By Thoboloko Ntšonyane
MASERU
A recently published World Bank report has flagged climate change as a threat to Lesotho’s vulnerability on the development and food supply.
Titled the ‘Lesotho Economic Update (April 2025)’ the report warns that the climate crisis threatens the country’s future.
It notes that while the country has experienced modest economic recovery, the extreme weather patterns pose a threat that could undo fragile gains in growth and poverty reduction.
“Multiple exogenous shocks, including the pandemic and adverse weather events, have hindered growth over the past decade,” the report states.
It further recounts how “droughts and floods caused real GDP (gross domestic product) to contract by an average of 2.0 percent each year between 2017 and 2019,” further underlining how climate extremes have impacted the country’s economic trajectory.
In recent years, Lesotho’s vulnerability to climate change has only deepened. “Lesotho, a small, mountainous, and largely rural nation with a population of about 2.3 million, faces significant vulnerability to frequent and severe weather events such as floods and droughts,” the reports states.
These shocks have disproportionately impacted the poorest households.
“These areas also face heightened vulnerability to climate shocks and remain reliant on subsistence agriculture and informal employment,” reads the report further, referring to rural and mountainous places severely affected by poverty.
Despite these mounting challenges, the government has promised to respond to climate change impacts. The Minister of Finance, Dr Retšelisitsoe Matlanyane, announced that the government will take steps to respond to the climate crisis.
She stated that for the 2025/2026 financial year, the government has allocated M135 million to tackle cross-cutting issues, including climate change. The funding will go towards strengthening early warning systems, regenerating landscapes and livelihoods, and promoting integrated, shared management approaches.
The threat is not just to agriculture, which remains critical for the livelihoods, but also to major national infrastructure developments.
“Climate-related shocks could negatively affect the agricultural sector and infrastructure megaprojects. Climate shocks could weaken the growth outlook and reverse gains in poverty reduction, underscoring the need to strengthen climate resilience,” the World Bank cautions.
The report continues to warn that a troubling scenario is further posed by the El Niño phenomenon stating that: “A prolonged or severe El Niño event could reduce water availability, worsening crop and livestock conditions.”
There are also concerns that this could jeopardise one of the country’s key revenue streams as it argues that the diminished rainfall could limit the scope for water exports to neighbouring South Africa, thereby reducing fiscal revenue. Lesotho enjoys royalties from the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP-II) and any disruption to this income stream could trigger fiscal instability.
The report also highlights that “Lesotho’s agricultural sector is also highly vulnerable to weather-related shocks, with poor households being particularly exposed.”
The World Food Programme has warned that: “Food insecurity remains a chronic challenge, hindering the country’s development and progress towards zero hunger. Despite some economic growth, Lesotho has been unable to address rural poverty and promote inclusive social development. Over a quarter of the population faces high levels of acute food insecurity and requires humanitarian action to reduce food gaps, protect and restore livelihoods, and prevent acute malnutrition.”
On July 12, last year Prime Minister Samuel Matekane declared a national food insecurity emergency in Lesotho, a declaration that came following the publication of the vulnerability assessment showing that 700,000 people in the country are experiencing severe food insecurity and urgently need assistance. Building resilience to climate change is not just a long-term ambition, but it has been reiterated that it is an immediate need.
The World Bank’s Economic Update calls for bold and strategic reforms to stabilise the economy that will drive inclusive growth, noting that failure to respond to climate threats could stall development and reverse the hard-won progress.