Overview
Lesotho
Lesotho is a mountain kingdom entirely surrounded by South Africa, one of only three enclaved countries in the world. About 2.4 million people live in its 30,355 km², and Maseru is the capital. No point in the country lies below 1,400 m, more than 80% of the land is above 1,800 m, and Thabana Ntlenyana is the highest peak in southern Africa. The Basotho nation formed under King Moshoeshoe I in the nineteenth century, and the territory came under British protection in 1868 as Basutoland. It gained independence in 1966. Lesotho is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system: King Letsie III is head of state, and Sam Matekane has been prime minister since October 2022. The next general election is due by October 2027. Sesotho and English are the official languages, and Christianity is the predominant religion. Lesotho is a lower-middle-income country. The textile sector is the largest private employer, and diamonds and water transferred to South Africa through the Lesotho Highlands Water Project are other main sources of export earnings. Government revenue relies heavily on transfers from the Southern African Customs Union. Agriculture employs about 31% of the workforce. In 2025, Lesotho’s GDP per capita was approximately US$1,089, and real GDP grew by 2.0%.
Source: World Bank. (2026). World Development Indicators, from https://data.worldbank.org/country/ghana
Institutions
Institutions with at least one Faculty Member Registered with Ivey Publishing
- National University of Lesotho
Source: Ivey Publishing. 39C Accounts by Country. Provided by Adrianna Gleam-Fossaceca, Ivey Publishing, August 11, 2026.
Cases
Ivey-Copyrighted Cases in or involving Lesotho
Ivey Publishing and the 39 Country Initiative welcome case submissions that deepen understanding of Lesotho’s businesses, institutions, industries, and broader economic and social context.
| Case | Authors | Published / Revised | Product Number | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where Have You Been? An Exercise to Assess Your Exposure to the Rest of the World’s Peoples | Paul W. Beamish | Nov 27, 2025 | W48085 | 11 |
The 39 Country Initiative’s most substantial outreach to date has centered on faculty development through in-person case-teaching workshops. The first workshop in Lesotho took place on February 12, 2025. Albert Wocke, head of the Case Study Hub at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) in South Africa, led a full-day in-person workshop at
− National University of Lesotho.
Photos from the workshop can be found at https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/39country/news/2025/02/workshop-series-lesotho/.
The workshop was attended by more than 35 faculty members from six institutions of higher learning in Lesotho. Following the workshop, Douglas Musiiwa, Head of the Department of Business Administration at the National University of Lesotho, described the workshop and its question-and-answer session as eye-opening, engaging, and highly educational. The 39 Country Initiative also supports online case-teaching activities as part of its broader outreach. Opportunities remain to extend this engagement beyond in-person workshops and reach a wider number of institutions in Lesotho.