Lesotho

Africa
Lesotho world map

Trade in Lesotho

Lesotho was the world’s 135th largest exporter of goods and 147th largest exporter of commercial services in 2021. Export values were $1,061 and $17 million USD respectively. Lesotho’s top export category was manufactures, followed by agricultural products, and fuels and mining products. In 2020, Lesotho’s main export destination markets for goods and services trade were to South Africa, Belgium and the United States, with trade representing 127.61 per cent of GDP. In terms of imports, Lesotho’s import values were $1,844 and $400 million USD respectively in 2021. Lesotho’s top import category was manufactures, followed by agricultural products and fuels and mining products. Leading import partners were South Africa, China and Italy. Lesotho is part of 7 different Regional Trade Agreements, such as Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), EFTA – SACU and EU – SADC.
Regional Trade Agreements Database

General Information

This section includes general information on the economy, legal system, official languages and links to additional demographic information.

Official Name

Kingdom of Lesotho

Abbreviation

LS

Capital

Maseru

WTO Membership Date

31 May 1995

Legal System

mixed legal system of English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal

Language

Sesotho, English

Number of Time Zone(s)

1

Additional Information

Financial Information

This section includes financial information such as the currency, exchange rate lookup and local banks issuing trade finance.

Currency

Lesotho loti

Exchange Rate

 Google Finance Currencies

Contact Information

This section includes contact information for business support organizations and national resources.

Business Support Organizations

  • Lesotho Chamber of Commerce and Industry

    Chamber of commerce

    [email protected]

  • Private Sector Foundation of Lesotho

    Member's associations - (i.e. sector, professional, exporters)

    [email protected]

SPS Enquiry Points

Sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) enquiry points are government agencies designated to answer questions about trade requirements.

  • 1) Phytosanitary or Plant Health - Dr Solomon Motlatsi Molatela
    Senior Research Officer - Plant Protection and Quarantine
    Department of Agricultural Research
    2) Animal health - Dr F. M. Ntiea
    Senior Veterinary Officer (acting Director), Veterinary Public Health
    Department of Livestock Services
    3) Food Safety - Mr Motsamai Mahahabisa
    Food Safety Programme Manager
    Environmental Health Department
    Phone: 1) +(266 22) 312 395, 2) +(266 22) 317 284; 3) +(266 22) 325 608

    1) and 2)
    Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security
    P. O. Box 24, No. 80 Constitution Road
    3) Ministry of Health
    Constitution Road Lesotho

    1) mm[email protected]) [email protected]) [email protected]

TBT Enquiry Points

Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) enquiry points are government agencies designated to answer questions about trade requirements.

  • The Department of Standards and Quality Assurance
    Contact Person: Amohelang Hatase (Mrs).
    Phone: +(266) 22325474; +(266) 22322113

    [email protected]

Additional Information

 ePing alert

Links to other helpful resources

This section includes additional links to trade-related resources.

National Tariff Finder

 https://www.rsl.org.ls/tariff-home

Trade Information Portal

 https://www.lesothotradeportal.org.ls/

Last Reviewed: June, 2023

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