Country Flag of Benin Map of Benin, Courtesy of WorldAtlas.com

Local time in Porto-Novo:


Facts and Figures

arrow Official Name Republic of Benin

arrow Capital City Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat of government.

arrow Languages French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north).

arrow Official Currency CFA Franc.

arrow Ethnic Groups African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500.

arrow Religions Indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%.

arrow Population 6,787,625.

arrow Land Area 110,620 sq km (42,710 sq miles).

History

Dahomey gained its independence from France in 1960; the name was changed to Benin in 1975. From 1974 to 1989 the country was a socialist state; free elections were reestablished in 1991.

UNAIDS Epidemiological
Fact Sheets

[English] [French]

Global Surveillance of HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is a joint effort of WHO and UNAIDS. The UNAIDS/WHO Working Group on Global HIV/AIDS and STI Surveillance, initiated in November 1996, guides respective activities. The primary objective of the working group is to strengthen national, regional and global structures and networks for improved monitoring and surveillance of HIV/AIDS and STIs. For this purpose, the working group collaborates closely with national AIDS programmes and a number of national and international experts and institutions. The goal of this collaboration is to compile the best information available and to improve the quality of data needed for informed decision-making and planning at national, regional and global levels. The Epidemiological Fact Sheets are one of the products of this close and fruitful collaboration across the globe.

Web sites

U.S. Government Agencies

World Fact Book
The Factbook was created as an annual summary and update to the encyclopedic NIS studies. The first classified Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version was published in June 1971. The 1975 Factbook was the first to be made available to the public with sales through the US Government Printing Office (GPO).

US Department of State - Travel Advisory
Travel Warnings are issued when the State Department decides, based on all relevant information, to recommend that Americans avoid travel to a certain country. Countries where avoidance of travel is recommended will have Travel Warnings as well as Consular Information Sheets.

USAID: AIDS in Benin
As in many West African countries, Benin’s overall HIV prevalence remains relatively low, but the disease is spreading steadily among young adults and in high-risk populations. In 1999, the Ministry of Health reported that an estimated 159,216 adults and children in Benin were living with HIV/AIDS. About 37,141 children under age 15 had been orphaned by the disease. The 20- to 39-year-old age group accounted for 67 percent of AIDS cases reported in 1999, and heterosexual transmission was linked to the vast majority of these cases (90 percent). The Health Ministry estimates that in Benin, women account for about 40 percent of all persons living with HIV/AIDS.

Non-Governmental Organizations

Benin and HIV/AIDS
Benin is among the few African countries where HIV prevalence rates have remained relatively low. However, UNAIDS projections into 2025 estimate the HIV prevalence rate in Benin could reach 10 to 20 percent.

Catholic Relief Services: Benin
In 2001, CRS/Benin worked through the local church, local partner organizations and communities to reach more than 267,000 poor, marginalized and vulnerable people including malnourished children, pregnant women and mothers, tuberculosis patients, persons living with HIV/AIDS and their families, the elderly and the institutionalized, victims of social and political injustice, primary school children, and rural poor women.

Economic Impact of AIDS in Africa: Benin
AIDS has the potential to create severe economic impacts in many African countries. It is different from most other diseases because it strikes people in the most productive age groups and is essentially 100 percent fatal. The effects will vary according to the severity of the AIDS epidemic and the structure of the national economies.

WHO Country Profile: Benin
Country profile on specific diseases, and selected health-related documents. Available in English, Spanish and French.




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