2000 est.) | 1.369 million (1981 est.)
note: only about 65,000 wage earners (1985) |
| 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 NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
| Land boundaries | total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
total:
958 km border countries: Guinea 652 km, Liberia 306 km |
| Land use | arable land: 10.87%
permanent crops: 0.13% other: 89% (2005) |
arable land:
7% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 31% forests and woodland: 28% other: 33% (1993 est.) |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa | English (official, regular use limited to literate minority), Mende (principal vernacular in the south), Temne (principal vernacular in the north), Krio (English-based Creole, spoken by the descendants of freed Jamaican slaves who were settled in the Freetown area, a lingua franca and a first language for 10% of the population but understood by 95%) |
| 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 law and customary laws indigenous to local tribes; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
| Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (120 seats, 80 by 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 |
unicameral House of Representatives (80 seats - 68 elected by popular vote, 12 filled by paramount chiefs elected in separate elections; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 26-27 February 1996 (next to be held NA 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - SLPP 36.1%, UNPP 21.6%, PDP 15.3%, APC 5.7%, NUP 5.3%, DCP 4.8%, other 11.2%; seats by party - SLPP 27, UNPP 17, PDP 12, APC 5, NUP 4, DCP 3; note - first elections since the former House of Representatives was shut down by the military coup of 29 April 1992 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 39.97 years
male: 40.73 years female: 39.18 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
45.6 years male: 42.69 years female: 48.61 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 English, Mende, Temne, or Arabic total population: 31.4% male: 45.4% female: 18.2% (1995 est.) |
| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa | Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea and Liberia |
| Map references | Africa | Africa |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea:
200 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Merchant marine | - | total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,057 GRT/3,498 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): Army and Air Wing | Army |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $46 million (FY96/97) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.6% (2006) | 2% (FY96/97) |
| Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,161,790 (2001 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
563,631 (2001 est.) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) | Independence Day, 27 April (1961) |
| Nationality | noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural)
adjective: Basotho |
noun:
Sierra Leonean(s) adjective: Sierra Leonean |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts | dry, sand-laden harmattan winds blow from the Sahara (December to February); sandstorms, dust storms |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone | diamonds, titanium ore, bauxite, iron ore, gold, chromite |
| Net migration rate | -0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 10.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)
note: by the end of 1999 refugees from Sierra Leone are assumed to be returning |
| 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] | All People's Congress or APC [Edward Mohammed TURAY, chairman]; Democratic Centre Party or DCP [Adu Aiah KOROMA]; National Democratic Alliance or NDA [Amadu M. B. JALLOH]; National Republican Party or NRP [Sahr Stephen MAMBU]; National Unity Party or NUP [Dr. John KARIMU, chairman]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Thaimu BANGURA, chairman]; People's Progressive Party or PPP [Abass Chernok BUNDU, chairman]; Revolutionary United Front Party or RUFP [Foday SANKOH, chairman]; Sierra Leone People's Party or SLPP [President Ahmad Tejan KABBAH, chairman]; United National People's Party or UNPP [John KARIFA-SMART in exile, Raymond KAMARA, acting leader] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | Trade Unions and Student Unions |
| 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.) |
5,426,618 (July 2001 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 49% (1999) | 68% (1989 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.144% (2007 est.) | 3.61% (2001 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | - | Bonthe, Freetown, Pepel |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 1, FM 9, shortwave 1 (1999) |
| Radios | - | 1.12 million (1997) |
| Railways | - | total:
84 km used on a limited basis because the mine at Marampa is closed narrow gauge: 84 km 1.067-m gauge |
| Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% | Muslim 60%, indigenous beliefs 30%, Christian 10% |
| 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:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 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:
marginal telephone and telegraph service domestic: national microwave radio relay trunk system, made unserviceable by military activities, is now operating from Freetown to Bo and Kenema (April 2001) international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 48,000 (2005) | 17,000 (1997) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 249,800 (2005) | 650 (1999) |
| Television broadcast stations | 1 (2000) | 2 (1999) |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains | coastal belt of mangrove swamps, wooded hill country, upland plateau, mountains in east |
| Total fertility rate | 3.21 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 6.01 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 45% (2002) | NA% |
| Waterways | - | 800 km (of which 600 km navigable year round) |
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