The Demographics of Lesotho describe the condition and overview of Lesotho's people, residents of which are called Basotho in the plural and Mosotho in the singular. Demographic topics include basic education, health, and population statistics as well as identified racial and religious affiliations.
According to the 2016 census, Lesotho has a total population of 2,007,201.[1] Of the population, 34.17 percent lived in urban and 65.83 percent in rural areas.[1] The country's capital, Maseru, accounts for around half of the total urban population. The sex distribution is 982,133 male and 1,025,068 female, or around 96 males for each 100 females.[1]
The average population density in the country is around 66,1 people per square kilometer. The density is lower in the Lesotho Highlands than in the western lowlands. Although the majority of the population—56.1 percent—is between 15 and 64 years of age, Lesotho has a substantial youth population numbering around 37.8 percent.[2] The annual population growth rate is estimated at 0.13%[2]
According to the 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects[3][4] the total population was 2,281,454 in 2021, compared to only 734 000 in 1950. The proportion of children below the age of 15 in 2010 was 37.4%, 58.3% was between 15 and 65 years of age, while 4.3% was 65 years or older
.[5]
Total population
Population aged 0–14 (%)
Population aged 15–64 (%)
Population aged 65+ (%)
1950
734 000
40.7
54.9
4.5
1955
788 000
41.9
53.7
4.4
1960
852 000
43.1
52.7
4.3
1965
934 000
43.6
52.2
4.2
1970
1 033 000
44.1
51.8
4.2
1975
1 150 000
44.5
51.3
4.2
1980
1 310 000
44.3
51.6
4.1
1985
1 487 000
44.3
51.6
4.1
1990
1 639 000
44.1
51.7
4.2
1995
1 795 000
43.1
52.5
4.4
2000
1 964 000
41.2
54.3
4.5
2005
2 066 000
39.6
56.0
4.4
2010
2 171 000
37.4
58.3
4.3
Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 10.IV.2016):[6]
Age Group
Male
Female
Total
%
Total
982 133
1 025 068
2 007 201
100
0–4
100 793
99 362
200 155
9.97
5–9
109 953
111 523
221 476
11.03
10–14
107 879
107 934
215 813
10.75
15–19
106 214
103 652
209 866
10.46
20–24
98 827
100 440
199 267
9.93
25–29
95 802
93 141
188 943
9.41
30–34
86 956
81 189
168 145
8.38
35–39
68 246
62 135
130 381
6.50
40–44
48 665
47 630
96 295
4.80
45–49
36 425
38 462
74 887
3.73
50–54
31 785
38 574
70 359
3.51
55–59
25 759
34 058
59 817
2.98
60–64
20 770
28 451
49 221
2.45
65-69
15 311
22 047
37 358
1.86
70-74
12 017
18 791
30 808
1.53
75-79
8 467
15 707
24 174
1.20
80-84
5 424
13 197
18 621
0.93
85-89
1 873
5 201
7 074
0.35
90-94
662
2 127
2 789
0.14
95+
305
1 447
1 752
0.09
Age group
Male
Female
Total
Percent
0–14
318 625
318 819
637 444
31.76
15–64
619 449
627 732
1 247 181
62.14
65+
44 059
78 517
122 576
6.11
Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.VII.2021) (Data are projections based on the 2016 Population Census.): [7]
Age Group
Male
Female
Total
%
Total
1 019 453
1 057 858
2 077 311
100
0–4
100 104
98 343
198 446
9.55
5–9
111 585
114 805
226 390
10.90
10–14
106 278
106 664
212 942
10.25
15–19
100 311
96 522
196 832
9.48
20–24
95 959
96 699
192 658
9.27
25–29
102 411
98 595
201 006
9.68
30–34
101 352
92 981
194 333
9.36
35–39
80 459
69 851
150 310
7.24
40–44
53 415
49 648
103 063
4.96
45–49
37 537
38 314
75 852
3.65
50–54
33 352
40 804
74 155
3.57
55–59
27 071
37 915
64 986
3.13
60–64
22 945
32 509
55 454
2.67
65-69
16 336
23 852
40 187
1.93
70+
30 340
60 356
90 696
4.37
Age group
Male
Female
Total
Percent
0–14
317 967
319 812
637 779
30.70
15–64
654 810
653 838
1 308 648
63.00
65+
46 676
84 208
130 884
6.30
Vital statistics
Registration of vital events is in Lesotho not complete. The Population Departement of the United Nations prepared the following estimates.
[5]
Period
Live births per year
Deaths per year
Natural change per year
CBR*
CDR*
NC*
TFR*
IMR*
1950–1955
32 000
17 000
15 000
42.1
22.7
19.4
5.84
169
1955–1960
35 000
17 000
18 000
42.2
20.3
21.9
5.86
150
1960–1965
38 000
16 000
21 000
42.3
18.3
24.0
5.81
134
1965–1970
42 000
17 000
24 000
42.5
17.8
24.8
5.80
130
1970–1975
47 000
18 000
28 000
42.8
16.9
26.0
5.80
123
1975–1980
52 000
19 000
33 000
42.0
15.1
27.0
5.69
110
1980–1985
56 000
18 000
38 000
40.4
13.0
27.4
5.46
94
1985–1990
59 000
18 000
41 000
37.6
11.6
26.0
5.14
84
1990–1995
60 000
17 000
42 000
34.7
10.0
24.7
4.70
70
1995–2000
63 000
25 000
38 000
33.7
13.5
20.2
4.37
81
2000–2005
62 000
36 000
26 000
30.7
17.9
12.8
3.79
86
2005–2010
60 000
35 000
25 000
28.5
16.7
11.9
3.37
77
* CBR = crude birth rate (per 1000); CDR = crude death rate (per 1000); NC = natural change (per 1000); IMR = infant mortality rate per 1000 births; TFR = total fertility rate (number of children per woman)
Fertility and Births
Total Fertility Rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR):[8]
Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2022.[11]
One birth every 10 minutes
One death every 18 minutes
One net migrant every 63 minutes
Net gain of one person every 31 minutes
The following demographic are from the CIA World Factbook[12] unless otherwise indicated.
6,600 people living in Lesotho are from Asia or Europe. They represent 0.3% of the total population of Lesotho. The 5,000 Chinese people form the largest non-African ethnic group in Lesotho.[13]
Population
2,193,970 (2022 est.)
1,962,461 (July 2018 est.)
Religions
Protestant 47.8% (Pentecostal 23.1%, Lesotho Evangelical 17.3%, Anglican 7.4%), Roman Catholic 39.3%, other Christian 9.1%, non-Christian 1.4%, none 2.3% (2014 est.)
Age structure
Population pyramid of Lesotho in 2020
0-14 years: 31.3% (male 309,991/female 306,321)
15-24 years: 19.26% (male 181,874/female 197,452)
25-54 years: 38.86% (male 373,323/female 391,901)
55-64 years: 4.98% (male 52,441/female 45,726)
65 years and over: 5.6% (2020 est.) (male 57,030/female 53,275)
Due to Lesotho's long history as a unified nation, that continued even through British colonial rule, the ethnic makeup of the country is very homogenous. Lesotho's ethno-linguistic structure consists almost entirely of the Basotho (singular Mosotho), a Bantu-speaking people: an estimate of 99.7 percent of the people identify as Basotho.[2] The Kwena (Bakoena) are the largest subgroup of the Sotho; other Basotho subgroups include the Natal (North) Nguni, Batloung (the Tlou), Baphuthi (the Phuti), Bafokeng, Bataung (the Tau), Bats'oeneng (the tso'ene) and the Cape (South) Nguni (Thembu). Other ethnic groups in Lesotho include South Asians (Indian, Pakistani), numbering more than 4,000 and a few hundread Europeans.[15]
The population of Lesotho is estimated to be around 90 percent Christian.[16]Roman Catholics, the largest religious group, make up around 45 percent of the population.[16]Evangelicals comprise 26 percent of the population, and Anglican and other Christian groups an additional 19 percent.[16]Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Baháʼí, and members of traditional indigenous religions comprise the remaining 10 percent of the population.[16]
Education and literacy
According to recent estimates, 85 percent of the population 15 and over was literate. Among women the literacy rate was around 95 percent, and among men around 75 percent.[2] As such, Lesotho boasts one of the higher literacy rates in Africa. Although education is not compulsory, the Government of Lesotho is incrementally implementing a programme for free primary education. It was expected that the program would be fully in place by 2006. The National University of Lesotho located in Roma and the Limkokwing University of Creative Technology located in the heart of Maseru, Moshoeshoe 2 are the only universities in the country.[17] In addition, the country has almost 20 other public and 15 private institutes giving tertiary education.[17]
