Population: 1,801,174 (July 1991), growth rate 2.6% (1991)

Birth rate: 36 births/1,000 population (1991)

Death rate: 10 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

Infant mortality rate: 78 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth: 59 years male, 63 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate: 4.8 children born/woman (1991)

Nationality: noun--Mosotho (sing.), Basotho (pl.); adjective--Basotho

Ethnic divisions: Sotho 99.7%; Europeans 1,600, Asians 800

Religion: Christian 80%, rest indigenous beliefs

Language: Sesotho (southern Sotho) and English (official); also Zulu and Xhosa

Literacy: 59% (male 44%, female 68%) age 15 and over can read and write (1966)

Labor force: 689,000 economically active; 86.2% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 60% of active male labor force works in South Africa

Organized labor: there are two trade union federations; the government favors formation of a single, umbrella trade union confederation

NOTE: The information regarding Lesotho on this page is re-published from the 1991 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Lesotho People 1991 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Lesotho People 1991 should be addressed to the CIA.