Home

Lesotho Background Information

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.

Lesotho Quickstats

  • Population: 2,125,262
  • Area: 30,355 sq km
  • Density: 59 /km² (138th)
  • GDP (total): $4.996 billion (150th)
  • GDP (per capita): $2,113 (139th)
  • Literacy: 84.8%

Languages of Lesotho

Useful to know

  • Currency: Loti (LSL)
  • Dial code: +266

International Trade

External sites

More Resources

Lesotho Internet

  • Usage: 43,000
  • Penetration: 1.7 %
  • Top Domain: .lt

WT eBusiness info:

  • Success Ranking: 100
  • Market testing: Untested
  • Overall risk: High
  • Overall reward: Low

e-maturity:

  • Tourism: 10%
  • eCommerce: 10%
  • Gaming: 10%
  • eLearning: 10%

Recent blog posts