Time required to start a business in Lesotho
Lesotho: Time required to start a business was 15 days in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Time required to start a business in Lesotho, 2003–2019
Source: Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in days.
Analysis
The most recent figure for time required to start a business in Lesotho is 15 days, measured in 2019. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 48.3% on the previous year and down 61.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, time required to start a business in Lesotho peaked at 138 days in 2003 and was at its lowest, 15 days, in 2019.
That places Lesotho 75th out of 188 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Time required to start a business in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | days | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 138 days | — |
| 2004 | 138 days | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 103 days | -25.4% |
| 2006 | 73 days | -29.1% |
| 2007 | 73 days | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 39 days | -46.6% |
| 2009 | 39 days | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 39 days | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 39 days | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 29 days | -25.6% |
| 2013 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 29 days | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 15 days | -48.3% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 15 days is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 15 days, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 15 days is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 14.25 days, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 86.14 days | 39 days | 138 days | 7 |
| 2010s | 29.6 days | 15 days | 39 days | 10 |
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 time required to start a business in Lesotho?
- Time required to start a business in Lesotho was 15 days in 2019, according to Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest time required to start a business recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 138 days in 2003.
- What is the lowest time required to start a business recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 15 days in 2019.
- How does Lesotho rank for time required to start a business?
- Lesotho ranks 75th out of 188 countries with data for 2019.
- Is time required to start a business rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 61.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Doing Business project, World Bank (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Time required to start a business. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of calendar days needed to complete the procedures to legally operate a business.