The Kingdom of Lesotho is a small, mountainous country that is completely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. Slightly bigger that Maryland, it is sometimes called the Switzerland of southern Africa because of its beautiful mountain scenery. It is a very poor country, and economically it depends heavily on South Africa.
Lesotho occupies a high, mountainous plateau. Cut by valleys and ravines, there are lowlands to the west. The temperature in the western plains varies from about ninety degrees Fahrenheit in summer to twenty degrees in the winter. In the highlands there is sometimes snow and the temperature falls below freezing in winter. Lesotho is located about 200 miles inland from the Indian Ocean. The Drakensburg mountain range rises over 11000 feet above sea level in the east. The Maloti Mountains, which are part of the Drakensburg Mountains, cover much of central Lesotho. Most of the country is over 5000 feet above sea level, with a mild, moist climate. Rainfall varies from year to year and place to place, with an annual rainfall average of twenty-eight inches. The majority of the rain falls between October and April. The Orange River rises in northeastern Lesotho.
Most of Lesotho's roads are located in the western plains. People travel along trails on horseback in the mountain areas. The Basotho pony has been bred specifically for mountain transportation. It is famous for it's surefootedness. Traffic in Lesotho moves on the left side of the road. Most roads are not paved.
Economically, Lesotho is not doing very well. The country is very poor and depends heavily on jobs in South Africa because there are not enough jobs in Lesotho. At any given time about half of Lesotho's men are working in the mines, factories, farms, and households of South Africa. Generally the contracts of men from Lesotho working in South Africa last from several months to two years. Because the South African government wants to invest in interesting projects, they passed a law that 60% of migrant workers' wages are to be held in South African banks. The worker's family may take out half, but the rest stays in the bank until the worker leaves South Africa.
Lesotho has only a few manufacturing industries. Some of these are clothing, textiles, and furniture. Lesotho also processes a few agricultural products. The most important economic activity in Lesotho is raising cattle, sheep, and goats. Although Lesotho has some diamond deposits, mining was discontinued in the 1980's due to a worldwide diamond price slump. Besides the mines, Lesotho's only natural resource is water. Farmers grow asparagus, beans, peas, corn, sorghum, and wheat. The best farming land is in the western plains, where most of the people live. Unfortunately, the soil has been damaged by too much cultivation and too much grazing.
Lesotho has a good share of environmental problems. Though the damaged soil is the most serious of them, environmentalists are also worried about the large man-made lakes that will soon be created. The lakes will be created by a huge hydroelectric power plant which will be called the Highlands Water Scheme. The plant will allow Lesotho to sell electricity to South Africa. It is a thirty-year project that started in 1986. Six dams and some roads will be constructed.
Maseru is Lesotho's capital and largest city. Lesotho's government is a constitutional monarchy. Although a king is the head of state, he has no official power. The prime minister and cabinet carry out the operations of the government. Cabinet members are appointed by the prime minister, who is the leader of the party with the majority of seats in the National Assembly. The parliament is made up of the Senate and the National Assembly. The sixty-five members of the Assembly are elected by the people. Local chiefs and ten others chosen by the prime minister make up the twenty-two members of the Senate. For purposes of local government, Lesotho is divided into ten administrative districts. Each district is headed by a district secretary. Citizens may vote at the age of twenty-one.
Most of the people of Lesotho are black Africans called the Basotho, also spelled Basuto. Many raise food crops and livestock. A family's wealth is measured by the number of cattle they own. Fewer than 250 people live in most Basotho villages. Traditional huts have mud or sod walls, with a thatched roof. Designs are often painted onto walls and doors. The wealthy live in stone houses, with roofs of tin or tile. Huts are built by family groups around a cattle kraal, or pen, with open space separating each hut. The land is owned in common by all the people, and local chiefs assign it to people. Each village has a khotla, or meeting place, where the men discuss village business. Crops are raised on the land surrounding the villages.
Women do most of the heavy work, such as hoeing and weeding, harvesting crops, and building houses. Men plow the land and watch the livestock. Boys herd the livestock from the age of five or six. In the western plains they return home every night, but in the eastern highland areas they often spend months away from home, moving around with the cattle.
In the 1800's the Basotho wore animal skin clothing, but now they mostly wear western clothes with blankets for warmth. Corn, sorghum, and vegetables are the main foods of the people. Cold cereals are becoming popular for breakfast. The women brew sorghum beer. Greetings are always a bit formal in Lesotho, and it is impolite to point with the index finger. Independence Day is celebrated on October 4th. Ancestor worship is the traditional religion of the people, but now over 80% are Christians.
Most schools are run by missionaries. Of the children, 75% go to elementary school. Of these students, 2/3 are girls. Fewer boys go to school because they have to herd livestock. 65% of the adults can read and write. The literacy rate, at 71%. is one of the highest in Africa. The National University of Lesotho is in Roma.
English and Sesotho are both official languages in Lesotho. Almost everyone speaks Sesotho, a Bantu language. English is used in business, and in schools after the fifth standard, or grade. As a result most everyone speaks English. People who have contact with South Africa may speak other languages.
It is a common misconception that Lesotho is one of the bantustans, or homelands, created by the South African government. However, Lesotho appears on maps, while homelands don't. Lesotho is a country with a history that goes back to before South Africa even became a country.
Lesotho's history has been turbulent. It began with ethnic wars in southern Africa in the late 1700's and early 1800's. Some ethnic groups were almost entirely killed. Their homes destroyed, some people fled to the highlands of what is now Lesotho. An African chief named Moshoeshoe built a stronghold to give them protection. The stronghold was located on a hill called Thaba Bosiu, or Mountain of Night. By 1824, he had about 21000 followers, who were soon united into the Basotho nation.
From 1856 to 1868, the Basotho were at war with the Boer settlers. Moshoeshoe lost a lot of territory, and in 1868 applied to the British for protection. The land the Basotho occupied became the protectorate of Basutoland. Moshoeshoe and his people were British subjects until after Moshoeshoe's death in 1870. In 1871, the territory was put under the rule of the British Cape Colony, which was located on land that is now part of South Africa. Attempts by the Cape Colony to disarm the Basotho failed, and in 1884 Basutoland again became a British protectorate. This was good for Basutoland because the British protected them from being absorbed by neighboring colonies with white rule. White people were also not allowed to acquire land in Basutoland.
When South Africa formed in 1909, Basutoland remained under British rule. Although South Africa wanted and expected to annex Basutoland, they were never successful. The Basutoland Council had come into existence in 1903 on an informal basis. In 1910 the Council, consisting of chiefs and elected members, was formally established.
Eventually forty-two out of the 201 Council members were elected. What followed was a series of developments that set up government and moved Basutoland toward independence The Council remained the national legislative council until 1966, when Basutoland became independent.
A new constitution was written in 1959, and soon a general election was held under this constitution. The Basutoland National Party (BNP) won the majority of the National Assembly seats. The BNP leader became prime minister, and the great-grandson of Moshoeshoe became king. In 1966 the protectorate of Basutoland became the independent kingdom of Lesotho.
When the next general election occurred, it was soon seen that the BNP would not keep their majority of seats in the Assembly. Chief Jonathan, the prime minister, then suspended the constitution and elections so that he could continue to rule Lesotho as prime minister. In 1986, Chief Jonathan was overthrown by military leaders who took control of the government. The head of the military government was Major General Justin Lekhanya. King Moshoeshoe II was stripped of his powers and exiled in 1990. The government installed his son as King Letsie III. The son was expected to be a puppet leader. In 1991, General Elias P. Ramaema became the head of the government when rival military leaders forced Lekhanya to leave office.
Lesotho returned to civilian government in 1993. The Basotho Congress Party (BCP) won all seats in the National Assembly. Ntsu Mokhehle became prime minister. In 1995 King Moshoeshoe II was reinstated as king. He died in a car accident in 1996. At this point King Letsie returned to the throne under a pledge not to interfere in any way with politics. The prime minister split with the BCP and created a new ruling party in 1997. His new party is called the Lesotho Congress for Democracy Party. The BCP and opposition parties were united in their dislike of the split.
Lesotho is a tough country that has resisted being absorbed by other countries.
The people come from many tribes, but are now united as one people.
An interesting thing about Lesotho is that, unlike other African countries, it
has actually benefitted from European intervention.
While other countries have had their governments ruined by Europeans, it
was England that helped Lesotho to set up its current government.
Lesotho is a country with a rich culture that is steadily making internal improvements.
United Nations Lesotho Information Page
This page has information on what the UN is doing to help Lesotho.
This page has information on Lesotho, and you can also search for information
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