Six days after Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili lost a confidence vote in parliament, Lesotho King, Letsie III, has agreed to dissolve parliament, with elections to follow within 90 days.

According to Ceoafrica, a number of defections by ruling-coalition lawmakers to the opposition had badly weakened support for Mr Mosisili.

His Democratic Congress came to power two years ago by uniting with smaller parties against Thomas Thabane's All Basotho Congress.

Analysts are of the opinion that the small landlocked country of 2 million people, which has been hit by several coups since independence from the UK in 1966, appears set for a period of political instability.