# Lesotho and South Africa compared

Lesotho and South Africa side by side: 43 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 4 events their chronicles record of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/lso-vs-zaf
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Lesotho: 1822 — Moshoeshoe I becomes the first king of the Basotho
- South Africa: 31 May 1910 — Four colonies join to create the Union of South Africa

## Economy

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $2.3 B | 2024 | $401 B | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $972 | 2024 | $6,267 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 2.9% | 2024 | 0.5% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 6.1% | 2024 | 4.4% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 141.5% | 2023 | 61.6% | 2024 |

## Society

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 2.3 m | 2024 | 64 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 57.8 yrs | 2024 | 66.3 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 43.7% | 2024 | 63.7% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 2.7 | 2024 | 2.2 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 54.1 | 2024 | 67.5 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 61.5 | 2024 | 55.4 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 38.8 | 2024 | 46.9 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 47.2 | 2024 | 53.9 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 50.0 | 2024 | 57.3 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 41.7 | 2024 | 44.0 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 12.6% | 2023 | 8.9% | 2023 |
| Physicians | 0.23 | 2022 | 0.79 | 2022 |
| Under-5 mortality | 60.0 | 2024 | 35.1 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 90.0% | 2024 | 76.0% | 2024 |
| Safe drinking water | 31.3% | 2024 | 68.0% | 2024 |

## Education

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 90.4% | 2024 | 91.2% | 2024 |
| Education spending | 6.6% | 2024 | 6.0% | 2024 |
| Primary enrolment | 80.2% | 2024 | 101.8% | 2023 |
| Secondary enrolment | 59.4% | 2017 | 104.1% | 2023 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 9.9% | 2018 | 23.5% | 2023 |

## Technology

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&D spending | 0.1% | 2023 | 0.6% | 2022 |
| Researchers (per million) | 32 | 2023 | 444 | 2022 |
| Internet users | 51.8% | 2024 | 78.4% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 70 | 2024 | 179 | 2024 |
| High-tech exports | 0.1% | 2024 | 5.7% | 2024 |

## Geography

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 30,360 km² | 2023 | 1,213,090 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 1.1% | 2023 | 14.0% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 77.8% | 2023 | 79.4% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 0.4 | 2024 | 6.9 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 34.9% | 2022 | 9.7% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 4.3% | 2021 | 7.3% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.4% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 3.8% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 4.3% | 2021 | 0.6% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 57.3% | 2023 | 87.7% | 2023 |
| Iron ore | — | — | 66 Mt | 2025 |
| Gold (mined) | — | — | 90 t | 2025 |
| Phosphate rock | — | — | 2.2 Mt | 2025 |

## Military

| Metric | Lesotho | Observed | South Africa | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 1.6% | 2024 | 0.7% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $36 M | 2024 | $2.8 B | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 2,000 | 2020 | 89,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/LSO.md and https://terralore.co/country/ZAF.md.

## Entangled histories (4 events)

Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources.

- 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. (from the Lesotho chronicle; sources: 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. (from the Lesotho chronicle; sources: 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. (from the Lesotho chronicle; sources: 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. (from the Lesotho chronicle; sources: The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is 40 years old and going strong; Lesotho; Lesotho Highlands Water Project II — environmental and social assessment)

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/LSO/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/ZAF/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Lesotho and South Africa compared", terralore.co/compare/lso-vs-zaf, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.