Amid global flux, Lesotho charts its diplomatic course
As Minister Mpotjoane explains foreign policy during global shifts
An ever-changing geopolitical landscape necessitates dynamic foreign policy, a cornerstone of international cooperation. Like many nations, Lesotho navigates this complex trajectory shaped by diverse actors – states, regional bodies, continental organizations, and international institutions – of which it is an active member. This engagement is particularly crucial given the ongoing work of the country’s High Commissioners and Ambassadors abroad. Accordingly, Foreign Affairs Minister Lejone Mpotjoane (LM) recently sat down with Public Eye reporter, Motsamai Mokotjo (PE), to discuss these global shifts and other pertinent matters relating to Lesotho’s foreign policy.
Below is an excerpt of the interview.
PE: You have been foreign affairs minister for close to two years now, how has the journey been?
LM: This journey hasn’t been easy as a foreign affairs minister when you attend a lot of international meetings. Our country is a member of a lot of international organisations, ranging from SADC, SACU (Southern African Customs Union), African Union, Commonwealth, Organisation for African Caribbean and Pacific States and the United Nations. It’s an immense and technical task which requires vigilance.
When you are foreign minister, you are the face of your country internationally, meaning wherever I am, our flag is hoisted. Thus I need to, wherever, give our foreign policy position. It wasn’t easy, especially since we are novices in governance.
My duty is to transform this ministry for the benefit of Basotho.
PE: Your predecessors, what has been their advice/guidance to you since you assumed the reins…if there has been any?
LM: Yes, I have had the honour to meet with them. As a governance practitioner, I know that I need to ask those with experience…I have spoken to ‘Matšepo Ramakoae and Monyane Moleleki. I also had meetings with those who served as ambassadors and with the ministry’s staff in a bid to understand how things operate.
One of my first engagements was to meet with ambassadors from different countries and with development partners stationed in the country to have a feel of the challenges they experience.
But in the two and a half years I have been here, I am now part of the veterans of this ministry. In the region, Angola’s foreign minister is the only one who came before me, as for the rest, they found here.
On the issue of consistent changes of ministers in this portfolio, I personally believe it doesn’t help us at all. Every there is a change of government starts matters anew.
PE: While on the issue of changing ministers, there has been speculation that Prime Minister Ntsokoane Matekane wanted to move you from Foreign Affairs to the Ministry of Energy…is there truth to that?
LM: (Laughing) I don’t know the prime minister’s thoughts. I will only know them when he has communicated with me saying ‘Man move from here to there.’ It’s just a rumour.
My vision and what I know is that for the CEO and management to make worthwhile progress, they need to be given time. I am not an advocate of too many changes.
PE: One of the promises you made when you came into the ministry was to establish a professional foreign service. How far are you regarding that measure?
LM: We are lucky that this is contained in the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution for it to be part of the law. From there we want to establish the Lesotho Institute of Diplomacy, an organisation of diplomats which will include people who have been to foreign missions and those working in the ministry as well as students with an intention of becoming diplomats. We will accept them all in the body.
Our mission will lead foreign policy and technical support on how issues need to be handled. They write research papers and then advise the ministry. From there we need to collaborate with NUL (National University of Lesotho) to establish a Centre for Diplomacy where diplomats will be trained. Our staff should also be trained, in other countries there are certificates for international relations offered.
PE: There’s has been criticism from some quarters that you are continuing with the trend of hiring unqualified people to head the country’s foreign missions…can you respond to this?
LM: It’s not true! If you have time to assess our database for people in foreign missions, two of them were previously directors at foreign affairs. It says they are experts. Others have worked outside the country. Indeed, people have to be politically aligned to serve the mandate of the government of the day.
We come from a time where positions were created for people’s qualifications to suit vacancies. You will find that there’s a post for a third secretary as an accounting job, but you find that the person holding such do not have the required qualifications. Those returning home are such kind of people.
It’s the past governments that used to delegate those types of individuals.
PE: Last week you summoned the country’s ambassadors and high commissioners here to be briefed, what was the basis of those engagements?
LM: Those consultations need to happen frequently. The world is dynamic; hence, we needed to call them in in a bid to give them a new mandate. You may find that in a year, in some countries, they (government and high commissioners) meet twice in a year. The last time we had one such gathering was in 2017.
I am sure you saw what happened when the army wanted new recruits. Unemployment is really bad, crime is skyrocketing, and corruption is high. When you make a diagnosis of these issues, it is due to low productivity. There are too many imports; our money is being eroded.
As a government, we summoned them (high commissioners) to inform them that our focus is to improve agriculture. We want to build agriculture aggregation centres in communities just like you have with wool and mohair. We have also asked to find us technical and institutional support for the agriculture ministry.
Another issue they have been mandated to undertake is focus in the energy sector. We have the sun which other states wish they could have. We need to generate electricity via solar. We have a lot of water, which can generate electricity. We are also at a very high altitude, meaning we possess a lot of wind, which can generate electricity. It’s a good mix of renewable energy.
Lesotho has mountains and valleys, we need to attract tourists. You will remember we have offered a visa-free stay for European Union countries. When they land here, they are bringing in money. Hospitality is a huge sector which can grow the economy. Other countries count tourists in their millions.
PE: On the visa exemption, there’s an argument that it should be reciprocal…what do you think?
LM: We have started negotiations for us to also be exempted. We need to agree that Lesotho needs those countries more than us. For it is to attract those people to come here, that is why we have taken the first step. If we were to enter into those negotiations, we would take five years without reaching an agreement.
PE: Some diplomatic heads’ contracts are coming to an end, what will the recruitment process entail if it takes place?
LM: We have started that process of recruiting new ones, making a valuation of qualifications and ultimately appointing those who are fit. Hiring an ambassador is a political deployment; we cannot just open it saying ‘we are hiring.’ There’s no country where that happens, you will know in the future when we have replaced them; then you can make your own assessment.
PE: There’s criticism from critics that alternatives such as holding meetings virtually are available. Can you please address why there was a need to have meetings face-to-face?
LM: Giving a mandate is very difficult, it requires us as government, the ambassadors, the ministries, the prime minister and the King Letsie III to meet. Most times we do hold virtual meetings. But on this issue of taking the mandate, we saw it fit to engage face-to-face. In a virtual meeting, an individual can just put on the device and carry on with other business.
Ambassadors had to be here so they can understand exactly our standpoint as a government. If we make an analysis of costs, we see it proper.
PE: Still on the same issue, there are conflicts in parts of Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo. what is the stance since there were accusations levelled against Prime Minister Matekane that he intends to deploy the army to Goma?
LM: The issue of deploying the army there hasn’t been discussed. SADC is the one that deploys, not Lesotho. We worked together to man the head office in Goma. However, those who sent soldiers – our country wasn’t part. We will not deploy them without SADC, we are part of the region, we can’t just wake up one day and send the army to another country.
PE: This comes up since there are allegations that the prime minister has mining interests there?
LM: Let us throw that matter away. There’s no truth to that; he doesn’t have an interest in those mines. Furthermore, there’s nowhere he can deploy our army to protect his personal interests.
PE: Regionally, there are manoeuvres by incumbents in Zambia and Zimbabwe to amend the constitutions of their respective countries to increase presidents’ term in office. What is our stance since we are part of the same bloc, the SADC?
LM: We support countries that align with their constitutions because if it doesn’t happen one is likely to start wars in those states. We are saying to those leaders ‘If the constitution says they should take two terms, that is what they should do.’ But if there are amendments, citizens will state how this should happen. We would like for them to protect their countries and uphold democracy as per their respective constitutions.
PE: Closer to home, sceptics have lashed at the blasé manner in which you engage with South Africa, especially during the recent binational meeting. Do you think the criticism is justified?
LM: A binational commission (BNC) is the highest relationship in international affairs where the heads of governments meet at least once a year together with ministers, where relations between the two are reviewed. Our relationship with South Africa (SA) is kind of a special one since we are completely surrounded by them.
That BNC is more fruitful for us than SA. That is why you will notice that for a meeting to take place, we as the government, initiate it. If it doesn’t happen, Basotho will suffer. We are in the process of signing a BNC with Botswana, we have started negotiations with them.
If you check, there were some cases of xenophobia in SA; all those attacks against Basotho didn’t succeed. Why do you think they fail? That is because where they are planned, there’s a Mosotho who says ‘This issue of making my people suffer will not happen.’
