0
Lesotho · data for latest available · data as of 26 October 2026 · printed 27 Oct 2026
NationsTree / Countries / Lesotho
2025
Flag of Lesotho

Lesotho

Sub-Saharan Africa Capital Maseru Lower middle income Nation age 60 years (since 1966) i LSO · LS
NationsTree Index 2025 i24.0179th of 196 Tree height 2025 i1.4 msee ranking Military strength i7percentile
Population i2.4 m144th of 217 Area i30,360 km²138th of 216 GDP i$2.57 bn184th of 210 GDP (PPP) i$7.53 bn intl.164th of 199 GDP per person (PPP) i$3,184 intl.184th of 199 Life expectancy i57.8 years213th of 217
Index pillars
Foundations · roots i23
Strength · trunk i20
Quality of life · crown i14
Problems (higher = fewer) · dry branches i32
Direction (5-year change) · new shoots i44
CSV

In short

Lesotho is 179th of 196 countries in the NationsTree Index, with a score of 24.0 out of 100; its tree is 1.4 m tall.

It has 2.4 million people and an economy of $7.53 bn at purchasing power parity, 164th of 199 in the world.

Its strongest positions: Central government debt (1st of 55), Government budget balance (6th of 192) and CO₂ emissions per person (38th of 203).

Its weakest positions: Life expectancy (213th of 217), High-tech exports (162nd of 168) and Unemployment (174th of 187).

Over five years it climbed from 183rd to 179th in the index.

All data

Data as of 26 October 2026

Latest available value for each indicator, with its year. World rank is among countries with recent data (last 5 years of the series).

Land & people

41
Surface area ikm² 30,360 138th/216
Land area ikm² 30,360 137th/216
Population ipeople 2.4 m 144th/217
Population growth i% 1.10% 96th/217
Population density ipeople/km² 77.0 129th/216
Urban population i% 44.7% 162nd/217
Population aged 0–14 i% 34.1% 54th/217
Population aged 65+ i% 3.9% 169th/217

Economy

33
GDP iUSD $2.57 bn 184th/210
GDP (PPP) iintl. USD $7.53 bn 164th/199
Real GDP (PPP, constant 2021 prices) iintl. USD 2021 $6.43 bn 164th/199
GDP per person iUSD $1,089 195th/210
GDP per person (PPP) iintl. USD $3,184 184th/199
GNI per person (Atlas) iUSD $1,280 178th/201
GDP growth i% 2.0% 146th/210
Inflation i% 4.3% 130th/180
Unemployment i% 16.3% 174th/187
Central government debt i% of GDP 3.0% 1st/55
General government gross debt i% of GDP 49.4% 83rd/189
Government budget balance i% of GDP 4.9% 6th/192

Main industries

53
Agriculture, forestry, fishing i% of GDP 6.5% 96th/197
Industry incl. construction i% of GDP 25.2% 85th/200
Manufacturing i% of GDP 12.1% 78th/192
Services i% of GDP 55.6% 115th/200

Trade

47
Exports of goods & services iUSD $1.27 bn 158th/182
Imports of goods & services iUSD $2.69 bn 153rd/182
Exports i% of GDP 49.5% 53rd/183
Imports i% of GDP 104.5% 6th/183
Trade openness i% of GDP 154.0% 19th/183
Fuel exports i% of merchandise exports 0.0% 146th/170
Manufactures exports i% of merchandise exports 70.1% 42nd/171
Food exports i% of merchandise exports 23.3% 62nd/171
Ores & metals exports i% of merchandise exports 1.5% 120th/171
High-tech exports i% of manufactured exports 0.1% 162nd/168
Current account balance i% of GDP -1.2% 95th/191
Foreign direct investment, inflows i% of GDP 1.3% 130th/196

Natural resources

61
Natural resource rents i% of GDP 4.3% 78th/209
Oil rents i% of GDP 0.00% 120th/197
Natural gas rents i% of GDP 0.00% 100th/197
Coal rents i% of GDP 0.00% 68th/195
Mineral rents i% of GDP 0.00% 91st/209
Forest rents i% of GDP 4.32% 18th/209
Arable land i% of land area 19.0% 58th/206
Renewable freshwater per person im³ 2,288 98th/183

Tourism

53
International tourist arrivals iarrivals 1.1 m 91st/194
Tourism receipts iUSD $23.1 m1999
Tourism receipts i% of exports 10.1%1999

Society & health

30
Life expectancy iyears 57.8 213th/217
Under-5 mortality iper 1,000 births 60.0 176th/196
Physicians iper 1,000 people 0.24 141st/174
Hospital beds iper 1,000 people 1.32006
DPT immunization i% of children 12–23 months 86% 125th/193
Completed lower secondary, 25+ i% of adults 37.2% 122nd/153
Secondary enrolment i% gross 59.4%2017
Social protection coverage (incl. pensions) i% of population 74.8%2017
Old-age dependency ratio i% of working-age population 6.3% 172nd/217
Health spending i% of GDP 12.6% 8th/193
Adult literacy i% 90.4% 51st/98
Tertiary enrolment i% gross 9.9%2018
Human Development Index iindex 0–1 0.550 167th/193
Income inequality (Gini) iindex 44.92017
Extreme poverty i% of population 41.9%2017

Infrastructure & digital

17
Access to electricity i% of population 60.6% 187th/215
Safely managed drinking water i% of population 31.3% 126th/150
Safely managed sanitation i% of population 43.8% 92nd/144
Internet users i% of population 51.8% 147th/186
Mobile subscriptions iper 100 people 70 179th/210
Fixed broadband iper 100 people 0.4 182nd/208
Trade & transport infrastructure quality (LPI) iscore 1–5 1.96 152nd/164
Air passengers carried ipassengers 1,3001999

Environment & energy

47
CO₂ emissions per person it CO₂e 0.43 38th/203
Renewable energy i% of final energy use 34.9% 69th/212
Air pollution (PM2.5) iµg/m³ 26.4 143rd/200
Forest area i% of land area 1.1% 196th/214
Energy use per person ikg oil eq. 102007

Institutions & safety

40
Government effectiveness iscore 0–100 39.2 155th/205
Control of corruption iscore 0–100 42.5 111th/207
Rule of law iscore 0–100 51.0 131st/207
Political stability iscore 0–100 65.4 118th/207
Regulatory quality iscore 0–100 47.1 135th/205
Voice & accountability iscore 0–100 59.6 96th/205
Homicide rate iper 100,000 38.22008

Military

19
Military expenditure iUSD $39.9 m 145th/156
Military expenditure i% of GDP 1.6% 81st/156
Military expenditure i% of government spending 2.7% 126th/154
Armed forces personnel ipeople 2,000 154th/170
Armed forces personnel i% of labour force 0.24% 149th/168
Arms imports (SIPRI TIV) iTIV 1.0 m2019

Science & innovation

17
R&D spending i% of GDP 0.09% 99th/110
Patent applications by residents iapplications 12019
Scientific articles iarticles 60 149th/197

Compare Lesotho with

Cabo VerdeCentral African RepublicGambiaGuinea-BissauLiberia

Sources

Figures on this page come from: World Bank — World Development Indicators, International Monetary Fund — World Economic Outlook (DataMapper), Global Change Data Lab (Our World in Data) — Our World in Data, World Bank — Worldwide Governance Indicators . Nation age: Wikidata P571 (inception) (source). Every value is stored with its year and source series; see Sources & licences and Methodology.

Cite as: NationsTree (2026). Lesotho — country profile. https://nationstree.org/countries/lesotho. Data as of 26 October 2026.

All figures come from official statistics published by public institutions (World Bank WDI and WGI, compiling UN agencies, IMF, WHO and national statistical offices). Each value carries its year; ranks are positions among countries with data.
Cite as: NationsTree (2026). Lesotho — country profile. https://nationstree.org/countries/lesotho. Data as of 26 October 2026.
Comparison0 / 5
Compare