Lesotho
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Lesotho
conventional short form: Lesotho local long form: Kingdom of Lesotho local short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
| Gevernment type | parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
| Capital |
name: Maseru
geographic coordinates: 29 28 S, 27 30 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Flag description | three horizontal stripes of blue (top), white, and green in the proportions of 3:4:3; the colors represent rain, peace, and prosperity respectively; centered in the white stripe is a black Basotho hat representing the indigenous people; the flag was unfurled in October 2006 to celebrate 40 years of independence |
| Currency | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) |
| Internet country code | .ls |
| Ports and terminals | Kheyrabad, Shir Khan |
| Agriculture products | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
| Industries | food, beverages, textiles, apparel assembly, handicrafts, construction, tourism |
| Geography |
| Location | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
| Coordinates | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
| Continent | Africa |
| Area |
total: 30,355 sq km
land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Boundaries |
total: 909 km
border countries: South Africa 909 km |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Climate | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
| Terrain | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
| Natural resources | water, agricultural and grazing land, diamonds, sand, clay, building stone |
| Natural hazards | periodic droughts |
| People |
| Population | 2,022,331
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 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
| Religions | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
| Languages | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
