About Us
Ministry History
The Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture comprises of four departments, namely, Tourism, Environment, Culture and Library and Archives. The National Archives was established in 1958 under the Office of the Government Secretary, but soon transferred to the Department of Information. In 1982, it was transferred to the Ministry of Education under the Department of Culture. Its origin can be traced back from 1965 when the Department of Culture started off as Sports and Culture within the Ministry of Education. In late 1960s, the Department of Culture was transferred to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. In 1970, the Department of Culture was returned to the Ministry of Education until 1986, when it was transferred to the Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Culture. In 1972 a department of tourism was under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism.
In 1984, the Government of Lesotho established SADC Tourism Coordinating Unit (TCU) which was responsible for amongst others issues of tourism, as it was an emerging economic driving force in southern Africa. Between the years 1986 and 1992 during the Military rule, the Department of Tourism was established under the Ministry of Trade, Industry, Marketing and Co-operatives.
Lesotho is the southernmost landlocked country in the world and is entirely surrounded by South Africa.
The National Environment Secretariat (NES) was established in 1994 in the office of the Prime Minister after the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Brazil in 1992 as a coordinating office for national Agenda 21. In 1998 NES was moved to the then Ministry of Environment, Gender and Youth Affairs (MEGYA).
Following the realignment of ministries in 2002, the Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Culture was also restructured resulting in the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment through Legal Notice No. 138 of 2002. The Ministry was later re-named the Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture per Legal Notice No. 46 of 2003. The Department of Sports was moved to the Ministry of Environment, Gender and Youth Affairs and renamed the Ministry of Gender, Sports, Youth and Recreation.
The Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture (MTEC) was initially composed of three (3) departments, namely: Tourism, Environment and Culture. In 2005, the Department of Culture was restructured and resulted in the birth of The Department of Library and Archives.
MISSION
The Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture is committed to promote environmentally and culturally sustainable development, making Lesotho the number one tourism destination in the region through provision of high quality service and creation of an enabling environment for the private sector driven and community based tourism development.
VISION
To become a leading ministry in ensuring a well-managed environment and preserved cultural heritage, making Lesotho a quality eco-tourism destination for the betterment of the livelihood of the Basotho.