Insurance and financial services in Lesotho
Lesotho: Insurance and financial services was 2.3% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Insurance and financial services in Lesotho, 1975–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of service imports, BoP.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 2.3% for insurance and financial services in 2025.
That represents a change of down 9.9% on the previous year and down 41.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insurance and financial services in Lesotho peaked at 4.3% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1989.
Lesotho ranks 168th of 197 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Insurance and financial services in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % of service imports, BoP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 3.3% | — |
| 1976 | 3.7% | +14.5% |
| 1977 | 3.5% | -7.1% |
| 1978 | 3.4% | -1.4% |
| 1979 | 3.5% | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 2.8% | -19.9% |
| 1981 | 3.4% | +21.1% |
| 1982 | 0.8% | -76.8% |
| 1983 | 0.8% | -4.9% |
| 1984 | 0.7% | -9.7% |
| 1985 | 0.7% | -2.4% |
| 1986 | 0.7% | +11.7% |
| 1987 | 0.6% | -22.2% |
| 1988 | 0.7% | +25.8% |
| 1989 | 0.6% | -20.8% |
| 1990 | 0.6% | +11.1% |
| 1991 | 0.8% | +22.9% |
| 1992 | 1.0% | +21.7% |
| 1993 | 1.1% | +13.2% |
| 1994 | 1.1% | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 1.1% | +5.8% |
| 1996 | 1.1% | -2.7% |
| 1997 | 1.3% | +16.0% |
| 1998 | 1.6% | +26.6% |
| 1999 | 1.8% | +8.1% |
| 2000 | 3.0% | +70.2% |
| 2001 | 3.1% | +4.5% |
| 2002 | 3.5% | +10.0% |
| 2003 | 3.2% | -8.1% |
| 2004 | 3.7% | +14.7% |
| 2005 | 4.3% | +18.2% |
| 2006 | 3.7% | -14.6% |
| 2007 | 3.5% | -5.1% |
| 2008 | 4.2% | +18.8% |
| 2009 | 3.2% | -23.6% |
| 2010 | 3.4% | +7.9% |
| 2011 | 3.1% | -10.6% |
| 2012 | 3.4% | +10.5% |
| 2013 | 3.4% | +1.8% |
| 2014 | 3.5% | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 3.9% | +12.1% |
| 2016 | 2.8% | -29.7% |
| 2017 | 2.7% | -2.9% |
| 2018 | 2.6% | -4.7% |
| 2019 | 2.5% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 2.7% | +5.2% |
| 2021 | 2.9% | +7.2% |
| 2022 | 2.6% | -10.0% |
| 2023 | 2.6% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 2.6% | -0.0% |
| 2025 | 2.3% | -9.9% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 2.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6.5%, 36% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 2.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 6.5%, 36% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.5% | 3.3% | 3.7% | 5 |
| 1980s | 1.2% | 0.6% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.2% | 0.6% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.5% | 3.0% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.1% | 2.5% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.6% | 2.3% | 2.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More economy & growth data for Lesotho
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 0 BoP, current US$ (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 0 BoP, current US$ per person (1989)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled -5.77 million BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 54.09 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit -0.0022 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita -2.44 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 18 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per unit of GDP 0.4215 includes gold, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), per capita 431.19 includes gold, current US$ per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insurance and financial services in Lesotho?
- Insurance and financial services in Lesotho was 2.3% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest insurance and financial services recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 4.3% in 2005.
- What is the lowest insurance and financial services recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1989.
- How does Lesotho rank for insurance and financial services?
- Lesotho ranks 168th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is insurance and financial services rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is down 41.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Insurance and financial services (% of service imports, BoP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Insurance and financial services cover various types of insurance provided to nonresidents by resident insurance enterprises and vice versa, and financial intermediary and auxiliary services (except those of insurance enterprises and pension funds) exchanged between residents and nonresidents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are services provided by non-residents to residents.