Travel through the Districts of Qacha's Nek and Quthing with LNI!!

Qacha’s Nek, captured by our dear friend, Justice Kalebe. Justice is an incredible humanitarian/travel photographer who captures the most stunning and real sides of Lesotho. We highly encourage you to check out all of his amazing photography and incredible work for the village of Ha Sekantsi by following him on social media, here.

The seventh district on our list in Lesotho to explore is Qacha’s Nek!! 

History: The camptown at Qacha's Nek was established in 1888 and the name stems from Chief Moorosi's son, Qacha who had settled in the region. There are still Baphuthi and Xhosa speaking communities in the district. The district is home to both Lesotho's only snake park and Sehlabathebe National Park (65 square kilometers), which was established in 1969. In addition to its natural beauty, the park is home to an abundant amount of prehistoric rock art. In 2008, the park was incorporated into UNESCO's Maloti-Drakensberg World Heritage Site. The district is also home to California redwood trees, some of which exceed 25 meters in height. In 2006, the district had a population of almost 70,000, which is the smallest of Lesotho's ten districts. 

Things to do: Explore Sehlabathebe National Park and visit Qacha’s Nek Snake Park

LNI in Qacha’s Nek: Lesotho Nutrition Initiative has been sending meals to our partner in Qacha’s Nek for 2 years. The rate of stunting in children aged 0-5 in the district is 32.5%. We currently have 1 beautiful partner in Qacha’s Nek that we send our meals to: Baylor Pediatric Clinic. Our Basotho partner is doing amazing work in their community addressing the issue of malnutrition. The 10,476 meals that we’ve sent to Qacha’s Nek since 2020 has been essential in helping them excel in their work. 

*A note from one of LNI’s Basotho partners: “Baylor Foundation Lesotho clients have benefited from LNI project meals since 2019. Currently, 277 beneficiaries are enrolled in the program across all Baylor Foundation Lesotho sites (Maseru, Mohale’s Hoek, Leribe, Butha Buthe, Mokhotlong, and Qacha’s Nek). These beneficiaries include exclusively breastfeeding mothers with food insecurity or inadequate breast milk production; under 5 children following discharge from nutrition rehabilitation programs; and others with significant food insecurity, providing micro- and macro-nutrient supplementation for these vulnerable beneficiaries.” - Lineo Thahane, Executive Director at Baylor

Quthing, captured by our dear friend, Justice Kalebe. Justice is an incredible humanitarian/travel photographer who captures the most stunning and real sides of Lesotho. We highly encourage you to check out all of his amazing photography and incredible work for the village of Ha Sekantsi by following him on social media, here. 

The eighth district to explore is Quthing!! 

History: This district, home to chief Moorosi and the Baphuti, was incorporated into Lesotho by Moshoeshoe I. In 1877, Cape Officials carved Quthing from the district of Cornet Spruit (Mohale's Hoek), appointing an official to oversee the Baphuti. In 1878, Moorosi orchestrated the prison break of his son, Doda, which led to Basotho forces being ordered to attack. Eventually joined by Colonial troops, Moorosi's mountain fortress fell and the chief was killed in battle. Quthing continues to be home to many non-Sotho speaking clans such as the Bathepu. The district capital is Monyeni, which means "place of wind."  The district is home to the Quting Dinosaur footprints and the Masitise cave house built by D.F Ellenberger in 1866.  In 2006, the district boosted a population of 125,000. 

Things to do: Hike to see the Quthing dinosaur footprints, visit Masitise Cave house, hike Mount Moorosi, and visit Letseng la Letsie 

LNI in Quthing: Lesotho Nutrition Initiative has been sending meals to our partner in Quthing for 3 years. The rate of stunting in children aged 0-5 in the district is 34.1%. We currently have 1 beautiful partner in Quthing that we send our meals to: Mositi Health Clinic. This organization is doing amazing work in their community addressing the issue of malnutrition. The 15,120 meals that we’ve sent to Quthing since 2019 have been essential in helping them excel in their work. 

*A note from one of LNI’s Basotho partners: “I would like to thank you very much for your support of nutritional food. My patients are happy and appreciate all the effort you are doing in giving them nutritious meals. Both adults and children are benefiting a lot from them; as this area is remote, people are not working and do not eat nutritious food. Many children suffer from malnutrition. The meals have made a great impact on Mositi residents as we are combating malnutrition and hunger.” -Sister Blandina Matibi, Nurse at Mositi Health Clinic 

We hope you enjoyed learning about Qacha’s Nek and Quthing and our partners, within. If you are interested in making a donation to support our work of combating malnutrition in Lesotho, you can make a gift, here.