Lesotho's People | Basotho People

Population: 1,867,035 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 2005 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 36.9% (male 346,930/female 342,459) 15-64 years: 57.6% (male 526,642/female 548,096) 65 years and over: 5.5% (male 42,003/female 60,905) (2005 est.)

Median age: total: 20.19 years male: 19.68 years female: 20.74 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.08% (2005 est.)

Death rate: 25.03 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 84.23 deaths/1,000 live births male: 89.11 deaths/1,000 live births female: 79.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 34.47 years male: 35.49 years female: 33.42 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.35 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 28.9% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 320,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 29,000 (2003 est.)

Nationality: noun: Mosotho (singular), Basotho (plural) adjective: Basotho

Ethnic groups: Sotho 99.7%, Europeans, Asians, and other 0.3%,

Religions: Christian 80%, indigenous beliefs 20%

Languages: Sesotho (southern Sotho), English (official), Zulu, Xhosa

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 84.8% male: 74.5% female: 94.5% (2003 est.)



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