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Lesotho

Updated: July 2026

Key Insights
The resources applied by the Basotho government to gather, compile, and publish national accounts data are inadequate to ensure fully independent, high-frequency, and comprehensive macroeconomic statistics, though moderately stronger than some lower-income peers.

The national statistical agency, the Bureau of Statistics (BOS), operates under several operational, financial, and structural constraints:
  • Geographical and Infrastructure Constraints: Lesotho's rugged, mountainous terrain (Maloti) presents significant logistical hurdles for field data collection. Physical access to remote highland communities is difficult and expensive, frequently leading to localized survey gaps and delays.
  • Informal Sector and Agricultural Reliance: A substantial portion of the population relies on subsistence farming, informal livestock grazing, and unrecorded micro-enterprises. Capturing these non-monetised and informal economic flows requires frequent, labour-intensive household and agricultural surveys that state budgets struggle to fund regularly.
  • Deep Integration with South Africa: Lesotho's economy is closely tied to South Africa through the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the Common Monetary Area (CMA). Trade flows, SACU revenue share dependencies, and worker remittances introduce complex foreign-data dependencies and cross-border accounting challenges.
  • Fiscal Shortfalls and Administrative Capacity: The BOS faces persistent budgetary limitations, hindering its ability to maintain up-to-date business registers, adopt modern digital collection systems, and retain specialised technical statisticians against competition from regional private and international employers.
  • Dependence on Foreign Technical Assistance: Benchmark national accounts exercises-such as periodic GDP rebasings, living standards measurement surveys, and census operations-depend heavily on foreign financial and technical backing from international partners, including the World Bank and the United Nations.
QUICK LINKS
Economics:   
GDP DATA QUALITY   /   GDP SIZE   /   GDP GROWTH   /   WEALTH   /   INEQUALITY   /   DEBT
Demographics:   
DATA QUALITY    /    POPULATION PROFILE

E.S.G.:   
ENVIRONMENTAL    /    SOCIAL    /    GOVERNANCE

 
ECONOMICS
DEMOGRAPHICS
E.S.G.
Economics sections:    GDP DATA QUALITY   /   GDP SIZE   /   GDP GROWTH   /   WEALTH   /   INEQUALITY   /   DEBT

 
GDP DATA QUALITY

Data Quality Ratings are derived from scores in five areas: Base year recency; System of National Accounts framework version; Informal economy size; Statistical resources available; and likelihood of Government interference. Scores are based on a 0-100 scale. Read more...


GDP Data Quality Ratings
Index: 0 = Extremely poor quality, 100 = Good as it gets
Ranked by Data Quality Index
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Country
 Rank
Order		 World Economics
Data Quality
(Index, 0-100)		 World Economics
Data Quality
(Rating, A-E)		 Base
Year
Chained/Year		 SNA
Framework
Version		 Informal
Economy
% of GDP		 Statistical
Resources
Index (0-100)		 Governance
Levels
Index (0-100)





Malawi 95 66.9 C 2017 2008 34.0 48.9 51.9
Kuwait 96 66.6 C 2010 2008 15.4 57.3 39.0
Azerbaijan 97 66.2 C Chained 2008 42.0 64.2 18.3
Cote d'Ivoire 98 65.9 C 2015 2008 35.3 57.0 46.8
Panama 99 65.8 C Chained 1993 40.0 74.4 53.7
Bangladesh 100 65.6 C 2016 2008 28.3 61.5 28.6
Kenya 101 65.4 C 2016 2008 35.4 57.3 40.8
Suriname 102 65.4 C 2015 2008 33.8 36.9 60.7
Lesotho 103 64.4 C 2012 2008 32.0 53.1 49.3
Kazakhstan 104 64.2 C Chained 1993 32.8 81.4 28.1
Paraguay 105 64.2 C 2014 2008 41.8 68.3 41.5
Togo 106 64.2 C 2016 2008 31.8 52.2 34.9
Uganda 107 64.0 C 2016 2008 33.1 59.3 29.0
Bosnia and Herzegovina 108 62.6 C Chained 1993 30.7 56.3 40.8
Tanzania 109 62.5 C 2017 2008 45.0 61.8 33.5
El Salvador 110 62.3 C 2014 2008 33.8 54.3 34.0
Cameroon 111 62.1 C 2016 2008 31.7 53.3 22.9

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Data Notes
Data Quality Index numbers shown on a scale of 0-100.
         0 = Poor, 100 = Excellent.

Rating definitions:
         A: As good as it gets
         B: Good
         C: Use with caution
         D: Poor
         E: Extremely poor quality

The index calculations and displayed data are derived from the most current and up-to-date source data available.
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GDP SIZE

GDP Size data is shown in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for the size of the informal economy and adjustments for out-of-date GDP base year data. Read more...


Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
Ranked by GDP: 2025
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Country Rank
Order		 World Economics
Data Quality
(Rating, A-E)		 2025
Estimate
Billions, PPP Int$		 2030
Estimate
Billions, PPP Int$		 Share of
Global GDP
%, 2025




Burundi 145 E $25 $29 0.0%
Eswatini 146 D $23 $27 0.0%
Bhutan 147 E $21 $27 0.0%
Bahamas, The 148 C $19 $27 0.0%
Suriname 149 C $18 $18 0.0%
Liberia 150 E $16 $20 0.0%
Gambia 151 C $15 $20 0.0%
Central African Republic 152 E $12 $13 0.0%
Lesotho 153 C $10 $11 0.0%
Guinea-Bissau 154 E $10 $13 0.0%
Cabo Verde 155 C $7 $10 0.0%
Comoros 156 C $4 $5 0.0%

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Data Notes
Data Quality Index numbers shown on a scale of 0-100.
         0 = Poor, 100 = Excellent.

Grade definitions:
         A: As good as it gets
         B: Good
         C: Use with caution
         D: Poor
         E: Extremely poor quality


GDP in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for the size of the informal economy and adjustments for out-of-date GDP base year data.

Share of Global GDP expressed as a percentage of the sum of GDP for all countries in the World Economics database.

Projections for 2030 are made by applying IMF growth rates for 2025 and 2026, with the 5-Year Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) applied thereafter to extrapolate the data to 2030.
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GDP GROWTH

Compound Annual Growth Rates (CAGR) are derived from GDP Data in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for the size of the informal economy and adjustments for out-of-date GDP base year data.


Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) over the last 10-years
Ranked by CAGR: 10-Year
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Country Rank
Order		 World Economics
Data Quality
(Rating, A-E)		 CAGR
10 Year
2015-2025		 CAGR
5 Year
2020-2025		 CAGR
3 Year
2022-2025		 Share of
Global Growth
Percentage




Brunei 139 C 0.8% 0.9% 2.6% 0.0%
Myanmar 140 E 0.8% -1.5% 0.4% 0.1%
Argentina 141 C 0.7% 3.5% 0.6% 0.2%
Germany 142 A 0.7% 0.9% -0.4% 0.7%
South Africa 143 C 0.7% 1.9% 0.9% 0.2%
Japan 144 A 0.5% 1.3% 0.9% 0.5%
Kuwait 145 C 0.5% 1.4% -0.3% 0.0%
Sri Lanka 146 C 0.5% -0.6% 0.1% 0.0%
Lesotho 147 C 0.0% 2.3% 2.3% 0.0%
Yemen, Rep. 148 E -0.1% 0.1% -0.5% 0.0%
Suriname 149 C -0.7% 1.4% 2.4% 0.0%
Haiti 150 E -0.8% -1.7% -1.7% 0.0%
Congo, Rep. 151 E -1.2% 2.1% 2.7% 0.0%
Ukraine 152 C -1.2% -3.9% 3.6% -0.2%
Afghanistan 153 E -1.3% -3.9% 3.3% 0.0%
Trinidad and Tobago 154 C -1.6% 1.3% 2.1% 0.0%
Lebanon 155 C -4.4% -2.9% -2.2% -0.1%

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Data Notes
Data Quality Index numbers shown on a scale of 0-100.
         0 = Poor, 100 = Excellent.

Grade definitions:
         A: As good as it gets
         B: Good
         C: Use with caution
         D: Poor
         E: Extremely poor quality


GDP in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for the size of the informal economy and adjustments for out-of-date GDP base year data.

Share of Global GDP Growth expressed as a percentage of the sum of GDP for all countries in the World Economics database.
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WEALTH

Wealth is notoriously difficult to measure. The table below shows two measures: Income per Capita (proxied by GDP per capita) and Asset Wealth per Capita (proxied by data derived from the Credit Suisse Wealth Report). Population data is sourced from the United Nations Population Prospects database.


Income and Asset Wealth Per Capita
Indexes: 0 = Extremely poor, 100 = Good as it gets.
Data ranked by Income per Capita
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Country Income
per Capita
(2025, Int$)		 Asset Wealth
per Capita
(2024, Int$)




Comoros $5.0K $2.3K
Ethiopia $4.9K $2.4K
Mali $4.7K $1.1K
Togo $4.7K $0.8K
Uganda $4.7K $1.2K
Guinea-Bissau $4.6K $0.9K
Burkina Faso $4.5K $0.7K
Haiti $4.4K $0.3K
Lesotho $4.4K $0.9K
Sudan $4.1K $0.5K
Chad $4.0K $0.5K
Afghanistan $3.8K $1.0K
Congo, Dem. Rep $3.2K $0.7K
Niger $3.2K $0.6K
Madagascar $3.1K $1.1K
Liberia $2.8K $3.0K
Malawi $2.5K $1.1K

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Data Notes
Income Wealth uses GDP per capita derived from World Economics GDP data for 2025 measured in PPP Int$ terms, with added estimates for the Informal economy and adjustments for Base Year age.

Asset Wealth uses the Credit Suisse Mean Net Wealth per country data converted into per capita terms using population data from the United Nations Population Prospects database.
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INEQUALITY

The Inequality Index shown below is derived from the Gini Inequality Coefficient. Gini Country data varies considerably by date. These variations are recorded in the World Economics database.

The World Economics Inequality Index ranks each country onto a scale of 0-100, a high value indicates a more egalitarian society - and a low value suggests a lot of the national income is in the hands of very few depending upon the unit of measurement. Read more...


Inequality Rankings
Index: 0-100, 0 = High Inequality; 100 = High Equality
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Country Rank
Order		 World Economics
Inequality Index
(0-100)		 World Economics
Inequality Rating
(A-E)		 Gini
Coefficient
(%)		 Gini
Data
(Year)




Kenya 112 41.3 D 48.7 2019
Congo, Dem. Rep 113 41.0 D 48.8 2019
Turkmenistan 114 40.9 D 48.9 2019
Ghana 115 40.8 D 48.9 2019
Sri Lanka 116 40.7 D 49.0 2019
Cabo Verde 117 40.4 D 49.1 2019
Niger 118 40.2 D 49.2 2019
Morocco 119 39.6 D 49.4 2019
Lesotho 120 39.4 D 49.5 2019
Comoros 121 37.7 D 50.3 2019
Madagascar 122 36.6 D 50.8 2019
Panama 123 36.2 D 50.9 2021
Honduras 124 35.2 D 51.4 2019
Tanzania 125 35.2 D 51.4 2019
Colombia 126 34.9 D 51.5 2021
Cameroon 127 33.6 D 52.1 2019
Togo 128 33.4 D 52.1 2019

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Data Notes
The Index is on a scale of 0-100, a high value indicates a more egalitarian society - and a low value suggests a lot of the national income is in the hands of very few depending upon the unit of measurement.

Rating definitions:
         A: Very good
         B: Good
         C: Average
         D: Poor
         E: Very poor


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DEBT

The debt-to-GDP ratio is the ratio between a country's offical government debt and its gross domestic product (GDP), the later measured in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for out-of-date adjustments for out-of-date GDP base years and the size of informal economic activity.


Debt-to-GDP Ratio
Ranked by debt as a percentage of GDP
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Country Rank
Order		 Debt
% of GDP		 Debt
Billions, Int$



Mongolia 87 37.8% $31.60
Chile 88 36.9% $266.98
Ghana 89 34.2% $141.99
Uganda 90 34.2% $81.91
Liberia 91 34.1% $5.44
Cote d'Ivoire 92 34.0% $124.14
Switzerland 93 34.0% $271.00
Benin 94 33.3% $29.83
Lesotho 95 33.2% $3.42
Papua New Guinea 96 33.2% $23.53
Angola 97 32.8% $219.38
Nepal 98 32.5% $78.38
Sweden 99 32.2% $242.27
Qatar 100 31.5% $125.23
Burkina Faso 101 30.6% $32.76
Mali 102 30.2% $35.72
Serbia 103 30.2% $81.50

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Data Notes
GDP is presented it in Purchasing Power Parity terms with added estimates for the size of the informal economy and adjustments for out-of-date GDP base year data.

Debt-to-GDP ratio expressed in percentage terms.
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