October 4 – Lesotho's Independence Day ~ CookingFood.Org

Posted on October 4, 2014

There are a lot of nations in Africa – 55 recognized countries, to be exact! But that's no surprise, because Africa is the second largest continent.

Lesotho is one of the smaller African nations—about the size of Maryland—and it's landlocked (no direct access to an ocean or sea).

But this kingdom does have lots of one thing: mountains! Some sources list Lesotho as the highest nation in the world, because there is no portion of it lower than 1,400 m (4,593 ft).

Lesotho and its mountains are used for the off-road endurance event called Roof of Africa. Every year thousands of visitors come to compete or watch the 4-day off-road motorcycle race.

Last year, not only did Roof of Africa bring much-needed tourist dollars to Lesotho, but event organizers donated motorcycles to Riders For Health; the bikes are now being used to get to remote areas to offer health care in Lesotho.

Check out the Roof of Africa website to see the promo video for the race and a video about Riders For Health.

Celebrate!

Today Lesotho is celebrating its 1966 independence from the United Kingdom.

In honor of the nation, take this quick quiz:

1. How many different countries share a border with Lesotho? Can you name one?

2. Which U.S. companies use resources from Lesotho?

a. Foot Locker

b. Gap

c. Gloria Vanderbilt

d. JC Penny

e. Levi Strauss

f. Saks

g. Sears

h. Timberland

i. Wal-Mart

j. all of the above

3. What are Lesotho's most important resources? [Hint: between the two resources, there are only three sorts of atoms: hydrogen (1), carbon (6), and oxygen (8).]

4. Which percentage fits each slot, of the following percentages: 90%, 40%, 25%?

a. The percentage of Basotho who live in cities is about ______.

b. The percentage of Basotho who are Christian is about _______.

c. The percentage of Basotho who live below the international poverty line is _______.

(Answers below.)

Check out this earlier post to learn more about Lesotho.