Lesotho

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to navigation Jump to search

Coordinates: 29.6°S 28.3°E

Kingdom of Lesotho
'Muso oa Lesotho (Sesotho)

Flag

Coat of arms

Motto: "Khotso, Pula, Nala" (Sotho)

"Peace, Rain, Prosperity"
Anthem: Lesotho Fatše La Bontata Rona
Lesotho, land of our Fathers

Location of Lesotho (dark blue)

– in Africa (light blue & dark grey)
– in the African Union (light blue)
Capital Maseru
and largest city 29°28′S 27°56′E
Official languages  Sesotho
  English

 99.7% Basotho
Ethnic groups  0.3% other Africans

 Mosotho (singular)
Demonym  Basotho (plural)

Unitary parliamentary
Government
constitutional monarchy
• Monarch Letsie III
• Prime Minister Tom Thabane
• Deputy prime minister Monyane Moleleki
• Assembly Speaker Sephiri Motanyane
Legislature Parliament
• Upper house Senate
• Lower house National Assembly
Independence
• from the United Kingdom 4 October 1966
Area
30,355 km2 (11,720 sq mi)
• Total
(137th)
• Water (%) 0.0032%
Population
• 2016 estimate 2,203,821[1] (144th)
• 2004 census 2,031,348
• Density 68.1/km2 (176.4/sq mi) (138th)
GDP (PPP) 2017 estimate
• Total $7.448 billion[2]
• Per capita $3,868[2]
GDP (nominal) 2017 estimate
• Total $2.721 billion[2]
• Per capita $1,413[2]
54.2[3]
Gini (2015)
high · 17
0.497[4]
HDI (2015)
low · 160th
Lesotho loti (LSL), South African
Currency
rand (ZAR)
Time zone SAST (UTC+2)
Drives on the left
Calling code +266
ISO 3166 code LS
Internet TLD .ls
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.

Lesotho (/ləˈsuːtuː/ ( listen), lə-SOO-too)[5] officially the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa
Lesotho), is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in
size and has a population of around 2 million.[1] Its capital and largest city is Maseru.

Previously known as Basutoland, Lesotho declared independence from the United Kingdom on 4
October 1966. It is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations and the
Southern African Development Community (SADC). The name Lesotho translates roughly into
"the land of the people who speak Sesotho".[6][7]