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The capital city of the state of Lesotho is called Maseru. The location of Maseru is at the edge of Lesotho and South Africa. The town of Maseru was initially a police camp before the arrival of British who made it be a capital city of Lesotho in the year 1869. Maseru has about 253,000 inhabitants with an area of approximately 139 kilometers square.

History

Maseru city was formerly an administrative center of the state from the year 1869 to 1871. The rule that made Basutoland similar to the rest of territories in Lesotho led to the Gun war and destruction of Maseru structures in 1881. Basutoland acquired independence in 1966 as the kingdom of Lesotho and Maseru became the capital city of the state. Maseru was a very small town in Lesotho before independence but later grew rapidly after 1966 when the state acquired independence.

Infrastructure

Roads are the principal means of transportation from one point to another in Maseru city. The first road constructed was the road connecting the Royal Palace in Maseru and Mejametalana Airport. Other roads were then constructed to join other parts of the country and even to South Africa. Air transport is also used in the city. The Moshoeshoe International airport is the main airport in the city.

Economy

The economy of Maseru city is growing at an alarming rate due to a lot of foreign investments and tourism. The administration of the town has made notable efforts to repair the city after its destruction by the riots in 1998 political violence. The main economic activity in the city is trading. The business carried out in the city is both small scale and large scale. The primary source of revenue in the town taxes from these businesses. There is few number of processing industries like flour mills and other manufacturing industries in the town. The textile manufacturing industry which was financially maintained by Chinese in the city collapsed in the year 2004. The current major produces in the city are carpets, candles, and mohair.

Climate

The city of Maseru experiences temperate climate. The summers are warm or hot sometimes, but winters are cold especially in the nights. The maximum temperature during summer is 28 degrees Celsius, and minimum during winter is one degree Celsius. The rainfall in the city is about 559 mm per annum.

Tourism

There are notable tourists’ attractions in Maseru town like Lancer’s Gap, Afriski resort, Katse dam and Sani Pass. The hotels in the city provide accommodation and other services to the local and foreign tourists.

Sports

Maseru city has sports’ clubs in which athletics and football matches are conducted. The main stadium in the town is known as Setsoto Stadium. The footballers mostly use this stadium, but sometimes athletes use it for major events. The capacity of the stadium is about 24000 people. There are 12 successful football clubs in Maseru town. This is because the administration of the Maseru town provides financial support to these football clubs.