Africa-Press – Lesotho. During the one and a half years that he has spent in Lesotho, European Union (EU) Ambassador to Lesotho Dr Christian Manahl says he has identified that Lesotho has both great economy potential and daunting challenges.
Among the challenges, he confirmed it seems to him that the most important are political stability and employment, and the two are linked to each other. He was speaking at the Europe Day 2019 celebration.
Europe Day is the name of two annual observance days, 5 May by the Council of Europe and 9 May by the European Union, which recognizes peace and prosperity within Europe. These have both been achieved since their formation. The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964.
Manahl stated that a country where politicians spend too much time competing for positions and power, and where public servants are too often selected or recruited for their political loyalty, and where they have long-term security of tenure that would allow them to initiate and see through the implementation of policies, such a country will find it hard to stand its ground in fiercely competitive global business environment.
Problems like this he said, have hampered the likes of the National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP II) implementation. “NSDP II implementation in Lesotho has been hampered by recurrent political instability, which has diverted attention from policy implementation to electoral competition, including within political parties, and it has also prevented recent governments from addressing low administrative efficiency and service delivery, which has long been identified as an implement for economic and social development,” he said.
He suggested that Lesotho needs to solve the mentioned problems and others, adding that he believes the currently ongoing reforms offer a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do so.
The reforms dialogue he said has made very good progress. As for her potential, Manahl said Lesotho has the advantage of easy access to all the infrastructure and technology available in South Africa, and comparatively lower labour costs.
He further stated that Lesotho has a sound education system and a dynamic and highly motivated group of young entrepreneurs. He said it has good roads and the government is working hard, with international support to ensure reliable water supply to its citizens while it continues to export water to Gauteng.
“Lesotho may be facing serious challenges today, but its future can be different.
With right policy choices, you can unlock the potential of your people – because the people are always the most important resource of any country – and your natural environment,” he alluded. Giving his remarks Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Lesego Makgothi complimented local and international European community on this day.
He cited that the government of Lesotho and EU share the best values of relations that have spent more than four decades based on mutual respect also citing that Lesotho’s national authorizing office and the EU delegation are now in final finalization stages of remaining governance documents.
As for the reforms process he said it is the determination of the government of Lesotho to fulfil its aspiration for the greater benefit of the people of Lesotho.
“We are mindful of the importance of acting timeously and to the best of our ability according to the roadmap with the involvement and participation of relevant stakeholders as we don’t want to leave anyone behind. We have made great progress.
We are now on the second stage of national dialogue which deals with national consultations and so far the process is going as anticipated and we are optimistic that recommendations that will emanate from the important process will yield our country expected results,” he said.
Makgothi went on to state that the government has now passed the stage of blame game as it wants to leave a legacy that Basotho will be proud of. During the one and a half years that he has spent in Lesotho, European Union (EU) Ambassador to Lesotho Dr Christian Manahl says he has identified that Lesotho has both great economy potential and daunting challenges.
Among the challenges, he confirmed it seems to him that the most important are political stability and employment, and the two are linked to each other. He was speaking at the Europe Day 2019 celebration.
Europe Day is the name of two annual observance days, 5 May by the Council of Europe and 9 May by the European Union, which recognizes peace and prosperity within Europe. These have both been achieved since their formation. The first recognition of Europe Day was by the Council of Europe, introduced in 1964.
Manahl stated that a country where politicians spend too much time competing for positions and power, and where public servants are too often selected or recruited for their political loyalty, and where they have long-term security of tenure that would allow them to initiate and see through the implementation of policies, such a country will find it hard to stand its ground in fiercely competitive global business environment.
Problems like this he said, have hampered the likes of the National Strategic Development Plan (NSDP II) implementation. “NSDP II implementation in Lesotho has been hampered by recurrent political instability, which has diverted attention from policy implementation to electoral competition, including within political parties, and it has also prevented recent governments from addressing low administrative efficiency and service delivery, which has long been identified as an implement for economic and social development,” he said.
He suggested that Lesotho needs to solve the mentioned problems and others, adding that he believes the currently ongoing reforms offer a once-in-a-generation opportunity to do so.
The reforms dialogue he said has made very good progress. As for her potential, Manahl said Lesotho has the advantage of easy access to all the infrastructure and technology available in South Africa, and comparatively lower labour costs.
He further stated that Lesotho has a sound education system and a dynamic and highly motivated group of young entrepreneurs. He said it has good roads and the government is working hard, with international support to ensure reliable water supply to its citizens while it continues to export water to Gauteng.
“Lesotho may be facing serious challenges today, but its future can be different.
With right policy choices, you can unlock the potential of your people – because the people are always the most important resource of any country – and your natural environment,” he alluded. Giving his remarks Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Lesego Makgothi complimented local and international European community on this day.
He cited that the government of Lesotho and EU share the best values of relations that have spent more than four decades based on mutual respect also citing that Lesotho’s national authorizing office and the EU delegation are now in final finalization stages of remaining governance documents.
As for the reforms process he said it is the determination of the government of Lesotho to fulfil its aspiration for the greater benefit of the people of Lesotho.
“We are mindful of the importance of acting timeously and to the best of our ability according to the roadmap with the involvement and participation of relevant stakeholders as we don’t want to leave anyone behind. We have made great progress.
We are now on the second stage of national dialogue which deals with national consultations and so far the process is going as anticipated and we are optimistic that recommendations that will emanate from the important process will yield our country expected results,” he said. Makgothi went on to state that the government has now passed the stage of blame game as it wants to leave a legacy that Basotho will be proud of.
