Lesotho 2000

Public perceptions and perspectives Lesotho 2000: Public perceptions and perspectives form part of a survey of public perceptions and perspectives in three southern African countries undertaken in 2000 by the HSRC. Lesotho 2000 represents the first of these regional studies to be published. Conducted jointly by the National University of Lesothos Institute of Southern African Studies and the HSRC, the project sought to gauge the sentiments of a representative sample of adult residents of Lesotho concerning a range of socio-political, economic and other issues. These were governance and corruption, national priorities, service delivery, economic issues, economic policy options, community participation and sport, democracy and civic knowledge, politics and voting, trust in national institutions, crime, geographical preferences, migration in South Africa and access to capital goods. The book's 15 chapters are organised around one or more of these themes. The findings reflected in this study of the political economy of Lesotho will be of interest to students and scholars, as well as policy-makers in government departments and non-governmental organisations in Lesotho, as well as in the broader Southern African Development Community (SADC). This book will provide important insights into the enormous challenges facing Southern Africas' smallest and poverty-stricken country and one beset by endemic political instability and conflict.

List of Tables
List of Figures
List of Maps
List of contributors
Preface and Acknowledgements
Acronyms

1. Lesotho 2000 – Rule, Davids & Khosa

2. Governance and corruption Petlane

3. National priorities Kebede

4. Service delivery perceptions Mapetla

5. Perceptions of economic issues Ranko & Mochebelele

6. National economic policies in Lesotho Mochebelele & Ranko

7. Community participation – Prasad

8. Democracy, civic knowledge and social issues Rule

9. Politics, voting and elections – Petlane & Rule

10. Institutional trust – Mapetla

11. Crime – Owori & Mohapi

12. Geographical preferences – Mohapi

13. Cross-border movement between Lesotho and South Africa: Some perspectives – Wentzel

14. Differential access to finance – capital, communications technology and capital goods in Lesotho – Khosa

15. Voices for change – Khosa

Index

Stephen Rule manages the Public Opinion Analysis Programme of the Human Sciences Research Council and has monitored and analysed the results of recent elections in various southern African states.

Ntsoaki Mapetla is a research fellow at the Institute of Southern African Studies and focuses on reproductive health, gender and population studies