| Country (long form) |
Republic of Benin |
| Capital |
Porto-Novo is the official capital; Cotonou is the seat
of government |
| Total Area |
43,482.83 sq mi
112,620.00 sq km
(slightly smaller than Pennsylvania) |
| Population |
6,395,919 note: estimates for this country explicitly
take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS |
| Estimated Population in 2050 |
18,057,345 |
| Languages |
French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common
vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
| Literacy |
37.0% total, 48.7% male, 25.8% female (1995 est.) |
| Religions |
indigenous beliefs 70%, Muslim 15%, Christian 15% |
| Life Expectancy |
49.24 male, 51.16 female (2000 est.) |
| Government Type |
republic under multiparty democratic rule |
| Currency |
1 Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (CFAF) = 100
centimes |
| GDP (per capita) |
$1,300 (1999 est.) |
| Labor Force (by occupation) |
N/A |
| Industry |
textiles, cigarettes; beverages, food; construction
materials, petroleum |
| Agriculture |
corn, sorghum, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, rice,
cotton, palm oil, peanuts; poultry, livestock |
| Arable Land |
13% |
| Exports |
cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa |
| Imports |
foodstuffs, tobacco, petroleum products, capital goods |
| Natural Resources |
small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
| Current Environmental Issues |
recent droughts have severely affected marginal
agriculture in north; inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching
threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
| Telephones (main lines in use) |
28,000 (1995) |
| Telephones (mobile cellular) |
1,050 (1995) |