Lesotho - Military

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Lesotho is located Southern Africa, an enclave of South Africa. The climate is temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers. The terrain is mostly highland with plateaus, hills, and mountains.

Military branches

This entry lists the service branches subordinate to defense ministries or the equivalent (typically ground, naval, air, and marine forces).
Military branches - Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) : Army (includes Air Wing) (2008)

Military service age and obligation

This entry gives the required ages for voluntary or conscript military service and the length of service obligation.
Military service age and obligation : 18 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2008)

Manpower available for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and assumes that every individual is fit to serve.
Manpower available for military service - males age 16-49 : 525,203
Manpower available for military service - females age 16-49 : 522,485 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and who are not otherwise disqualified for health reasons; accounts for the health situation in the country and provides a more realistic estimate of the actual number fit to serve.
Manpower fit for military service - males age 16-49 : 262,101
Manpower fit for military service - females age 16-49 : 238,350 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

This entry gives the number of males and females entering the military manpower pool (i.e., reaching age 16) in any given year and is a measure of the availability of military-age young adults.
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - male : 26,084
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - female : 26,006 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures

This entry gives spending on defense programs for the most recent year available as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP); the GDP is calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).
Military expenditures : 2.6% of GDP (2006)

Military - note

This entry includes miscellaneous military information of significance not included elsewhere.
Military - note : Lesotho's declared policy is maintenance of its independent sovereignty and preservation of internal security; in practice, external security is guaranteed by South Africa; restructuring of the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) and Ministry of Defense and Public Service over the past five years has focused on subordinating the defense apparatus to civilian control and restoring the LDF's cohesion; the restructuring has considerably improved capabilities and professionalism, but the LDF is disproportionately large for a small, poor country; the government has outlined a reduction to a planned 1,500-man strength, but these plans have met with vociferous resistance from the political opposition and from inside the LDF (2008)

More Information about the country

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