Lesotho (LS)
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1. Language information / Données sur les langues
1.1 Languages spoken / Langues parlées
a) Official / Officielle(s) :
Sesotho, English
b) National, indigenous / Nationale(s), indigène(s) :
The vast majority of the populatuion speaks Sesotho.
Ethnologue lists 5 languages at http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=LS
c) Relevant pages in the Major Languages section of this report / Pages appropriées dans la section de ce rapport sur les Langues principales :
1.2 Language policy / Politique de langue
a) Laws/legislation / Lois/législation :
The site L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde has a page on Lesotho at http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/lesotho.htm
b) Agencies / Agences :
Two institutions "involved in or responsible for African Language research" in Lesotho (UNESCO 1985). Updated information is needed:
- Sesotho Language Academy, c/o Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education - MASERU
- Department of African Languages and Literatures, National University of Lesotho, P.O. Box 180 - ROMA
c) Languages in education/literacy / Langues dans l'éducation/l'alphabétisation :
Education in the lower grades is in Sesotho. English is phased in and becomes the language of instruction in upper grades.
UNDP (2006) gives a literacy figure (without reference to which language[s]) of: 82.2%
1.3 Writing in national/indigenous languages / Ecriture en langues nationales/indigènes
a) Orthographies / Orthographes :
Latin alphabet.
b) Print publications / Editions imprimées :
UNESCO (1985) reported the following periodicals (name, frequency of publication, circulation, language). Updated information is needed:
- Leselinyane, weekly, 30,500, Sesotho
- Moeletsi, weekly, 12,000, Sesotho
1.4 Other comments / Autre commentaire
Lesotho is one of the few countries in Africa where almost all the population speaks the same mother tongue.
2. ICT situation / Situation des TIC
2.1 Infrastructure / Infrastructure
a) Telephones / Téléphones :
- Fixed lines: Telephone mainlines: 10 per 1000 people (APC)
- Mobile subscriptions: 165,000 (7.6 per 100 people) (ITU 2004 cited in Vodafone 2005)
b) Radio stations / Stations de radio :
c) Connectivity / Connectivité :
- International internet bandwidth / Bande passante internationale d'internet :
- ISPs / FSI :
- Geographic coverage / Couverture géographique :
2.2 Computer & internet access / Accès aux ordinateurs et à l'internet
a) Computers & points of access / Ordinateurs et lieux d'accès :
- Number of computers / Nombre d'ordinateurs: 15 per 1000 people (APC)
- Cybercafés / Cybercafés:
- Project telecentres / Télécentres de projets:
b) Internet / Internet :
- Dial-up subscribers / Abonnés par ligne téléphonique :
- Internet users / Utilisateurs de l'internet : 43,000 Internet users as of Sept/05, 1.8% of the population, per ITU (Internet World Stats)
c) Other / Autre :
- Digital Opportunity Index (DOI): 0.23 (ITU 2006); 0.26, ranked 133 (ITU 2007)
- ICT Opportunity Index (ICT-OI?):
- ICT Development Index (IDI):
2.3 ICT policy / Politique de TIC
The APC page, "ICT Policy in Lesotho," has some information and links:
- In English: http://rights.apc.org/africa/index.shtml?apc=s21812e_1
- En français: http://afrique.droits.apc.org/index.shtml?apc=s21812e_1
2.4 ICT4D/E & ICT training / TIC pour le développement/éducation, et formation en TIC
2.5 Resources / Ressources
3. Localisation situation / Situation de localisation
3.1 Country web content / Contenu web du pays
3.2 Web content in indigenous languages / Contenu web en langues indigènes
(See also specific language pages.)
3.3 Software localisation / Localisation de logiciel
(See also specific language pages.)
3.4 Projects & organisations / Projets et organisations
3.5 Localisation policy / Politique de localisation
4. References / Références
APC, "ICT Policy in Lesotho," Africa ICT Policy Monitor, http://rights.apc.org/africa/index.shtml?apc=s21812e_1 ("Politiques de TIC en/au Lesotho," Observatoire des politiques des TIC en Afrique, http://afrique.droits.apc.org/index.shtml?apc=s21812e_1 )
International Telecommunications Union (ITU). 2004. African Telecommunication Indicators 2004. Geneva: ITU.
______. 2006. World Information Society Report 2006. Geneva: ITU. http://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/worldinformationsociety/2006/wisr-web.pdf
______. 2007. World Information Society Report 2007. Geneva: ITU. https://www.itu.int/osg/spu/publications/worldinformationsociety/2007/WISR07_full-free.pdf
Internet World Stats: Africa. 2006. http://internetworldstats.com/africa.htm
Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "Lesotho," http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/lesotho.htm
SIL International, Ethnologue: Languages of the World, "Languages of Lesotho," http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=LS
UNDP. 2006. ''Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis. Human Development Report 2006.'' New York: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). [Human development index Adult literacy rate (% ages 15 and older) (HDI) http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/indicators/3.html ]
UNESCO Regional Office for Education in Africa. 1985. African Community Languages and Their Use in Literacy and Education: A Regional Survey. Dakar: UNESCO.
Vodafone. 2005. "Africa: The Impact of Mobile Phones." The Vodafone Policy Paper Series, Number 3, March 2005. http://www.vodafone.com/assets/files/en/GPP%20SIM%20paper.pdf
Wikipedia, "Lesotho," http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesotho