Share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho
Lesotho: Share of the population with access to basic services was 60.6% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho, 2000–2024
Source: Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of population.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 60.6% for share of the population with access to basic services in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of up 5.8% on the previous year and up 118.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho peaked at 60.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.3%, in 2001.
Lesotho ranks 186th of 214 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 4.3% | — |
| 2001 | 1.3% | -69.8% |
| 2002 | 3.4% | +161.5% |
| 2003 | 5.4% | +58.8% |
| 2004 | 6.8% | +25.9% |
| 2005 | 9.6% | +41.2% |
| 2006 | 9.7% | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 13.9% | +43.3% |
| 2008 | 16.0% | +15.1% |
| 2009 | 17.0% | +6.2% |
| 2010 | 17.0% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 22.5% | +32.4% |
| 2012 | 20.6% | -8.4% |
| 2013 | 26.9% | +30.6% |
| 2014 | 27.8% | +3.3% |
| 2015 | 31.8% | +14.4% |
| 2016 | 35.1% | +10.4% |
| 2017 | 33.7% | -4.0% |
| 2018 | 47.0% | +39.5% |
| 2019 | 44.6% | -5.1% |
| 2020 | 47.5% | +6.5% |
| 2021 | 50.4% | +6.1% |
| 2022 | 50.0% | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 57.3% | +14.6% |
| 2024 | 60.6% | +5.8% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 60.6% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 88.7%, 68% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 60.6% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 57.8%, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | +161.5% | 1.3% | 3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.7% | 1.3% | 17.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 30.7% | 17.0% | 47.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 53.2% | 47.5% | 60.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More reference data data for Lesotho
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.0331 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5388 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0101 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.582 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1115 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 2.48 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0549 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho?
- Share of the population with access to basic services in Lesotho was 60.6% in 2024, according to Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population with access to basic services recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 60.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of the population with access to basic services recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.3% in 2001.
- How does Lesotho rank for share of the population with access to basic services?
- Lesotho ranks 186th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of the population with access to basic services rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 118.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population with access to basic services. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Access to electricity means having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.