Benin

presidential republic

name: Porto-Novo (constitutional capital); Cotonou (seat of government) geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name Porto-Novo is Portuguese for "new port"; Cotonou means "mouth of the river of death" in the native Fon language

chief of state: President Patrice TALON (since 6 April 2016) head of government: President Patrice TALON (since 6 April 2016) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president election/appointment process: president directly elected by absolute-majority popular vote in 2 rounds, if needed, for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term) most recent election date: 11 April 2021 election results: 2021: Patrice TALON reelected president in the ; percent of vote - Patrice TALON (independent) 86.3%, Alassane SOUMANOU (FCBE) 11.4%, Corentin KOHOUE (The Democrats) 2.3% 2016: Patrice TALON elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Lionel ZINSOU (FCBE) 28.4%, Patrice TALON (independent) 24.8%, Sebastien AJAVON (independent) 23%, Abdoulaye Bio TCHANE (ABT) 8.8%, Pascal KOUPAKI (NC) 5.9%, other 9.1%; percent of vote in second round - Patrice TALON 65.4%, Lionel ZINSOU 34.6% expected date of next election: 12 April 2026 note: the president is both head of state and head of government

legislature name: National Assembly (Assemblée nationale) legislative structure: unicameral number of seats: 109 (all directly elected) electoral system: proportional representation scope of elections: full renewal term in office: 4 years most recent election date: 1/8/2023 parties elected and seats per party: Progressive Union for Renewal (53); Republican Block (BR) (28); Democrats (28) percentage of women in chamber: 26.6% expected date of next election: January 2026 note: seat total includes 24 seats reserved for women

highest court(s): Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (consists of the chief justice and 16 justices organized into an administrative division, judicial chamber, and chamber of accounts); Constitutional Court or Cour Constitutionnelle (consists of 7 members, including the court president); High Court of Justice (consists of the Constitutional Court members, 6 members appointed by the National Assembly, and the Supreme Court president) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court president and judges appointed by the president of the republic on the advice of the National Assembly; judges appointed for single renewable 5-year terms; Constitutional Court members - 4 appointed by the National Assembly and 3 by the president of the republic; members appointed for single renewable 5-year terms; other members of the High Court of Justice elected by the National Assembly; member tenure NA subordinate courts: Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel; Court for the Repression of Economic and Terrorism Infractions (CRIET) or Cour de R pression des Infractions Economiques et du Terrorisme; district courts; village courts; Assize courts note: jurisdiction of the High Court of Justice is limited to cases of high treason by the national president or members of the government while in office

history: previous 1946, 1958 (pre-independence); latest adopted by referendum 2 December 1990, promulgated 11 December 1990 amendment process: proposed concurrently by the president of the republic (after a decision in the Council of Ministers) and the National Assembly; consideration of drafts or proposals requires at least three-fourths majority vote of the Assembly membership; passage requires approval in a referendum unless approved by at least four-fifths majority vote of the Assembly membership; constitutional articles affecting territorial sovereignty, the republican form of government, and secularity of Benin cannot be amended

ACP, AfDB, AU, CD, ECOWAS, Entente, FAO, FZ, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MNJTF, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNHRC, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNOOSA, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

0.7% of GDP (2024 est.) 0.5% of GDP (2023 est.) 0.7% of GDP (2022 est.) 0.7% of GDP (2021 est.) 0.5% of GDP (2020 est.)

Beninese Armed Forces (Forces Armees Beninoises, FAB; aka Benin Defense Forces): Army, Air Force, National Navy, National Guard (aka Republican Guard) Ministry of Interior and Public Security: Republican Police (Police Republicaine, DGPR) (2025) note: FAB is under the Ministry of Defense and is responsible for external security and supporting the DGPR in maintaining internal security, which has primary responsibility for enforcing law and maintaining order; the DGPR was formed in 2018 through a merger of police and gendarmes

18-30 years of age for voluntary and selective compulsory military service for men and women; compulsory service is 18 months (2025)

the Beninese Armed Forces (FAB) are responsible for defense against external aggression and may be required to assist in maintaining public order and internal security under conditions defined by the country's president; it may also participate in economic development projects a key focus for the security forces of Benin is countering infiltrations into the country by terrorist groups tied to al-Qa'ida and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) operating just over the border from northern Benin in Burkina Faso and Niger; in 2022, the Benin Government said it was "at war" after suffering a series of attacks from these groups; later that same year, President TALON pledged to increase the size of the military, modernize military equipment, and establish forward operating bases; the military since 2022 has also deployed thousands of additional troops to the north of the country to better secure the border region; in addition, the FAB participates in the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and ISIS-West Africa in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeastern border (2025)

$56.424 billion (2024 est.) $52.51 billion (2023 est.) $49.374 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

$3,900 (2024 est.) $3,700 (2023 est.) $3,600 (2022 est.) note: data in 2021 dollars

7.5% (2024 est.) 6.4% (2023 est.) 6.3% (2022 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

1.2% (2024 est.) 2.7% (2023 est.) 1.4% (2022 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

49.7% of GDP (2016 est.)

$4.511 billion (2023 est.) $4.271 billion (2022 est.) $4.154 billion (2021 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

$6.189 billion (2023 est.) $5.296 billion (2022 est.) $4.925 billion (2021 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

1.8% (2024 est.) 1.7% (2023 est.) 1.7% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

revenues: $2.024 billion (2019 est.) expenditures: $2.101 billion (2019 est.)

textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement

cassava, yams, maize, oil palm fruit, cotton, soybeans, rice, pineapples, tomatoes, chillies/peppers (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

total: 15,186,090 (2025 est.) male: 7,500,771 female: 7,685,319

3.26% (2025 est.)

0-14 years: 45.3% (male 3,360,027/female 3,294,201) 15-64 years: 52.2% (male 3,727,040/female 3,951,786) 65 years and over: 2.5% (2024 est.) (male 166,191/female 197,807)

39.82 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

7.45 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

0.22 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

total population: 63 years (2024 est.) male: 61.1 years female: 65 years

urban population: 50.1% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 3.74% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

Fon and related 38.4%, Adja and related 15.1%, Yoruba and related 12%, Bariba and related 9.6%, Fulani and related 8.6%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4.3%, Dendi and related 2.9%, other 0.9%, foreigner 1.9% (2013 est.)

55 languages; French (official); Fon (a Gbe language), Yom (a Gur language) and Yoruba are the most important indigenous languages in the south; half a dozen regionally important languages in the north, including Bariba and Fulfulde

Muslim 27.7%, Roman Catholic 25.5%, Protestant 13.5% (Celestial 6.7%, Methodist 3.4%, other Protestant 3.4%), Vodoun 11.6%, other Christian 9.5%, other traditional religions 2.6%, other 2.6%, none 5.8% (2013 est.)

total population: 51.4% (2022 est.) male: 62.6% (2022 est.) female: 41.5% (2022 est.)

small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber

Jama at Nusrat al Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM); Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (ISIS-GS); Boko Haram note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide

refugees: 23,225 (2024 est.) IDPs: 12,501 (2024 est.)

10 (2025)

total: 438 km (2014) narrow gauge: 438 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge

total: 6 (2023) by type: other 6

total subscriptions: 18.2 million (2024 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 126 (2024 est.)

percent of population: 32% (2023 est.)