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EMBASSY/CONSULATE ADDRESSES

Diplomatic Representation in US:
Ambassador: David Mohlomi Rantekoa
Embassy: 2511 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
Telephone: [1] (202) 797-5533 through 5536
FAX: [1] (202) 234-6815

US Diplomatic Representation:
Ambassador: Michele T. Bond
Embassy: Address NA, Maseru
Mailing Address: P. O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho
Telephone: [266] 312666
Fax: [266] 310116

Lesotho Embassies and Consulates around the World

Belgium
45 Boulevard General Wahis
1030 Brussels
Tel: (32-2) 736 3976
Fax: (32-2) 736 6770

China
2-3-13 San Li Tun Diplomatic Compound
Dong San Jie, Chao Yang District
Beijing
Tel: (86-10) 532 6842
Fax: (86-10) 532 6845

Denmark
17 Begevej
DK-2900 Hellerup
Tel: (45) 3962 4343
Fax: (45) 3962 1538

Egypt
10 Bahr El Ghazal Street, Sahafeveen
Cairo
Tel: (20-2) 302 5483, 344 7025
Fax: (20-2) 302 5495

Ethiopia
PO Box 7483
Addis Ababa
Tel: (251-1) 61 43 68
Fax: (251-1) 61 28 37

Germany
Godesberger Alle 50
5300 Bonn 2
Tel: (49-228) 308 430
Fax: (49-228) 308 4332

Italy
Via di Porta Pertusa 4
00165 Rome
Tel: (39-6) 637 8183
Fax: (39-6) 633 490

South Africa
343 Pretorius Street, 6th Floor West Tower, Momentum Centre
Pretoria
Tel: (27-12) 322 6090
Fax: (27-12) 322 0376

United Kingdom
7 Chesham Place, Belgravia
London SW1 8HN
Tel: (44-171) 235-5685
Fax: (44-171) 235-5023

United Nations
204 East 39 Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 661-1690
Fax: (212) 682-4388


Embassy and Consulate Web Sites for Lesotho

U.S. Embassy Web Site in Lesotho
Embassy of Lesotho in Washington DC


FOREIGN RELATIONS

Lesotho's geographic location makes it extremely vulnerable to political and economic developments in South Africa. It is a member of many regional economic organizations including the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU). Lesotho also is active in the United Nations, the African Union, the Nonaligned Movement, the Commonwealth, and many other international organizations. In addition to the United States, South Africa, China, Libya, Ireland, and the European Union all currently retain resident diplomatic missions in Lesotho. The United Nations is represented by a resident mission as well, including UNDP, UNICEF, WHO, FAO, WFP, and UNAIDS.

Lesotho has historically maintained generally close ties with the United States, European Union member states, and other Western countries. Although Lesotho decided in 1990 to break relations with the People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) and reestablish relations with Taiwan, in 1993 the nation restored ties with the P.R.C. Lesotho also recognizes Palestine as a state, was a strong public supporter of the end of apartheid in South Africa, and granted a number of South African refugees political asylum during the apartheid era.

U.S.-LESOTHO RELATIONS
The United States was one of the first four countries to establish an embassy in Maseru after Lesotho gained its independence from Great Britain in 1966. Since this time, Lesotho and the United States have consistently maintained productive bilateral relations. In 1996, the United States closed its resident bilateral aid program in Lesotho. In 2007, however, the Government of Lesotho signed a compact with the Millennium Challenge Corporation to provide $362.5 million in support over the next 5 years to develop Lesotho's water, healthcare infrastructure, and private sector. An in-country program to support PEPFAR was established in 2005 and also includes representatives of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Centers for Disease Control. The Peace Corps has operated in Lesotho since 1966. About 95 Peace Corps volunteers concentrate in the sectors of health, agriculture, education, rural community development, and the environment. The Government of Lesotho encourages greater American participation in commercial life and welcomes interest from potential U.S. investors and suppliers.

DEFENSE
The security force is composed of the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF--estimated 5,000 personnel) and the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS--estimated 3,000-4,000 personnel). The LDF consists of an army and an air wing. The LDF reports to the Prime Minister (who is the Minister of Defense and National Security), while the Lesotho Mounted Police Service reports to the Minister of Home Affairs. There also is a National Security Service (NSS) for intelligence, which is directly accountable to the Prime Minister. Relations between the police and the army have occasionally been tense, and in 1997 the army was called upon to put down a serious police mutiny.

Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--Michele T. Bond
Deputy Chief of Mission--Elizabeth Power
Management Officer--Craig Anderson
Consular Officer--Karla Brown
Public Diplomacy, Economic, and Political Officer--Sara E. Devlin
General Services Officer--Christian "Kit" Redmer
Information Management Officer--Norman Bates
Regional Security Officer--Kimberly K. Jones
Director, Peace Corps--Ted Mooney

The mailing address of the U.S. Embassy is P.O. Box 333, Maseru 100, Lesotho. Tel: (266) 22-312-666; fax: (266) 22-310-116. E-mail: infomaseru@state.gov.


TRAVEL ADVISORIES

To obtain the latest Travel Advisory Information for Lesotho check the U.S. State Department Consular Information Sheet.


TRAVEL TIPS

Driving TBA
Currency (LSL) Loti/(ZAR) South African Rand
Electrical 220 Volts
Telephones Country Code 266, City Code, Lesotho 22+6D



Time: GMT + 2.

Electricity: 220 volts AC, 50Hz.

Telephone: IDD is available to some cities. Country code: 266 (no area codes). Outgoing international code: 00. There is a limited internal telephone network.

Climate: Temperate climate with well-marked seasons. Summer is the rainy season; 85 per cent of rainfall occurs from October to April, especially in the mountains. Snow occurs in the highlands from May to September. The hottest period is from January to February. Lesotho is a land of clear blue skies and more than 300 days of sunshine.

Clothing: During the summer, lightweight cottons with warmer wear for the evenings is needed. In winter, medium- to heavyweight clothes are advised. Waterproofing is necessary during the rainy season.

Food & Drink: The main hotels in Maseru serve international food, but there are also some interesting places to dine in the main towns. Hotels and restaurants in Lesotho cater for all nationalities. There are halal foods and seafood. Cooking styles include French, Italian, Continental and Chinese in Maseru. Much food has to be imported from South Africa, but freshwater fish is in abundant supply.
Good beer is widely available and better establishments will have a good choice of beers, spirits and wines.

Shopping: There are many handicraft shops and centres selling items including Lesotho’s famous conical hats; grass-woven articles (mats, brooms and baskets); pottery; wool and mohair rugs; tapestries and other textiles; rock painting reproductions; traditional seed, clay bead and porcupine quill jewellery; silver and gold items; copper work (particularly chess sets of African design) and ebony items. Shopping hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1700, Sat 0800-1500.

Tipping: It is customary in restaurants and hotels to give a tip as a reward for good service.

Currency: Loti (M) = 100 lisente. Notes are in denominations of M200, 100, 50, 20 and 10. Coins are in denominations of 500, 200, 100, 50, 25, 10, 5, 2 and 1 lisente. The plural of ‘loti’ is ‘maloti’ and the singular of ‘lisente’ is ‘sente’. The South African Rand is accepted as legal currency on a par with the Loti (Rand R1 = 100 cents).

Credit & debit cards: Limited acceptance of Visa, MasterCard and Diners Club. Check with your credit or debit card company for details of merchant acceptability and other services which may be available.

Travellers cheques: These are widely accepted. To avoid additional exchange rate charges, travellers are advised to take travellers cheques in US Dollars or Pounds Sterling.


CUSTOMS/DUTIES

Tobacco..............400 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 250g of tobacco

Liquor.................1 litre of spirits; 2 litres of wine

Gifts....................Duty free allowance up to us m500

Currency.............No restrictions

Cameras.............Must be declared on arrival

Note: Goods with serial numbers must be declared



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