The Polihali Dam wall under construction. Photo: Sechaba Mokhethi Sechaba Mokhethi Eighteen rural communities in Lesotho have filed a complaint with the African Development Bank over the implementation of Phase II of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project. Villagers allege a decade of broken promises, unsatisfactory relocations, a loss of natural resources, farm land
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Lesotho’s outdated laws fail to protect threatened plant species
In March, five people were arrested and two trucks carrying hundreds of bags of pelargonium were seized by Lesotho’s police and Environmental Crime Unit. The trucks were surrounded by dozens of villagers attempting to sell their harvested pelargonium. Photo supplied. Sechaba Mokhethi An unregulated trade in pelargonium, a protected species, is causing
LDF commander’s wife at centre of mine dispute in Mashai
Alluvial Terraces Pty Ltd mining equipment in Mashai. Photos: Sechaba Mokhethi Sechaba Mokhethi and Mamello Mochesane In the remote highlands of Mashai, 46 villagers are preparing a legal fight to stop a diamond prospecting project that could cost them their land, livelihoods and way of life. But, considering that the prospecting license
Wounded in Combat, Shortchanged at home
Injured LDF soldiers say SAMIM disability payouts were calculated from the wrong base figure, and justice remains out of reach Billy Ntaote Twenty Lesotho Defence Force soldiers injured during a 2021 deployment to Mozambique are still waiting for compensation that they believe they are owed. Their military leaders have changed their minds
Gem Diamonds’ Lesotho subsidiary faces scrutiny over handling of sexual harassment case
Billy Ntaote At Letšeng Diamonds Mine in Lesotho, which is known for its record-breakingly, large and lucrative gems, a different story of value is unfolding at the mine—one of dignity, justice, and a woman’s long and painful fight to be heard. Ntsatsi Ratlou, a security officer at the Letšeng mine, which is
The thorny truth of Lesotho’s rosehip industry
'Mapotsana Hlopho helps sustain her family by picking rosehips, which grow wild in Lesotho. One 20-litre bucket sold for between M100 and M200 this year. Photos: Sechaba Mokhethi Sechaba Mokhethi Lesotho’s wild-harvested rosehips are an important industry for the small country’s economy, providing thousands of people in rural villages with a source
Fight over fish in Katse Dam
Local fishers preparing their catch at Katse Dam: Photos by Sechaba Mokhethi Local fishers say they are arrested and beaten up but authorities deny this Sechaba Mokhethi Fishers at Katse Dam claim they have been beaten by officials policing the area on behalf of the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority (LHDA). The dam is part
Lesotho advances M800 million cancer facility amid legal battle
On 8 January 2025, hopes soared when Lesotho’s Health Minister Selibe Mochoboroane handed over a plot of land for the construction of a much-anticipated M800 million cancer treatment facility.
This government-funded facility in the capital, Maseru, would be the first of its kind in the country and would alleviate the suffering of Lesotho’s growing number of cancer patients who currently have no choice but to seek costly cancer treatment in neighbouring South Africa.
But things aren’t as exciting or straightforward as the politicians make them seem. The process of awarding the tender to build this facility is being challenged in court. The Malawian company, Plem Construction, was selected as the winning bidder in April 2024, but the rival bidder, Unik Construction Engineering Pty Ltd. believes the process was flawed and has asked the Constitutional Court to intervene.
Lesotho power consumers feel the brunt of drought
Sechaba Mokhethi This series was supported by Pulitzer Centre The irony of Lesotho’s energy crisis is striking: the country’s dams are full, thanks to a halt in water transfers to South Africa, allowing Lesotho to maintain its hydroelectric plant. However, the nation won’t benefit from the renewable energy potential the full dams offer,
The bitter cost of Mohale Dam resettlement
Billy Ntaote and Matiisetso Mosala Twenty years after being forcibly displaced to make way for Lesotho’s Mohale Dam, five households from the now submerged village of Ha Seotsa have found themselves trapped in an ongoing struggle to get the compensation funds they were entitled to when they moved. The compensation is valued
