Lesotho’s public debt drops to 53.9% of GDP

Lesotho’s public debt has declined to 53.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), largely due to favourable exchange rate movements that reduced domestic currency value of external debt.
This was said by the Central Bank of Lesotho (CBL) Governor, Dr Maluke Letete, while presenting the Monetory Policy Committee (MPC) statement yesterday.
Dr Letete further indicated that CBL’s Net International Reserves (NIR) have increased by approximately US$108,73 million (M1.79 billion) to US$1,222.27 million (M20.1 billion) as at January 2026, from US$1,113.54 million (M18.3 billion) recorded on November 14, 2025.
“The increase mainly reflected the inflow of SACU receipts in January 2026. At this level, the NIR remains comfortably above the previous target floor of US$830 million (M13.69billion) providing strong buffer against external shocks,” Dr Letete explained.
He also noted that Lesotho’s inflation rate has eased from 4.3 percent in November 2025 to 4.1 percent in December.
This mainly reflected lower food and fuel prices, supported by a stronger exchange rate, Dr Letete said, adding that in the midterm, inflation is expected to remain elevated at 4.7 percent.
He said that the overall fiscal balance recorded a deficit of 4.5 percent of the GDP in November 2025.
“The deficit stemmed from weak revenue collection combined with elevated expenditure. The shortfall was financed mainly thorough a drawdown of government deposits,” Dr Letete noted.