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CountriesWestern AfricaBenin
Country record

Benin

Benin reports more, and more often, than most of the continent. Eight of ten datasets here reach 2025; two stop earlier, and this page shows where.

API
Where Benin ranks in 2024, of 53 · change since 2014
25thGDP$21.5bn5
11thMobile126 per 10012
31stInternet use34.0%7
Last updated 1 Aug 2026 · World Bank · IMF · UNHCR
NigerNigeriaTogoBurkina FasoPorto-NovoCotonou
Four land borders, 121 km of coast. Hover a neighbour to compare.
CapitalPorto-NovoLanguagesFrenchCurrencyWest African CFA franc · XOFArea112,622 km²

At a glance

14.8 million people, half of them under 18, in an economy of $27.8bn in 2026, growing 7.0% a year.

Benin’s economy is measured monthly and its households are measured by census. That split runs through everything below: exchange rates and market prices arrive within days, while access to water and power is estimated years after the fact.

One of the four figures beside this is modelled rather than reported. The page marks which is which everywhere, so a number you cite is a number you can defend.

How current the record is
811
Current to 2025To 2024Stop by 2023
Population14.8mpeople · Reported · 2025
Median age18.2years · Modelled · 2026
GDP per capita$1,809current US$ · Reported · 2026
Internet use34.0%of population · Reported · 2024
Coverage — ten datasets, ten years

Eight of ten datasets carry a 2025 figure. Climate stops at 2024; policies stops at 2022. Hatching is the absence of a figure, not a low one.

’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Indicators
FX rates
Markets
Trade
Government
Policies
Prices
Power
Climate
Humanitarian
ReportedModelledNo figure
/v1/data?country_code=bj
Goods trade balanceExports and imports, US$ billions
03620142024ImportsExports
Imports have run at roughly 20% above exports over the decade; the band is the deficit.World BankSources →
Where exports goTop destinations, 2025
Bangladesh$0.34bnIndia$0.07bnUnited States$0.05bn
Bangladesh takes more of Benin’s goods than India and United States combined.Trade partners recordSources →
Where imports come fromTop origins, 2025
India$0.87bnChina$0.64bnFrance$0.35bn
India supplies 47% of the recorded imports.Trade partners recordSources →
GDP per capitaCurrent US$, not inflation-adjusted
$800$1.3k$1.8k20142024$1,485
Reported every year, including the 2022 dip in dollar terms.IMFSources →
InflationAnnual change in consumer prices
0%2%4%201420241.2%
1.2% in 2024; the decade’s peak was 3.0% in 2020.IMFSources →
Remittances receivedUS$ billions, current prices
00.20.420142024$0.34bn
Stops at 2023; the line ends where the record ends.World BankSources →
Goods exports by value2025 · top categories
Animal originated…$0.42bnMeat$0.14bnLive animals$0.09bn
Animal originated… alone is 65% of the recorded top categories; services are excluded here.Trade products recordSources →
Public debtGross central government debt, share of GDP
0%40%80%2014202460.5%
Up 38 points since 2014.IMFSources →
Franc per US dollarAnnual average exchange rate
40060080020142024606.3
Lost 11% of its dollar value in 2022, then recovered in 2023.World Bank GEMSources →
Access to electricityShare of population with a connection
0501002014202459.0%
Up 25 points in a decade — the fastest-moving service in the record.World BankSources →
Under-five mortalityDeaths before age five, per 1,000 live births
60901202014202474.7
Falling steadily; modelled between census years.WHOSources →
Life expectancy at birthYears
5065802014202461.0 yrs
The 2021 dip is the pandemic, in vermilion.World BankSources →
Mobile subscriptionsPer 100 people · 100 marks parity
05010015020142024126
More subscriptions than people since 2022.World BankSources →
Urban populationShare living in urban areas
40%50%60%2014202452.5%
Reported every year the record allows.World BankSources →
Who holds powerSeven heads of state across eight terms since 1980, and every office beneath the current one as the record holds it
/v1/government/overview/bj
19802026
The executive as of
Oct 2026Where it stands

Romuald Wadagni took office as President of the Republic of Benin on 24 May 2026. The record holds 16 current ministers and one junior minister.

ElectedAppointed
Romuald WadagniRomuald WadagniPresident of the Republic of Beninin office since May 2026
Mariam Chabi TalataMariam Chabi TalataVice President of Beninin office since May 2021
No third seatno second office is recorded for this date
17 seats confirmed current · 14 recorded for 2025
16Ministersone per portfolio · as the record holds them for this date
AgricultureEnergySmall and Medium EnterprisesTourism, Culture and the ArtsDecentralization and Local GovernmentInteriorIndustry and CommerceSocial Affairs and MicrofinanceHealthDigital Technology and DigitalizationWater and MiningLabour and Public ServiceLiving Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentNursery and Primary EducationPlanning and DevelopmentHigher Education and Scientific Research
1Junior ministersministers of state, delegates and deputy ministers as the record holds them
Development and Coordination of Government Action
Outside the chain
—No subnational recordgovernors and provincial offices are not held

The record follows the national executive only. Governors, provincial administrators and other offices outside this chain are not held for Benin.

Read this first Coverage varies by country and institution. Recorded offices are not a complete government roster. Marked current is a source claim. Missing dates are shown as uncertain. Office groups are classifications. Connections are recorded Wikidata relationships, not verified reporting lines.

Wikidata · offices, terms and their dates as the record classifies them · structure as of 18 Oct 2026 · Portraits: Wikimedia Commons, licences per imageAll offices and people →Data and sources →
Benin
The whole table

Nine measures, with the year each one was taken

Reporting periods differ by source
IndicatorLatestYear2014ChangeCertaintySource
Access to electricity59.0%202434.1%+24.9 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Basic drinking water51.9%202450.1%+1.8 ptsReportedUNICEF
Basic sanitation5.9%20244.0%+1.9 ptsReportedUNICEF
Clean cooking fuel8.0%20245.0%+3.0 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Under-five mortality74.7202498.4−23.6 per 1,000ModelledWHO
Life expectancy at birth61.0 yrs202459.0 yrs+2.0 yrsReportedWorld Bank
Urban population53.4%202545.3%+8.1 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Internet use34.0%20246.0%+28.0 ptsReportedWorld Bank
Mobile subscriptions126 / 100202479 / 100+47ReportedWorld Bank

Every indicator we hold for Benin

154 of 207 indicators carry a figure for Benin. Each opens its own page with the full history, the source and the API request.

Economy
Trade
Development
Demographics
Health
Child Welfare
Education
Food Security
Agriculture
Governance
Humanitarian
Technology
Infrastructure
Energy
Climate

How Benin ranks across Africa

Benin's position on 153 indicators, among the countries with a recent figure for each. A higher place means a higher value, not a better result. Each links to the full ranking.

Economy

Trade

Development

Demographics

Health

Child Welfare

Education

Food Security

Agriculture

Governance

Humanitarian

Technology

Infrastructure

Energy

Climate

Compare Benin with other African countries

The record for every other African country, by region, and side-by-side comparisons where we publish them.

Southern Africa

Sources, method & citation

Every figure on this page is traceable to a named publication and a retrieval date. Where we model a value we say so; where no one has reported, we leave it empty.

Upstream sources
World Bank2025
IMF2026
UNHCR2025
UNICEF2024
Sources & methods
Cite this page

Africa API (2026) — “Benin: country record”. Retrieved 18 Oct 2026.

Free to use under CC BY 4.0. Each upstream source keeps its own licence.
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