[1][4] The country's language policy promotes bilingualism,[5] and Chapter 1 of the Constitution of Lesotho states:[6] The official languages of Lesotho shall be Sesotho and English and, accordingly, no instrument or transaction shall be invalid by reason only that it is expressed or conducted in one of those languages.Sesotho is the first language of more than 90 percent of the population[7] and is "used widely as a medium of communication" in day-to-day speech.

[8] English is reserved for official interactions,[8] such as "government and administration",[9] although the use of Sesotho in politics, religion, and the mass media is growing.

[9][11] Competence in English is "particularly important ... for educational, political, social and economic transactions in the subcontinent"[12] and facilitates obtaining employment within Lesotho and abroad.

[13] Although "efforts are made to ensure that Basotho children" learn to read, speak and write English,[13] many Basotho complete only "basic primary education [and] remain monolingual in Sesotho".

[9] A minority of Basotho, estimated to number 248,000 as of 1993[update], speak Zulu, one of the eleven official languages of South Africa.