Lesotho held its first ever local government elections on 30 April 2005. The elections were a major step towards institutionalising grassroots democracy through direct and active involvement of Basotho in their own governance >>

Each Community Council is composed of between nine and 15 elected councillors and a maximum of two chiefs who are nominated by the gazetted chiefs in that Community Council area. Community Councils perform a range of functions as specified in the Second Schedule of the Local Government Act. In the interim phase, due to the immediate challenges posed by inadequate resources and capacities, Community Councils access staff and other resources from District Councils >>.

The thrust of local government, as envisaged by the Government of Lesotho, is to improve service delivery and bring services closer to the people . >>

Lesotho held its first ever local government elections on 30 April 2005. The elections were a major step towards institutionalising grassroots democracy through direct and active involvement of Basotho in their own governance. .A total of 139 local authorities, elected under the Westminster-type single member constituency model, were installed to lead their communities in tackling their development and related challenges.

These elections built upon a long tradition of decentralised governance in Lesotho through its chieftainship system. As formalised under the Chieftainship Act of 1968 it is the responsibility and duty of every chief to contribute towards stability, safety, peace and tranquility of people under his or her charge. Chiefs must serve their people, thereby contributing to the development of their communities and upholding the rule of law. Chiefs must also serve their people without favouritism. Chieftainship is an integral part of local governance and is represented in all local authorities with chiefs working alongside the elected local councillors.

Chiefs have specific functions as proscribed under The Constitution of Lesotho; the Chieftainship Law 1968; the Animal/Livestock Theft Act 2003; and the Administration of Offenders and Provision of Evidence Act 1981.

Their functions include:

•  Helping people identify lost items including livestock
•  Upholding the rule of law
•  Preventing crime
•  Charging offenders
•  Protecting community development projects
•  Working towards peace and tranquillity
•  To serve as the first contact person for the community in cases of crimes
•  To keep records of births, deaths and marriages of his/her people
•  To be the custodians of Basotho culture and traditions.

Legal framework of local government

Article 106 of the Constitution of Lesotho obliges Parliament to establish such local governments as it deems necessary to enable urban and rural communities to determine their affairs and to develop themselves. The Local Government Act 1997 outlines the institutional framework for the local government system; the powers and functions of Councils and their organs; and the resource base of Councils. The Local Government Elections Act 1998 provides for the procedures and rules and regulations for the conduct of the local election process.

The local authorities which came into being with the 2005 elections comprise: 128 Community Councils, one Municipal Council ( Maseru ) and 10 District Councils. The District Councils are elected by the Community Councils for the 10 administrative districts (Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Mafeteng, Maseru , Mohale's Hoek, Mokhotlong, Qacha's Nek, Quthing and Teyateyaneng).

A novel feature of the elections was the allocation by law, prior to the election, of one third of the local council seats to female candidates. This move was undertaken to meet Lesotho 's commitment to a Southern African Development Community (SADC) decision to increase female representation in member countries' governance institutions. As a result 54% of councillors elected in 2005 were women.

More information about Lesotho's system of local government can be found on the Commonwealth Local Government Forum website.