世界各国

Lesotho

Introduction to Lesotho

Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. King MOSHOESHOE was exiled in 1990. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. In 1998, violent protests and a military mutiny following a contentious election prompted a brief but bloody South African military intervention. Constitutional reforms have since restored political stability; peaceful parliamentary elections were held in 2002.

Government

Capital:

Maseru 

Independence:

4 October 1966 (from UK) 

National holiday:

Independence Day, 4 October (1966) 

Economy

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, but the government has 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, also generating royalties for Lesotho. 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 and a rapidly growing apparel-assembly sector. 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. 

GDP:

purchasing power parity - $5.583 billion (2004 est.) 

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 15.3%
industry: 43.3%
services: 41.4% (2004 est.)

Agriculture products:

corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock 

Industries:

food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts; construction; tourism 

Transportation

Highways:

total: 5,940 km
paved: 1,087 km
unpaved: 4,853 km (1999)

Airports:

28 (2003 est.)