Services, value added (% of GDP) in Lesotho
Lesotho: Services, value added (% of GDP) was 55.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Services, value added in Lesotho, 1960–2025
Source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Lesotho recorded 55.6% for services, value added in 2025.
The figure is up 8.3% on the previous year and up 7.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, services, value added in Lesotho peaked at 64.8% in 1983 and was at its lowest, 4.8%, in 1962.
Lesotho ranks 118th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Services, value added (% of GDP) in Lesotho, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 6.6% | — |
| 1961 | 5.5% | -16.3% |
| 1962 | 4.8% | -12.7% |
| 1963 | 7.3% | +52.5% |
| 1964 | 7.1% | -3.3% |
| 1965 | 10.9% | +54.4% |
| 1966 | 33.5% | +206.8% |
| 1967 | 37.0% | +10.4% |
| 1968 | 38.2% | +3.4% |
| 1969 | 38.7% | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 36.9% | -4.5% |
| 1971 | 53.8% | +45.8% |
| 1972 | 37.7% | -30.0% |
| 1973 | 26.3% | -30.2% |
| 1974 | 34.4% | +30.9% |
| 1975 | 38.3% | +11.3% |
| 1976 | 38.9% | +1.6% |
| 1977 | 33.2% | -14.6% |
| 1978 | 28.4% | -14.6% |
| 1979 | 28.9% | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 44.5% | +54.3% |
| 1981 | 44.1% | -1.0% |
| 1982 | 64.4% | +46.0% |
| 1983 | 64.8% | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 64.7% | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 64.7% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 61.0% | -5.7% |
| 1987 | 60.7% | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 58.6% | -3.5% |
| 1989 | 58.2% | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 55.9% | -3.9% |
| 1991 | 55.9% | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 53.1% | -4.8% |
| 1993 | 53.5% | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 54.0% | +0.9% |
| 1995 | 53.2% | -1.4% |
| 1996 | 54.6% | +2.7% |
| 1997 | 56.4% | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 55.1% | -2.4% |
| 1999 | 53.3% | -3.2% |
| 2000 | 51.3% | -3.7% |
| 2001 | 48.3% | -5.9% |
| 2002 | 49.1% | +1.7% |
| 2003 | 49.2% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 48.7% | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 48.9% | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 47.5% | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 48.8% | +2.8% |
| 2008 | 48.2% | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 53.9% | +11.8% |
| 2010 | 53.8% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 51.9% | -3.6% |
| 2012 | 52.9% | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 54.9% | +3.8% |
| 2014 | 53.1% | -3.3% |
| 2015 | 51.5% | -2.9% |
| 2016 | 53.3% | +3.5% |
| 2017 | 54.5% | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 52.4% | -3.8% |
| 2019 | 52.6% | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 51.9% | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 49.8% | -4.0% |
| 2022 | 50.1% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 50.5% | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 51.4% | +1.7% |
| 2025 | 55.6% | +8.3% |
Lesotho compared with similar countries
- Lesotho's 55.6% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 51.2%, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Lesotho's 55.6% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 48.7%, 1.1× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Services, value added (% of GDP) in Lesotho changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1966 | +206.8% | 10.9% | 33.5% |
| 1965 | +54.4% | 7.1% | 10.9% |
| 1980 | +54.3% | 28.9% | 44.5% |
| 1963 | +52.5% | 4.8% | 7.3% |
| 1982 | +46.0% | 44.1% | 64.4% |
| 1971 | +45.8% | 36.9% | 53.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 18.9% | 4.8% | 38.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 35.7% | 26.3% | 53.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 58.6% | 44.1% | 64.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 54.5% | 53.1% | 56.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 49.4% | 47.5% | 53.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 53.1% | 51.5% | 54.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.5% | 49.8% | 55.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Lesotho
More economy & growth data for Lesotho
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, annual growth rate 57.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0799 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, US dollar, per capita 87.06 units per person (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, annual growth rate 50.42 % change on previous year (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per unit of GDP 0.0584 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- SDRs holdings, SDR, per capita 63.57 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, annual growth rate 4.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per unit of GDP 0.0303 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, US dollar, per capita 33.01 units per person (2025)
- IMF holdings of currency, SDR, annual growth rate -0.0491 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is services, value added in Lesotho?
- Services, value added in Lesotho was 55.6% in 2025, according to Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs).
- What is the highest services, value added recorded in Lesotho?
- The highest recorded value was 64.8% in 1983.
- What is the lowest services, value added recorded in Lesotho?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.8% in 1962.
- How does Lesotho rank for services, value added?
- Lesotho ranks 118th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is services, value added rising or falling in Lesotho?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Lesotho data come from?
- The figures come from Country official statistics, National Statistical Offices (NSOs), published as part of Services, value added (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Services industries correspond to ISIC (Rev. 4) divisions 45-99 and includes wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles, hotels and restaurants, transport, storage and communication, financial intermediation, real estate, renting and business activities, public administration and defence, compulsory social security, education, health and social work, other community, social and personal service activities, private households with employed persons, and extra-territorial organizations and bodies. Value added is the contribution to the economy by a producer or an industry or an institutional sector, which is estimated by the total value of output produced and deducting the total value of intermediate consumption of goods and services used to produce that output. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.