Side by side
Lesotho and South Africa compared
Two sourced records set beside each other — the figures each nation publishes, and the events each chronicle records of the other. Compared, never graded.
31 May 1910 — Four colonies join to create the Union of South Africa
- Shared indicators
- 43
- Domains
- 9
- Crossed events
- 4
- Data through
- 2026-08-10
The figures, side by side
Each figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two dossiers. Every value shows the year it was observed — vintages differ by indicator and nation. A “—” is an absence in the source data, never a zero. Metric names link to the world ranking; values open the figure on its own dossier.
Economy
Society
Governance
Health
Education
Technology
Geography
Resources
Entangled histories
4 events in which either nation’s sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle; nothing here was written for this page.
- 20th century
Migrant labour to South Africa
With little arable land, large numbers of Basotho men become migrant workers on South African farms and gold mines, and remittances become central to the economy.
Economy & Trade · from the Lesotho chronicle · High Commission Territory to Independence · Migration, Remittances and 'Development' in Lesotho, History of Lesotho
- 1910
Kept out of the Union of South Africa
On the formation of the Union, Basutoland is excluded as a British High Commission Territory rather than incorporated into South Africa.
Colonisation · from the Lesotho chronicle · High Commission Territory to Independence · Southern Africa, 1899–1945, History of Lesotho
- January 1986
Military coup and the water treaty
A military coup overthrows Jonathan; in the same year the new government signs the treaty launching the Lesotho Highlands Water Project with South Africa.
Politics & Power · from the Lesotho chronicle · The Kingdom in the Sky · History of Lesotho, The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is 40 years old and going strong
- 1998–2002
Katse and Mohale dams completed
The Katse Dam (Phase 1A) and then the Mohale Dam are completed, sending Lesotho's mountain water to South Africa's Vaal system in exchange for royalties.
Economy & Trade · from the Lesotho chronicle · The Kingdom in the Sky · The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is 40 years old and going strong, Lesotho, Lesotho Highlands Water Project II — environmental and social assessment