Lesotho
By: Sarah Leach
Geographic Information
Area: 11,720 miles squared.
Climate: Continental Climate, with hot summers and cool winters.
Arable Land: 8.2 (2013)
Capital City: Maseru
3 largest cities: Mafeteng, Hlotse, and Masqutsoe.
Demographic Information
Population Density: 66.17 (2010)
Growth Rate: 3.2 (2014)
% Urbanized: 26.8 (2014)
Life Expectancy with World Rank: 50
AIDS Rate with World Rank: 3
Literacy Rate: 95% woman, 83% men
Languages: Sotho (Sesotho or Southern Sotho), a southern Bantu is a national language.
Ethnicity Pie Graph below:
Cultural Information
Customs and Traditions: Moshoeshoes' Day and Independence Day. Storytellers, dancers, and musicians. Join with audience chanting, clapping and singing to retell ancient folktales. Handmade instruments - whistle, drums, rattle, and stringed instruments.
Food: African traditions and British influence. Potato, Seafood, rice, and corn-based including mealie papia maize porridge.
Family Makeup: Any member of extended family. Often second or third cousins become "brother" and "sisters". Grandmother becomes mothers. By tribal customs, widows become the wife of the brother or another male member of her deceased husband's family.
Clothing: Woman wore warm blanket-long dresses, skirts in bold colours and patterns. The younger woman wore jeans and t-shirts. Men dress in jeans and long sleeved shirt. Big rubber boots and they also wore hats.
Housing: A hut. The roof of strong grass that lasts 20 to 30 years it keeps the inside cold. Traps heat during winter without a drop of water.
Recreation: Aerobics, Athletic, Baseball, Boxing, Chess, Cricket, Cycling, Dance, Darts, Golf, Gymnastics, Handball, Lawn Tennis, Taekwondo, Volleyball, Weightlifting, Netball, Snooker & Pool, Soccer, Squash, Table Tennis, Off-road committee. National Anthem, Traditional instruments, Church music, Popular music, Music Festival.
Religion: Evangelicals 26 percent, Anglican and other Christan groups 19 percent.
Political Information
Freedom House Political Rights Score: 67
Civil Rights Score: 3
Press Freedom: Partly Free
Corruption Perception Index with World Rank: 61/168
Domestic/Political Conflicts: Leaders are doing crazy things. Initial flight prime minister and eventual return under Southern African police protection. Change government could not be tolerated. Coup- a sudden, violent, illegal seize power from the government.
Economic Information
Labour: 86 percent (2002). Industry and Services combined: 14 percent (2002)
Unemployment: 25.3 percent
% Below Poverty Line: 57.1 percent (2002)
Happy Planet Index with World Rank: It's unable to calculate HPI score for Lesotho.