Women in Lesotho
Lesotho School Girl | |
| General Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Maternal mortality (per 100,000) | 487 (2017) |
| Women in parliament | 22.7% (2017) |
| Women in labour force | 59.27% (2017) |
| Gender Inequality Index | |
| Value | 0.557 (2021) |
| Rank | 144th out of 191 |
| Global Gender Gap Index | |
| Value | 0.700 (2022) |
| Rank | 87th out of 146 |
In 2017, 1.1 million women were living in Lesotho, making up 51.48% of the population. 33% of women are under 15 years of age, 61.4% are between 15 and 64 years old and 5.3% are over 64 years old. They received full legal status in 2008 with the passage of The Lesotho Bank Savings and Development Act of 2008. Women in Lesotho die at a disproportionate rate from HIV/AIDs. Historically, women have wielded power as heads of households, with control over household financial decisions. The government has taken steps to ensure more equal representation of genders in government with quotas, and women in Lesotho are more highly educated than men. Still, domestic abuse, sexual violence, lack of social mobility, and aforementioned health crises are persistent issues. Social and economic movements, like the mass immigration of men to South Africa, and the rise of the garment industry, have contributed to both the progress and problems facing women in Lesotho today.