Tonga (2008) | Lesotho (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 3 island groups; Ha'apai, Tongatapu, Vava'u | 10 districts; Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru, Mohales Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing, Thaba-Tseka |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 34.6% (male 20,624/female 19,779)
15-64 years: 61.2% (male 35,551/female 36,052) 65 years and over: 4.2% (male 2,087/female 2,828) (2007 est.) |
0-14 years:
39.28% (male 430,147; female 424,994) 15-64 years: 56.03% (male 588,440; female 631,404) 65 years and over: 4.69% (male 43,033; female 59,044) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | squash, coconuts, copra, bananas, vanilla beans, cocoa, coffee, ginger, black pepper; fish | corn, wheat, pulses, sorghum, barley; livestock |
Airports | 6 (2007) | 29 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
4 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (2007) |
total:
25 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 21 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 748 sq km
land: 718 sq km water: 30 sq km |
total:
30,355 sq km land: 30,355 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | four times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | Tonga - unique among Pacific nations - never completely lost its indigenous governance. The archipelagos of "The Friendly Islands" were united into a Polynesian kingdom in 1845. Tonga became a constitutional monarchy in 1875 and a British protectorate in 1900; it withdrew from the protectorate and joined the Commonwealth of Nations in 1970. Tonga remains the only monarchy in the Pacific. | Basutoland was renamed the Kingdom of Lesotho upon independence from the UK in 1966. Constitutional government was restored in 1993 after 23 years of military rule. |
Birth rate | 23.67 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 31.24 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $56.97 million
expenditures: $83.88 million (FY04/05) |
revenues:
$76 million expenditures: $80 million, including capital expenditures of $15 million (FY99/00 est.) |
Capital | name: Nuku'alofa
geographic coordinates: 21 08 S, 175 12 W time difference: UTC+13 (18 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Maseru |
Climate | tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December to May), cool season (May to December) | temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers |
Coastline | 419 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 4 November 1875; revised 1 January 1967 | 2 April 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Tonga
conventional short form: Tonga local long form: Pule'anga Tonga local short form: Tonga former: Friendly Islands |
conventional long form:
Kingdom of Lesotho conventional short form: Lesotho former: Basutoland |
Currency | - | loti (LSL); South African rand (ZAR) |
Death rate | 5.2 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) | 15.7 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $80.7 million (2004) | $720 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Tonga; the ambassador to Fiji is accredited to Tonga | chief of mission:
Ambassador Katherine H. PETERSON embassy: 254 Kingsway, Maseru West (Consular Section) mailing address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho telephone: [266] 312666 FAX: [266] 310116 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Fekitamoeloa 'UTOIKAMANU
chancery: 250 East 51st Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (917) 369-1025 FAX: [1] (917) 369-1024 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Lebohang Kenneth MOLEKO chancery: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536 FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $31.75 million (2005) | $123.7 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | Tonga has a small, open, South Pacific island economy. It has a narrow export base in agricultural goods. Squash, coconuts, bananas, and vanilla beans are the main crops, and agricultural exports make up two-thirds of total exports. The country must import a high proportion of its food, mainly from New Zealand. The country remains dependent on external aid and remittances from Tongan communities overseas to offset its trade deficit. Tourism is the second-largest source of hard currency earnings following remittances. The government is emphasizing the development of the private sector, especially the encouragement of investment, and is committing increased funds for health and education. Tonga has a reasonably sound basic infrastructure and well-developed social services. High unemployment among the young, a continuing upturn in inflation, pressures for democratic reform, and rising civil service expenditures are major issues facing the government. | Small, landlocked, and mountainous, Lesotho's primary natural resource is water. Its economy is based on subsistence agriculture, livestock, and remittances from miners employed in South Africa. The number of such mineworkers has declined steadily over the past several years. A small manufacturing base depends largely on farm products that support the milling, canning, leather, and jute industries. Agricultural products are exported primarily to South Africa. Proceeds from membership in a common customs union with South Africa form the majority of government revenue. Although drought has decreased agricultural activity over the past few years, completion of a major hydropower facility in January 1998 now permits the sale of water to South Africa, generating royalties for Lesotho. The pace of substantial privatization has increased in recent years. In December 1999, the government embarked on a nine-month IMF staff-monitored program aimed at structural adjustment and stabilization of macroeconomic fundamentals. The government is in the process of applying for a three-year successor program with the IMF under its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. |
Electricity - consumption | 32.55 million kWh (2005) | 55 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2005) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2005) | 55 million kWh
note: electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) |
Electricity - production | 35 million kWh (2005) | 0 kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
0% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Kao Island 1,033 m |
lowest point:
junction of the Orange and Makhaleng Rivers 1,400 m highest point: Thabana Ntlenyana 3,482 m |
Environment - current issues | deforestation results as more and more land is being cleared for agriculture and settlement; some damage to coral reefs from starfish and indiscriminate coral and shell collectors; overhunting threatens native sea turtle populations | population pressure forcing settlement in marginal areas results in overgrazing, severe soil erosion, and soil exhaustion; desertification; Highlands Water Project controls, stores, and redirects water to South Africa |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Polynesian, Europeans | Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%, |
Exchange rates | pa'anga per US dollar - NA (2007), 2.0277 (2006), 1.96 (2005), 1.9716 (2004), 2.142 (2003) | maloti per US dollar - 7.78307 (January 2001), 6.93983 (2000), 6.10948 (1999), 5.52828 (1998), 4.60796 (1997), 4.29935 (1996); note - the Lesotho loti is at par with the South African rand which is also legal tender; maloti is the plural form of loti |
Executive branch | chief of state: King George TUPOU V (since 11 September 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Dr. Feleti SEVELE (since 11 February 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Viliami TANGI (since 16 May 2006) cabinet: Cabinet consists of 14 members, 10 appointed by the monarch for life; four appointed from among the elected members of the Legislative Assembly, including two each from the nobles' and peoples' representatives serving three-year terms note: there is also a Privy Council that consists of the monarch, the cabinet, and two governors elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state:
King LETSIE III (since 7 February 1996); note - King LETSIE III formerly occupied the throne from November 1990 to February 1995, while his father was in exile head of government: Prime Minister Pakalitha MOSISILI (since 23 May 1998) cabinet: Cabinet elections: none; according to the constitution, the leader of the majority party in the assembly automatically becomes prime minister; the monarch is hereditary, but, under the terms of the constitution which came into effect after the March 1993 election, the monarch is a "living symbol of national unity" with no executive or legislative powers; under traditional law the college of chiefs has the power to determine who is next in the line of succession, who shall serve as regent in the event that the successor is not of mature age, and may even depose the monarch |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004) | $175 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | squash, fish, vanilla beans, root crops | manufactures 75% (clothing, footwear, road vehicles), wool and mohair, food and live animals (1998) |
Exports - partners | US 39.7%, Japan 27.8%, NZ 8.2%, South Korea 7.6% (2006) | South African Customs Union 65%, North America 34% (1998) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | red with a bold red cross on a white rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner | divided diagonally from the lower hoist side corner; the upper half is white, bearing the brown silhouette of a large shield with crossed spear and club; the lower half is a diagonal blue band with a green triangle in the corner |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $5.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 23%
industry: 27% services: 50% (FY03/04 est.) |
agriculture:
18% industry: 38% services: 44% (1999) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,400 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.4% (2005 est.) | 2.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 20 00 S, 175 00 W | 29 30 S, 28 30 E |
Geography - note | archipelago of 169 islands (36 inhabited) | landlocked; surrounded by South Africa |
Highways | - | total:
4,955 km paved: 887 km unpaved: 4,068 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
0.9% highest 10%: 43.4% (1986-87) |
Imports | 842.3 bbl/day (2004) | $700 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, fuels, chemicals | food; building materials, vehicles, machinery, medicines, petroleum products (1995) |
Imports - partners | Fiji 30.3%, NZ 27.7%, US 8.2%, Australia 7.5%, France 5.7%, UK 4.7% (2006) | South African Customs Union 90%, Asia 7% (1998) |
Independence | 4 June 1970 (from UK protectorate) | 4 October 1966 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 1% (2003 est.) | 15.5% (1999 est.) |
Industries | tourism, fishing | food, beverages, textiles, handicrafts; construction; tourism |
Infant mortality rate | total: 11.99 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 13.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 10.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
82.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 11.1% (2005 est.) | 6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ACP, ADB, C, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, ITUC, OPCW, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OAU, OPCW, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | NA | 30 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal (Chief Justice and high court justices from overseas chosen and approved by Privy Council) | High Court (chief justice appointed by the monarch); Court of Appeal; Magistrate's Court; customary or traditional court |
Labor force | 33,910 (2003) | 700,000 economically active |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 65%
industry and services: 35% (1997 est.) |
86% of resident population engaged in subsistence agriculture; roughly 35% of the active male wage earners work in South Africa |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
909 km border countries: South Africa 909 km |
Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 14.67% other: 65.33% (2005) |
arable land:
11% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 66% forests and woodland: 0% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Tongan, English | Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on English common law and Roman-Dutch law; judicial review of legislative acts in High Court and Court of Appeal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly or Fale Alea (32 seats - 14 reserved for cabinet ministers sitting ex officio, nine for nobles selected by the country's 33 nobles, and nine elected by popular vote; members serve three-year terms)
elections: last held on 21 March 2005 (next to be held in 2008) election results: Peoples Representatives: percent of vote - HRDMT 70%, other 30%; seats - HRDMT 7, independents 2 |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (33 members - 22 principal chiefs and 11 other members appointed by the ruling party) and the Assembly (80 seats; members elected by popular vote for five-year terms); note - number of seats in the Assembly rose from 65 to 80 in the May 1998 election; on 28 February 2001, the Senate approved expansion of the Assembly by a further 50 seats in the next election, which may be held as early as January 2002
elections: last held 23 May 1998 (next to be held NA March 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - LCD 60.7%, BNP 24.5%, other 14.8%; seats by party - LCD 79, BNP 1 note: results contested; opposition parties claimed the election was fraudulent and staged a coup; Southern African Development Community (SADC) forces intervened in September 1998 and restored order; the Interim Political Authority (IPA) was set up in December 1998 to create a new electoral system and conduct new elections. |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.12 years
male: 67.6 years female: 72.76 years (2007 est.) |
total population:
48.84 years male: 47.97 years female: 49.74 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: can read and write Tongan and/or English
total population: 98.9% male: 98.8% female: 99% (1999 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 83% male: 72% female: 93% (1999 est.) |
Location | Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about two-thirds of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand | Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa |
Map references | Oceania | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 14 ships (1000 GRT or over) 58,756 GRT/67,889 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 1, cargo 9, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: 3 (Australia 1, Switzerland 1, UK 1) (2007) |
- |
Military - note | - | The Lesotho Government in 1999 began an open debate on the future structure, size, and role of the armed forces, especially considering the Lesotho Defense Force's (LDF) history of intervening in political affairs. |
Military branches | Tonga Defense Services (TDS): Land Force (Royal Guard), Naval Force (includes Royal Marines, Air Wing) (2008) | Lesotho Defense Force (LDF; includes Army and Air Wing), Royal Lesotho Mounted Police (RLMP) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $34 million (1999) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (2006 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
515,464 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
277,369 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Emancipation Day, 4 June (1970) | Independence Day, 4 October (1966) |
Nationality | noun: Tongan(s)
adjective: Tongan |
noun:
Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho |
Natural hazards | cyclones (October to April); earthquakes and volcanic activity on Fonuafo'ou | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | fish, fertile soil | water, agricultural and grazing land, some diamonds and other minerals |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) | -0.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | People's Democratic Party [Tesina FUKO] | Basotho Congress Party or BCP [Tseliso MAKHAKHE]; Basotho National Party or BNP [Maj. Gen. Justine Metsing LEKHANYA]; Lesotho Congress for Democracy or LCD [Phebe MOTEBANO, chairwoman; Dr. Pakalitha MOSISILI, leader] - the governing party; United Democratic Party or UDP [Charles MOFELI]; Marematlou Freedom Party or MFP and Setlamo Alliance [Vincent MALEBO]; Progressive National Party or PNP [Chief Peete Nkoebe PEETE]; Sefate Democratic Party or SDP [Bofihla NKUEBE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Human Rights and Democracy Movement Tonga or HRDMT [Rev. Simote VEA, chairman]; Public Servant's Association [Finau TUTONE] | NA |
Population | 116,921 (July 2007 est.) | 2,177,062
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 24% (FY03/04) | 49.2% (1999 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.847% (2007 est.) | 1.49% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Radios | - | 104,000 (1997) |
Railways | - | total:
2.6 km; note - owned by, operated by, and included in the statistics of South Africa narrow gauge: 2.6 km 1.067-m gauge (1995) |
Religions | Christian (Free Wesleyan Church claims over 30,000 adherents) | Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.043 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.986 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.738 male(s)/female total population: 0.993 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 21 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: competition between Tonga Telecommunications Corporation (TCC) and Shoreline Communications Tonga (SCT) is accelerating expansion of telecommunications; SCT recently granted authority to develop high-speed digital service for telephone, Internet, and television
domestic: combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 40 telephones per 100 persons; fully automatic switched network international: country code - 676; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean) (2004) |
general assessment:
rudimentary system domestic: consists of a few landlines, a small microwave radio relay system, and a minor radiotelephone communication system international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 13,700 (2005) | 20,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 29,900 (2005) | 1,262 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 3 (2004) | 1 (2000) |
Terrain | most islands have limestone base formed from uplifted coral formation; others have limestone overlying volcanic base | mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains |
Total fertility rate | 2.75 children born/woman (2007 est.) | 4.08 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 13% (FY03/04 est.) | 45% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | - | none |