Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho, formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. As an enclave of South Africa, with which it shares a 1,106 km (687 mi) border, it is the largest sovereign enclave in the world, and the only one outside of the Italian Peninsula. It is situated in the Maloti Mountains and contains the highest peak in Southern Africa. It has an area of over 30,000 km2 (11,600 sq mi) and has a population of about two million. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. The country is also known by the nickname The Mountain Kingdom.
The history of people living in the area now known as Lesotho goes back as many as 400 years. Present Lesotho emerged as a single polity under King Moshoeshoe I in 1822. Under Moshoeshoe I, Basotho joined other clans in their struggle against the Lifaqane associated with famine and the reign of Shaka Zulu from 1818 to 1828.
Politics of Lesotho takes place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister of Lesotho is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of Parliament, the Senate and the National Assembly. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
Bethuel Pakalitha Mosisili is a former Mosotho politician who was the fourth prime minister of Lesotho from May 1998 to June 2012 and again from March 2015 to June 2017. He led the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) to a near-total victory in the 1998 election, and under his leadership the party also won majorities in the 2002 and 2007 elections. While serving as Prime Minister, Mosisili was also Minister of Defence.
The Sotho, also known as the Basotho, are a Sotho-Tswana ethnic group native to Southern Africa. They primarily inhabit the regions of Lesotho and South Africa.
Joseph Leabua Jonathan was the first prime minister of Lesotho. He succeeded Chief Sekhonyana Nehemia Maseribane following a by-election and held that post from 1965 to 1986.
Thomas Motsoahae Thabane is a Mosotho politician who was the fifth Prime Minister of Lesotho from 2012 to 2015 and from 2017 to 2020. He founded the All Basotho Convention (ABC) in 2006 and led the party until 2022.
Khauhelo Deborah Raditapole was a member of the Pan-African Parliament from Lesotho. Raditapole was born in Maseru on 7 August 1938. She had her earlier education in Lesotho, but obtained her Pharmacy degree from Lvov Medical School at Ukraine and completed her higher studies in the US. She worked in a teaching hospital in Tanzania for 10 years as she was denied entry to Lesotho. She returned to Lesotho in 1987 at the invitation of the then Principal Secretary for Health Tom Thabane.
Ntsu Mokhehle was a Lesotho politician. He founded Basutoland African Congress (BAC) in 1952. He founded Basutoland Congress Party in 1957 then later in 1997 founded Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD). He served as the third prime minister of Lesotho from 2 April 1993 to 17 August 1994 and from 14 September 1994 to 29 May 1998.
The All Basotho Convention is a political party in Lesotho. The party was formed in October 2006 and founded by Tom Thabane, a former minister in the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) led by the government of Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili. Nkaku Kabi has led the party since February 2022.
General elections were held in Lesotho on 28 February 2015 for all 120 seats of the National Assembly, the lower house of the Parliament of Lesotho, more than two years ahead of schedule due to the 2014 political crisis. Following mediation facilitated by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), King Letsie III on the advice of the incumbent Prime Minister Tom Thabane, dissolved the Eighth Parliament and called a snap election.
Mothetjoa Metsing is a former Deputy Prime Minister of Lesotho. He is a member and current leader of the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD). He served in the government of Prime Minister Tom Thabane between 2012 and 2015. In 2014, he was involved in controversy over an alleged coup attempt against the prime minister that was eventually resolved over calls for an early election.
The Alliance of Democrats is a political party in Lesotho.
The Movement for Economic Change is a political party in Lesotho.
Selibe Mochoboroane is a Mosotho politician and the current Minister of Health due October 2022 in the government led by Sam Matekane. He is the youngest party leader of the newly founded Movement for Economic Change (MEC), which was announced on 1 February 2017. He formed this political party after he was suspended from the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) which is led by former deputy prime minister Mothejoa Metsing.
Mathibeli Edwin Mokhothu is a Mosotho educator and politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Lesotho, as well as the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, from 2020 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Congress, he is the party's leader and previous deputy leader. He was formerly the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly before the party formed part of a coalition with the All Basotho Convention in May 2020. From 2015 to 2017, he served as the Minister of Gender, Youth, Sports and Recreation. Mokhothu is the MP for the Qhoali No. 68 constituency.
General elections were held in Lesotho on 7 October 2022 to elect all 120 members of the National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament.
Ntsokoane Samuel Matekane is a Mosotho businessman and politician who is the current Prime Minister of Lesotho. Prior to running, he was considered to be the richest person in the country. Matekane made his fortune in diamond mining, as well as through government issued construction contracts. He founded his company, Matekane Group of Companies (MGC) in 1986.
The Cabinet of Sam Matekane is the incumbent coalition government of the Kingdom of Lesotho. It was established on 4 November 2022 following the swearing-in of Prime Minister Sam Matekane on 28 October 2022. It is the fifth coalition government in Lesotho history.
Limpho Justice Tau is a Mosotho politician who has been the Minister in the Prime Minister's Office in Sam Matekane's Cabinet since November 2022. A member of the Revolution for Prosperity party, Tau serves in the Senate. Tau had previously led the Democratic Party, and was the party's sole member in the National Assembly from 2017 until his defection to the RFP in March 2022.
