Lesotho's external health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) was 40.46% in 2023, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 10.14 percentage points from 30.33% in 2013.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 40.46% | 2023 |
| Five years earlier | 35.21% | 2018 |
| Ten years earlier | 30.33% | 2013 |
| Highest | 61.9% | 2019 |
| Lowest | 3.87% | 2000 |
| Average since 2014 | 35.69% | 2014–2023 |
| First recorded | 3.87% | 2000 |
What the numbers say
In 2023, Lesotho's external health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) rose 4.01 percentage points on 2022 (from 36.45% to 40.46%).
Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was +1.48 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 9.02 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 26.69 percentage points in 2019 and the biggest yearly fall was 24.73 percentage points in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2014 to 2023 the straight-line trend is upward, about 2.22 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 33% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2023, Lesotho had the 11th highest value of the 161 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Lesotho | 40.46% | 2023 |
| World | 0.29% | 2023 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 15.45% | 2023 |
| Lower middle income | 5.71% | 2023 |
Closest to Lesotho in the 2023 ranking
- Tonga — 8th of 161: 44.24%
- Uganda — 9th of 161: 44.07%
- São Tomé and Principe — 10th of 161: 43.92%
- Central African Republic — 12th of 161: 39.88%
- Tanzania — 13th of 161: 39.36%
- Benin — 14th of 161: 38.42%
What this measures
Share of current health expenditures funded from external sources. External sources compose of direct foreign transfers and foreign transfers distributed by government encompassing all financial inflows into the national health system from outside the country. External sources either flow through the government scheme or are channeled through non-governmental organizations or other schemes.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 24 values
| Year | External health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 40.46 |
| 2022 | 36.45 |
| 2021 | 44.21 |
| 2020 | 37.17 |
| 2019 | 61.9 |
| 2018 | 35.21 |
| 2017 | 26.87 |
| 2016 | 23.35 |
| 2015 | 23.65 |
| 2014 | 27.66 |
| 2013 |
External health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) in nearby economies
- Angola — 7.17% (2023)
- Benin — 38.42% (2023)
- Botswana — 6.53% (2023)
- Burkina Faso — 20.92% (2023)
- Burundi — 57.42% (2023)
- Cabo Verde — 11% (2023)
- Cameroon — 14.71% (2023)
- Central African Republic — 39.88% (2023)
- Chad — 22.35% (2023)
More health data for Lesotho
- Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 10.7% (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 11.44% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female — 400,450 (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 33.06% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male — 405,493 (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 35.19% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, total — 805,943 (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 34.1% (2025)
- Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 11.21% (2025)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Lesotho's external health expenditure (% of current health expenditure)?
- 40.46% in 2023, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2000?
- It is up 36.6 percentage points from 3.87% in 2000. The highest value was 61.9% in 2019 and the lowest 3.87% in 2000.
- How does Lesotho rank?
- 11th highest of 161 economies with data for 2023.
- Is the latest change in external health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) unusual for Lesotho?
- In 2023, Lesotho's external health expenditure (% of current health expenditure) rose 4.01 percentage points on 2022 (from 36.45% to 40.46%). Across the 22 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2022), the average change was +1.48 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 9.02 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SH.XPD.EHEX.CH.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO), uri: http://apps.who.int/nha/database Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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