Bo-'M'e le Bo-Ntate,

Kajeno, ka la 9 Motšeanong, Mokhatlo oa linaha tse kopaneng tsa Europa (European Union) e keteka letsatsi la Europe lefatšeng ka bophara. Re keteka kopano ea rona, hose tšoane ha rona, le likatleho tsa rona.

(Today, 9^th of May, the European Union celebrates the Europe Day all over the world. It is a day to celebrate our unity, our diversity and our achievements).

On Europe Day, we honour the birth of an idea that reshaped a continent and inspired the world.

Seventy-six years ago, in the aftermath of devastation, European leaders chose cooperation over conflict, solidarity over division, and a shared future over fractured pasts. The Schuman Declarationset Europe on a new path, one in which cooperation would replace conflict, and shared interests would bind former rivals into partners. It was a bold and practical vision, that peace and prosperity are strongest when built together.

From this vision, the European Unionwas born, proving that even the deepest divisions can be bridged through trust, dialogue, and mutual interest. Today, that same spirit guides our friendship with Lesotho, a nation of resilience, facing challenges from climate change to economic pressures, yet determined to build a brighter future.

The story of European integration continues to offer a powerful lesson. When European countries chose to pool their coal and steel industries, the foundations of their economies, it was not merely an economic decision, but an act of trust. It recognised that long-term stability depends on interdependence and a shared responsibility for what matters most. This lesson resonates strongly in today's global partnerships.

Europe Day invites us to look back at how far cooperation has taken us and to consider how that same spirit can guide us forward in an interconnected world.

Europe Day 2026: Standing Strong for Our Values and Our Future

Europe was built on the ideals of freedom, democracy, equality, solidarity, and collective progress, principles that today face one of their greatest tests.

As conflicts rage, authoritarianism spreads, and economic pressures mount, the European Union must not only safeguard these values at home but champion them globally. Europe Day is more than a celebration of our shared history. It is a reaffirmation of our collective resolve to defend peace, stability, and the rules-based order that protects us all.

From supporting Ukraine against unprovoked aggression to strengthening our defence capabilities and countering disinformation, the EU is taking decisive action to protect its citizens and uphold international law.

Yet Europe's responsibility does not end at its borders. A stable and prosperous neighbourhood is the bedrock of our security. This is why the EU is deeply invested in fostering resilience, reform, and economic opportunity. Enlargement remains one of our most powerful tools for spreading stability, offering partner countries a path to membership that reinforces democracy and shared prosperity.

Beyond our immediate region, the EU is forging global partnerships to address the defining challenges of our time: climate change, digital transformation, and the defence of human rights. Through initiatives such as the Global Gateway, and partnerships with the African Union, ASEAN, and the United Nations, we demonstrate that cooperation is the path to a fairer and more sustainable world.

On this Europe Day, as we celebrate the enduring partnership between Africa and the European Union, we must also speak with clarity about patterns that affect the continent's future. Across parts of Africa, Russia has presented itself as a provider of security and opportunity; promising stability, jobs and prospects for young people.

Yet too often, these promises have led to a very different reality: security situations that deteriorate rather than improve, civilians exposed to violence, and young Africans misled into pathways that take them far from opportunity and, in some cases, onto the front lines of conflicts far from home.

When these outcomes become undeniable, responsibility is not assumed but deflected, and narratives are reshaped to shift blame elsewhere. This is not the partnership Africa deserves. The European Union, by contrast, remains committed to a long-term, transparent, and people-centred approach; one that invests in sustainable development, supports peace and security in line with national ownership, and, above all, stands alongside African citizens in building a future defined not by broken promises, but by trust, dignity and shared prosperity.

With Lesotho, we are turning shared challenges into shared progress, showing that Europe's strength lies not only in its independence but in its ability to unite others around a common vision of peace, justice, and opportunity. By working alongside partners such as Lesotho, where we share common principles in multilateral fora, as well as through cooperation on security, energy, and counter-terrorism, we are contributing to a safer, more resilient global community where democracy and the rule of law prevail.

Europe Day in Lesotho is not only a commemoration of European unity, it is a celebration of partnership. It reminds us that the values which shaped the European Union are not confined by geography. These values know no borders, and nowhere is this clearer than in Lesotho, where shared principles continue to transform lives. They are lived and renewed through partnerships grounded in a common ambition for a better future.

The values that united Europe, freedom, equality, and the rule of law, are the same values that underpin our partnership with Lesotho. Yet in a world marked by rising authoritarianism, economic coercion, and climate pressures, democracy itself is under strain. In a world fractured by crisis, Europe's response must be one of strategic sovereignty: not isolation, but the capacity to choose our own path, protect our way of life, and stand with like-minded partners.

The EU and Lesotho

The partnership between the European Union and Lesotho has grown steadily over decades, rooted in trust and guided by shared priorities. Since the establishment of the EU Delegation in Maseru in 1976, our presence has evolved from a traditional development office into a comprehensive diplomatic mission. Today, we manage a multifaceted partnership encompassing political dialogue, trade, investment, and cultural exchange.

Just as European nations once pooled their resources to prevent future wars, the EU and Lesotho now pool our knowledge, resources, and determination to tackle global challenges. Lesotho, the Kingdom in the Sky, is not waiting for change. It is building it, brick by brick, stitch by stitch, solar panel by solar panel. And standing shoulder to shoulder with its Government and its people is an unwavering partner - the European Union.

Our partnership is one of shared ambition. At the heart of this effort lies a simple recognition: partnership means learning from one another, combining strengths, and building solutions that are locally grounded and globally relevant. Just as the European project itself was built through cooperation among diverse nations, so too is our engagement with Lesotho shaped by dialogue, respect, and shared ownership.

The central objective of our collaboration remains the eradication of poverty through sustainable development and fair trade. Our strategy, prioritises two pillars:

• Transforming Lesotho into a Green and Resilient Economy, ensuring Lesotho can withstand the challenges of climate change while securing sustainable access to water and renewable energy.

• Promoting good governance and building a peaceful and just society, strengthening democratic institutions, human rights, and the rule of law to build a peaceful and just society.

Ensuring that Lesotho's most precious resources serve its people first

The Kingdom's pristine highland streams feed the Orange-Senqu River Basin, earning it the nickname "the water tower of Southern Africa."

In May 2024, EU and the Government of Lesotho launched Metsi a Lesotho, a Global Gateway programme uniting EU Member States, EU institutions such as the European Investment Bank, and international partners such as UNICEF to secure water access, sanitation, and catchment management for 250 rural communities, 125 schools, and 15 clinics. Through initiatives like the Lesotho Lowlands Water Development Project Phase II and Germany's co-financing of ReNOKA, the national movement to restore land and water resources, Metsi a Lesotho is safeguarding water security for generations.

Lesotho's energy potential is as vast as its landscapes. The sun blazes over its highlands; winds sweep through its valleys; rivers carve paths through its gorges. Renewable Lesotho, another Global Gateway initiative powered by Team Europe is turning the tide. Through transformative investments in solar and wind, the programme is not only securing Lesotho's energy independence but also catalysing a green transition, one where clean electricity drives industries, powers homes, and creates jobs in even the most remote villages. As a corollary, LETSEMA, a collaboration between European and Lesotho universities, is taking the green transition further. It is a partnership between the University of Turku, Linnaeus University, the National University of Lesotho, and Bethel Business and Community Development Centre that further deepens this energy-focused collaboration. By modernising sustainable energy education, training the next generation of green energy engineers, and exploring mini-grid technologies, it is ensuring that Lesotho's energy transition is homegrown. It aims to strengthen institutional capacities, expand digital and hands-on learning, promote inclusiveness, and create green jobs, while supporting climate-change mitigation through stronger links between education, entrepreneurship, and the energy sector.

Looking back at 2025, our cooperation delivered concrete results, just naming a few:

• At rural level, under Renewable Lesotho and Metsi A Lesotho at least 564 new electricity connection were made in 2025, resulting in 2,076 additional people having access to clean electricity (including schools and health centres) and 7,171 additional people having direct access to clean water.

• The EU Rural WASH programme (EUR 15 M), co-financed and implemented by UNICEF, extended WASH services to 10 schools and 1 Health Centre, continued to revitalise the Geographic information system (GIS) system and to build the capacity of government cadre for improved planning of rural WASH.

It is about justice, ensuring that Lesotho's most precious resources serve its people.

We are not just building infrastructure.

The Architects of Tomorrow

Lesotho's greatest resource is not its water or its wind. At the heart of Lesotho's future lies its greatest asset: its young people. Together, the EU and Lesotho are investing in education, skills development, and entrepreneurship through initiatives like Erasmus+, ensuring that young Basotho can seize opportunities at home and in Europe as well as help shape their country's trajectory.

The EU supports youth in Lesotho by creating platforms for participation and dialogue, through youth grassroots organisations, promoting exchanges and mobility, and backing education and research initiatives that build skills for the modern economy.

The Lesotho Youth Power Hub, launched in 2024, empowers grassroots youth organisations, connect young Basotho digitally, and ensure that disabled youth, and rural communities have a seat at the table. A joint venture with UNICEF and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), it is carving out an inclusive, participatory, and accountable space where young Basotho can actively shape the decisions that affect their lives. Perhaps most powerfully, youth-focused CSOs are being empowered to engage robustly in policy and budget processes, voicing their views on development while promoting transparency and accountability at every level. The mission is to enhance the voices and agency of young people as critical actors in governance and development, both nationally and across the globe.

And the momentum is already building. In April 2026, a new class of the European Union global Youth Sounding Board was unveiled with 25 young visionaries, 25 diverse voices and one shared mission to place youth at the heart of the EU's global work. Among them is a young delegate from Lesotho.

The future of Lesotho is in capable hands, and the EU is proud to walk this path alongside its young partners, because no society can move forward if it leaves its youth behind.

Young people are gaining unprecedented opportunities to network, collaborate, and collectively advocate for their shared priorities.

We worked with Lesotho's education authorities to expand opportunities for higher education exchanges, civic education and vocational education and training, equipping young Basotho with skills for jobs in the digital and green economies.

Let me just recall that the first cohort of the 2-year MSc Integrated Catchment and Water Resources Management (ICWRM) programme, developed at the Water Institute of the National University of Lesotho with the support from EU and German Government, graduated in October 2025 and a second cohort of students started their studies in January 2026.

The EU's vision of an equitable Lesotho also extends to the most vulnerable children. Ntlafatsa Bana - Improvement for Children is an EU-supported project under Equitable Lesotho that strengthens social assistance for vulnerable children by upgrading the systems that manage targeting and delivery, while adding "cash plus" support such as birth registration, nutrition, water, renewable energy, and child protection services. It aims to improve the well-being of children under five and make social assistance more responsive, inclusive, and effective in Lesotho's most vulnerable communities.

Justice, Data, and Democracy: The Foundations of a Fairer Future

In the realm of governance and justice, the EU's commitment is equally clear. The EU and Lesotho are working together to strengthen Lesotho's rule of law, from modernising the justice system to expanding legal aid. Inclusive Lesotho aims at making Lesotho's democracy more stable, inclusive, and trustworthy by supporting electoral reform, civic education, voter registry improvements, and greater participation by women, youth, persons with disabilities, LGBTQI people, and rural communities. Working with partners such as International IDEA, UNDP, the IEC, Government Ministries, and civil society. It builds on recommendations from the 2022 EU Election Observation Mission to Lesotho - the first ever to come the country, complemented by a follow-up mission in November 2025 - and seeks stronger electoral administration, and broader democratic engagement.

Equitable Lesotho strengthens Lesotho's national statistical system aiming to close data gaps that hinder effective policymaking in areas such as health, education, and inclusive development. Building technical capacity at the Bureau of Statistics and across Government Ministries, it aims at establishing more inclusive and gender-sensitive data practices. The programme, implemented with Expertise France and national partners, supports evidence-based, equitable decision-making and more transparent, accountable governance.

The EU's governance and justice support in Lesotho (Support for the Reform and Strengthening of Governance in Lesotho Programme (EUR 5.15 M) focuses on strengthening the rule of law, human rights, gender equality, and institutional accountability by improving justice-sector efficiency, expanding access to legal aid, and building the capacity of oversight bodies and legal institutions and implemented with the Government, the Judiciary, Parliament, the National University of Lesotho, Lesotho's oversight institutions, and UNDP to support a fairer, more transparent, and more accessible justice system.

Between last year and this year, with EU support, the Directorate on Corruption & Economic Offences (DCEO), the Ombudsman and Legal Aid established for the first time in the country decentralised offices in remote districts, and Courts were able to organise decentralised hearings out of the capital, including for cases of SGBV, with an immediate impact on access to services and access to justice for the population.

The EU is also supporting national efforts to improve public financial management and the operationalisation of the 2023 Public Procurement Act through nationwide training and sensitisation, reaching more than 1,000 stakeholders.

The capacity of the Tax Policy Unit was reinforced in terms of structure and forecasting tools available, to support domestic revenue mobilisation, helping to create the fiscal space needed to invest in social services and infrastructure.

Trade: From Maseru's Markets to Amsterdam's Runways

If energy and the youth are the backbone of Lesotho's future, trade is its beating heart. In 2023, EU-Lesotho bilateral trade soared to €408 million, making the EU the Kingdom's second-largest trading partner at 16.5%. Through 'Everything but Arms' trade agreements and the EU-SADC Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), celebrating its 10^th anniversary on 10 June 2026, Lesotho enjoys duty-free and preferential access to European markets, unlocking economic potential that once seemed out of reach.

The EU is providing support to local SMEs and the Ministry of Trade to ease exports, in key sectors such as textile, facilitating buyer-supplier linkages and strengthening the international profile of Lesotho's apparel industry. Maseru hosts now a fully functional business hub for SMEs and young designers, and we were proud to contribute, together with our partners, to the realisation of the first high-level fashion show showcasing Basotho textiles MSMEs products.

As an example, the Basotho Take Insyd/Owt Creatives fashion brand made history in April as the first African brand ever invited to Kingpins Show in Amsterdam, the world's premier denim festival. There, they showcased a circular fashion revolution, upcycling denim with laser technology from Jeanologia and collaborating with Levi Strauss to redefine sustainability in style. And Insyd/Owt is just the beginning. The Regional Value Chains Lesotho (RVCL+) project, co-funded by the EU and Germany, Lesotho's niche exports such as rosehip, medicinal herbs, essential oils are finding their way to European shelves while empowering youth-led agrifood and textiles businesses to conquer international markets.

Now, the RVCL+ project is turning Lesotho's trade dreams into reality.

A Partnership for the Ages

Yet the true strength of partnership lies not only in projects or programmes, but in the enduring commitment to walk this path together. In a world that feels increasingly uncertain, that commitment matters more than ever. Climate change is reshaping landscapes and livelihoods. Economic pressures are testing resilience. Global tensions remind us how fragile progress can be. These challenges are interconnected and shared and they cannot be addressed in isolation.

Our partnership continues to evolve. It is no longer defined solely by cooperation between governments. Increasingly, it brings together civil society, the private sector, and local communities, recognising that lasting change is built through inclusive engagement.

The EU Delegation is the sole representation of the Union based in Lesotho, but the programmes it implements are made possible thanks to the contributions of its Member States. Each and every one of the 27 Member States contributes to the budget of the EU and is a reliable and committed partner of Lesotho.

Today, 9^th of May, we mark the Europe Day within the broader Europe Month celebrations.

We started the month with a Structured Dialogue with Civil Society Organisations; we will continue throughout the month with a number of activities organised under the numerous EU-funded projects in Maseru, Leribe, Mohale's Hoek, Qacha's Nek and Ha Ramarothole.

Next week, the second edition of the Lesotho Energy Access Dialogue will bring together sectoral experts and private sector under the theme Moving from Commitments to Action. Organised by the European multi-donor programme GET.invest and the National University of Lesotho Energy Research Centre (NUL ERC), the initiative is supported by Renewable Lesotho, a joint Team Europe initiative of the European Union, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the and other partners, and the Department of Energy of Lesotho (DoE).

The traditional Lesotho-EU Partnership Dialogue will also attract to Maseru Ambassadors and diplomats from EU Member States based in South Africa to review together with the Government of Lesotho the overall mutual relations.

A training for media and academia on the SADC-EU Economic Partnership Agreement will also mark the 10^th year anniversary of this remarkable economic agreement.

The whole month will be focused on launching new impactful initiatives, such as the inauguration of the Legal Aid Office in Qacha's Nek, the launching of the Independent Electoral Commission Civic and Voter Strategy and Voter Registration strategy, as well as kicking off the structures for continuous training of legal and judicial officers. But also meeting partners and witnessing the impact of EU partnership on the ground.

A calendar of EU month activities and events is available HERE.

Happy Europe Day.

Kea leboha.

Khotso! Pula! Nala!