This is the first comprehensive economic history of the Basotho people of Southern Africa (in colonial Basutoland, then Lesotho) and spans from the 1820s to the present day. The book documents what the Basotho have done on their own account, focusing on their systematic exclusion from trade and their political efforts to insert themselves into their country’s commerce. Although the colonial and post-colonial periods were unfavourable to the Basotho, they have, before and after colonial rule, launched impressive commercial initiatives of their own, which bring hope for greater development and freedom in their struggle for economic independence.

Over the past decade, the United States has jump-started an historic health transformation in poor villages, communities, and countries worldwide. American engagement, in partnership with others, has saved and lifted human lives on a scale never known before. In the past, such impressive humanitarian gains might have been seen merely as 'soft, ' yet we now understand their benefits include advancing economic development and regional stability. More than ever, we realize that U.S. global health programs are a vital tool in a smart power approach to promoting U.S. interests around the world. It has also revealed how U.S. health investments advance America's standing and interests in the world.