LANDLOCKED DEVELOPING COUNTRIES: FOCUS ON LESOTHO
Lesotho is investing in partnerships to leverage a way out of its landlocked status en route to achieving its climate and development goals By Howard Hudson, OPEC Fund CRACKING THE LOCK OF GEOGRAPHY
C ompletely surrounded by regional powerhouse South Africa, Lesotho is the only country in the world that lies entirely 1,000 meters above sea level. This highland nation made steady progress in cutting poverty in the early 2000s, yet according to the UN Development Programme almost half of its 2.2 million population still lives below the poverty line. Climate change is making matters worse, ushering in dryer and hotter conditions, evaporating water reserves and playing havoc with established rainfall patterns. This makes it progressively harder for farmers to work the land and raise livestock; and as agricultural production declines, food insecurity is deepening across the country. The World Bank said in its climate risk profile, 2021: “Lesotho’s geographical characteristics and socio-economic conditions, particularly for its rural population, make it one of the most vulnerable countries to the impacts of climate change. The country is additionally vulnerable due to its high dependence on rain-fed agriculture and reliance on regional, imported energy supplies.” That was the stark backdrop to the “Regeneration of Landscape and Livelihood Project” (ROLL) that is targeting rural communities
across Lesotho. Signed in May 2022 with an OPEC Fund contribution of US$19 million, the project aims to cut environmental degradation and secure funding to regenerate landscapes. It also aims to shift mindsets regarding the use of natural resources in order to improve livelihoods. OPEC Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa said: “We are proud to support this innovative, inclusive and important project. By adopting sustainable land management practices, leading to a better integration of the agricultural ecosystem, strengthening of climate change resilience and diversification of household incomes, rural communities will be able to transform landscapes and livelihoods, reversing the downward spiral of over-exploited natural resources, declining productivity, poor nutrition and increased poverty.” To find out more about developments
on the ground amid ongoing UN climate change negotiations, we spoke with Maphakamile Xingwana, Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry of Lesotho. OPEC Fund Quarterly : As a landlocked developing country, what are the main challenges facing Lesotho in terms of climate change and food insecurity? Maphakamile Xingwana: We are indeed landlocked, which means we have no direct access to the outside world. It’s a fundamental fact of life for Lesotho, affecting every sector and every policy area of the government. We therefore need to develop ways, means and strategies to expand our partnerships with the international community – to leverage ourselves out of our landlocked status. With respect to climate change, Lesotho is not an industrialized nation
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