Wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho
Lesotho: Wealth share of the richest 1% was 28.2% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho, 1980–2024
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 28.2% for wealth share of the richest 1% in 2024.
The figure is down 3.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho peaked at 40.0% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 28.2%, in 2017.
That places Lesotho 72nd out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 39.5% | — |
| 1981 | 39.5% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 39.5% | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 39.5% | -0.0% |
| 1984 | 39.5% | -0.0% |
| 1985 | 39.5% | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 39.5% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 39.6% | +0.1% |
| 1988 | 39.6% | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 39.7% | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 39.7% | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 39.8% | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 39.8% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 39.9% | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 40.0% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 39.8% | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 39.7% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 39.5% | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 39.2% | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 38.6% | -1.4% |
| 2000 | 38.2% | -1.2% |
| 2001 | 37.4% | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 33.9% | -9.4% |
| 2003 | 33.5% | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 32.8% | -2.2% |
| 2005 | 32.1% | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 31.8% | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 31.5% | -0.9% |
| 2008 | 31.1% | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 30.8% | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 30.5% | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 30.2% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 29.9% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 29.5% | -1.3% |
| 2014 | 29.1% | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 28.8% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 28.5% | -0.9% |
| 2017 | 28.2% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 28.2% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 28.2% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 28.2% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 28.2% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 28.2% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 28.2% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 28.2% | -0.0% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 28.2% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 27.2%, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 28.2% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 26.3%, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 39.5% | 39.5% | 39.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 39.6% | 38.6% | 40.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.3% | 30.8% | 38.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 29.1% | 28.2% | 30.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 28.2% | 28.2% | 28.2% | 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 wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho?
- Wealth share of the richest 1% in Lesotho was 28.2% in 2024, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 40.0% in 1994.
- What is the lowest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 28.2% in 2017.
- How does Lesotho rank for wealth share of the richest 1%?
- Lesotho ranks 72nd out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is wealth share of the richest 1% rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Wealth share of the richest 1%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of wealth owned by the richest 1% of the population. Wealth is defined as the total value of non-financial and financial assets (housing, land, deposits, bonds, equities, etc.) held by households, minus their debts.