ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The African Peer Review Mechanism Panel of Eminent Persons (APR Panel) wishes to take this opportunity to congratulate His Majesty King Letsie III, the government and the people of Lesotho for reaching this stage of the review process. Lesotho, along with Angola, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, acceded to the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) on 8 July 2004, then bringing the membership of the APRM to 23 countries. It is therefore commendable that Lesotho is now the twelfth country to receive a Country Review Mission (CRM) and the only one of its compatriot acceding countries to have done so. The APR Panel expresses its unreserved gratitude to the Right Honourable Pakalitha Bethuel Mosisili, prime minister of Lesotho, for his resolute commitment to the review process. Professor Adebayo Adedeji, chairperson of the APR Panel, led the CRM with the dedication and commitment that have signalled his career to date. His diligence and meticulous attention to detail enabled a timeous finalisation of the report. Deserved accolade is also bestowed upon Dr Chris Stals, former member of the APR Panel. Dr Stals led the process in Lesotho in the formative stages, participated in the CRM and provided invaluable insights, particularly in the areas of corporate governance and economic governance and management. The national process was driven by a number of actors, notably the Honourable Mohlabi Kenneth Tsekoa (minister of foreign affairs and international relations, whose ministry was the Focal Point for the APRM), Mrs Momosebi Pholo [chairperson of the National Governing Council (NGC)] and her team, Mr JT Mesing (principal secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations), and Ambassador Masuhla Leteka and the staff of the National Secretariat. Sincere gratitude goes to all stakeholders in Lesotho for the enthusiasm with which they embraced the APRM and for their tireless contribution to the success of the national process. The review was supported by a team of independent experts representing various African nationalities. They are: Dr Samuel G Amoo (Ghana), Professor James Katorobo (Uganda), Professor Jonathan Mayuyuka Kaunda (Malawi) and Professor Maxi Schoeman (South Africa) in the field of democracy and good political governance; Professor Oladeji Ojo (Nigeria) in the field of economic governance and management; Ms Gertrude Takawira (Zimbabwe) in the field of corporate governance; and Dr Yousif A Suliman (Sudan) in the field of socioeconomic development. The APRM also wishes to thank its designated strategic partners for their invaluable support: the African Development Bank (AfDB); the Regional Bureau for Africa (RBA) of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA). The following experts were deployed to support the Lesotho country review process: Mr Dawit Makonnen (independent consultant, AfDB); Dr Adam Elhiraika (officer in charge of the Macroeconomic Policy Division, UNECA); and Dr Pancrace Niyimbona (energy officer, UNECA). From the APR Secretariat, Ms Evelynne Change (coordinator, Corporate Governance) and Ms Nana Boateng (research analyst, Socioeconomic Development) participated in the CRM and worked to finalise the report. iii