The local governance of COVID-19: Insight from Lesotho’s response and mitigation

Abstract

Pandemics are deemed accidents of history. Their control and impacts span over economic, social, geopolitical and ideological considerations. This paper attempts to answer how Lesotho responded to the COVID-19 pandemic, which factors hindered local-level implementation of COVID-19 response and mitigation, and how the kingdom’s local government disaster preparedness can be improved. A desktop study supported by virtual consultations with relevant players was conducted to gain insight for this study. Content and thematic analysis established a lack of administrative and financial decentralization in Lesotho, which had detrimental implications for COVID-19 response and mitigation.