Âé¶¹´«Ã½

Wet lesotho has not a drop to drink

21 February 2004

ONE of the most water-rich nations in Africa faces famine as parched crops wither in the fields. The tiny southern African country of Lesotho has the tallest dam in Africa and enough reservoir capacity to give its 2 million citizens 1500 cubic metres of water each — 30 times more per head than Ethiopia and almost as much as the US. But last week its prime minister Pakalitha Mosisili declared a state of emergency and appealed for food aid.

Why? Because almost all the water stored in the mountain kingdom’s two giant reservoirs is earmarked for sale to its neighbour, South…

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