Singapore (2002) | Lesotho (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 17.6% (male 404,212; female 378,660)
15-64 years: 75.3% (male 1,630,696; female 1,724,532) 65 years and over: 7.1% (male 137,512; female 177,120) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years:
39.28% (male 430,147; female 424,994) 15-64 years: 56.03% (male 588,440; female 631,404) 65 years and over: 4.69% (male 43,033; female 59,044) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables; poultry, eggs, fish, ornamental fish | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
Airports | 9 (2001) | 29 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 9
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total:
25 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 692.7 sq km
land: 682.7 sq km water: 10 sq km |
total:
30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Founded as a British trading colony in 1819, Singapore joined Malaysia in 1963, but withdrew two years later and became independent. It subsequently became one of the world's most prosperous countries, with strong international trading links (its port is one of the world's busiest) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe. | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. |
Birth rate | 12.78 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 31.24 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $27.9 billion
expenditures: $19.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.4 billion |
revenues:
$76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | Singapore | Maseru |
Climate | tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons - Northeastern monsoon from December to March and Southwestern monsoon from June to September; inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early evening thunderstorms | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 193 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 3 June 1959, amended 1965 (based on preindependence State of Singapore Constitution) | 2 April 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Singapore
conventional short form: Singapore |
conventional long form:
Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
Currency | Singapore dollar (SGD) | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) |
Death rate | 4.28 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 15.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $8.3 billion (2001 est.) | $720 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Franklin L. LAVIN
embassy: 27 Napier Road, Singapore 258508 mailing address: PSC Box 470, FPO AP 96534-0001 telephone: [65] 6476-9100 FAX: [65] 6476-9232 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Katherine H. PETERSON embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Heng Chee CHAN
chancery: 3501 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 537-3100 FAX: [1] (202) 537-0876 consulate(s) general: San Francisco consulate(s): New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
Disputes - international | Singapore and Malaysia are considering taking the unresolved dispute over Pulau Batu Putih (Pedra Branca Island) to ICJ; Malaysia concerned over Singapore's land reclamation works on Johor, which affects the maritime boundary, shipping lanes, and water ecology in the Tebrau Reach | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $123.7 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Singapore, a highly developed and successful free-market economy, enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and one of the highest per capita GDPs in the world. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in electronics and manufacturing, and was hard hit in 2001 by the global recession and the slump in the technology sector. In 2001, GDP contracted by 2.2%. The economy is expected to recover in 2002 in response to improvements in the US economy, and GDP growth for 2002 is projected to be 3% to 4%. In the longer term the government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle than the current export-led model, but is unlikely to abandon efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia's financial and high-tech hub. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, and remittances from miners employed in South Africa. The number of such mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of substantial privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. |
Electricity - consumption | 25.947 billion kWh (2000) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2000) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2000) | 55 million kWh
note: electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) |
Electricity - production | 27.9 billion kWh (2000) | 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
fossil fuel:
0% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Singapore Strait 0 m
highest point: Bukit Timah 166 m |
lowest point:
junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
Environment - current issues | industrial pollution; limited natural fresh water resources; limited land availability presents waste disposal problems; seasonal smoke/haze resulting from forest fires in Indonesia | 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 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected 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 |
Ethnic groups | Chinese 76.7%, Malay 14%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4% | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
Exchange rates | Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.8388 (January 2002), 1.7917 (2001), 1.7240 (2000), 1.6950 (1999), 1.6736 (1998), 1.4848 (1997) | maloti per US dollar - 7.78307 (January 2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Sellapan Rama (S. R.) NATHAN (since 1 September 1999)
head of government: Prime Minister Chok Tong GOH (since 28 November 1990) and Deputy Prime Ministers Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Hsien Loong LEE (since 28 November 1990) and Keng Yam Tony TAN (since 1 August 1995) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, responsible to Parliament elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; election last held 28 August 1999 (next to be held by August 2005); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president; deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Sellapan Rama (S. R.) NATHAN elected president unopposed |
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 |
Exports | $122 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) | $175 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods, chemicals, mineral fuels | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (1998) |
Exports - partners | Malaysia 18%, US 17%, Hong Kong 8%, Japan 7.5%, Taiwan 6%, Thailand 4.3%, China 4%, South Korea 3.6%, Germany 3%, Netherlands 3% (2000) | South African Customs Union 65%, North America 34% (1998) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and white; near the hoist side of the red band, there is a vertical, white crescent (closed portion is toward the hoist side) partially enclosing five white five-pointed stars arranged in a circle | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $106.3 billion (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $5.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NEGL%
industry: 33% services: 67% (2001 est.) |
agriculture:
18% industry: 38% services: 44% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $24,700 (2001 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,400 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | -2.2% (2001 est.) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 1 22 N, 103 48 E | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
Geography - note | focal point for Southeast Asian sea routes | landlocked; surrounded by South Africa |
Highways | total: 3,150 km
paved: 3,066 km (including 150 km of expressways) unpaved: 84 km (2000) |
total:
4,955 km paved: 887 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
0.9% highest 10%: 43.4% (1986-87) |
Illicit drugs | as a transportation and financial services hub, Singapore is vulnerable, despite strict laws and enforcement, to use as a transit point for Golden Triangle heroin and as a venue for money laundering | - |
Imports | $116 billion (2001 est.) | $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (1995) |
Imports - partners | Japan 17%, Malaysia 17%, US 15%, China 5%, Taiwan 4.4%, Thailand 4.3%, South Korea 3.6%, Saudi Arabia 3% (2000) | South African Customs Union 90%, Asia 7% (1998) |
Independence | 9 August 1965 (from Malaysia) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | -17.5% (2001 est.) | 15.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, entrepot trade, biotechnology | food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts; construction; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 3.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | 82.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (2001 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNTAET, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 9 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 30 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the president with the advice of the prime minister, other judges are appointed by the president with the advice of the chief justice); Court of Appeals | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court |
Labor force | 2.19 million (2000) | 700,000 economically active |
Labor force - by occupation | financial, business, and other services 35%, manufacturing 21%, construction 13%, transportation and communication 9%, other 22% | 86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
909 km border countries: South Africa 909 km |
Land use | arable land: 1.64%
permanent crops: 0% other: 98.36% (1998 est.) |
arable land:
11% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 66% forests and woodland: 0% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Chinese (official), Malay (official and national), Tamil (official), English (official) | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
Legal system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | 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 |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament (84 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms); note - in addition, there are up to nine nominated members; the losing opposition candidate who came closet to winning a seat may be appointed as a "nonconstituency" member
elections: last held 3 November 2001 (next to be held 25 June 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - PAP 75.3% (in contested constituencies), other 24.7%; seats by party - PAP 82, WP 1, SDA 1 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (80 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 65 to 80 in the May 1998 election; on 28 February 2001, the Senate approved expansion of the Assembly by a further 50 seats in the next election, which may be held as early as January 2002
elections: last held 23 May 1998 (next to be held NA March 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 60.7%, BNP 24.5%, other 14.8%; seats by party - LCD 79, BNP 1 note: results contested; opposition parties claimed the election was fraudulent and staged a coup; Southern African Development Community (SADC) forces intervened in September 1998 and restored order; the Interim Political Authority (IPA) was set up in December 1998 to create a new electoral system and conduct new elections. |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 80.29 years
male: 77.34 years female: 83.47 years (2002 est.) |
total population:
48.84 years male: 47.97 years female: 49.74 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 93.5% male: 97% female: 89.8% (1999) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.) |
Location | Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Africa |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: within and beyond territorial sea, as defined in treaties and practice
territorial sea: 3 NM |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 876 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 20,686,612 GRT/32,647,743 DWT
ships by type: bulk 131, cargo 100, chemical tanker 81, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 6, container 168, liquefied gas 35, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 287, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea passenger 1, specialized tanker 11, vehicle carrier 32 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 7, Belgium 6, China 12, Denmark 27, Germany 17, Greece 4, Hong Kong 44, Indonesia 8, Japan 52, Malaysia 4, Monaco 22, Netherlands 2, Norway 42, Philippines 6, Russia 3, Slovenia 1, South Korea 10, Sweden 13, Switzerland 7, Taiwan 46, Tanzania 2, Thailand 22, United Arab Emirates 4, United Kingdom 14, United States 1 (2002 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 | Army, Navy, Air Force, People's Defense Force, Police Force | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; includes Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police (RLMP) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4.47 billion (FY01/02 est.) | $34 million (1999) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 4.9% (FY01/02) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 1,354,857 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
515,464 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 986,101 (2002 est.) | males age 15-49:
277,369 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 9 August (1965) | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Singaporean(s)
adjective: Singapore |
noun:
Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho |
Natural hazards | NA | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, deepwater ports | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals |
Net migration rate | 26.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [leader NA]; People's Action Party or PAP [Chok Tong GOH, secretary general] - the governing party; Singapore Democratic Alliance or SDA [CHIAM See Tong] (includes Singapore People's Party or SPP [CHIAM See Tong], Singapore Democratic Party or SDP [CHEE Soon Juan], National Solidarity Party [leader NA], Singapore Justice Party [leader NA], and Singapore Malay National Organization [leader NA]); Workers' Party or WP [J. B. JEYARETNAM] | 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; Dr. Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,452,732 (July 2002 est.) | 2,177,062
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 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 49.2% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 3.46% (2002 est.) | 1.49% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Singapore | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 16, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | 2.6 million (2000) | 104,000 (1997) |
Railways | total: 38.6 km
narrow gauge: 38.6 km 1.000-m gauge note: there is also a 83 km mass transit system with 48 stations |
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) |
Religions | Buddhist (Chinese), Muslim (Malays), Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Taoist, Confucianist | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal and compulsory | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: major consideration given to serving business interests; excellent international service
domestic: excellent domestic facilities international: submarine cables to Malaysia (Sabah and Peninsular Malaysia), Indonesia, and the Philippines; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean region) |
general assessment:
rudimentary system domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 1.95 million (2000) | 20,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2.74 million (2000) | 1,262 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (2000) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water catchment area and nature preserve | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 1.23 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 4.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.7% (2001 est.) | 45% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |