Benin 
Facts
Population: 8,078,314
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2007 est.).
Age structure: 0-14 years: 43.9% (male 1,788,248/female 1,754,940)
15-64 years: 53.7% (male 2,138,649/female 2,203,291)
65 years and over: 2.4% (male 77,844/female 115,342) (2007 est.).
Population growth rate: 2.674% (2007 est.).
Birth rate: 38.1 births/1,000 population (2007 est.).
Death rate: 11.94 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.).
Net migration rate: 0.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.).
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.019 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.971 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.675 male(s)/female
total population: 0.983 male(s)/female (2007 est.).
Infant mortality rate: total: 77.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 82.32 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 73.26 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.).
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 53.44 years
male: 52.28 years
female: 54.63 years (2007 est.).
Total fertility rate: 5.08 children born/woman (2007 est.).
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.9% (2003 est.).
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 68,000 (2003 est.).
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 5,800 (2003 est.).
Nationality: noun: Beninese (singular and plural)
adjective: Beninese.
Ethnic groups: Fon and related 39.2%, Adja and related 15.2%, Yoruba and related 12.3%, Bariba and related 9.2%, Peulh and related 7%, Ottamari and related 6.1%, Yoa-Lokpa and related 4%, Dendi and related 2.5%, other 1.6% (includes Europeans), unspecified 2.9% (2002 census).
Religions: Christian 42.8% (Catholic 27.1%, Celestial 5%, Methodist 3.2%, other Protestant 2.2%, other 5.3%), Muslim 24.4%, Vodoun 17.3%, other 15.5% (2002 census).
Languages: French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north).
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 34.7%
male: 47.9%
female: 23.3% (2002 census).
GDP (purchasing power parity): $8.989 billion (2006 est.).
GDP - real growth rate: 4% (2006 est.).
GDP - per capita (PPP): $1,100 (2006 est.).
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 32.8%
industry: 13.7%
services: 53.5% (2006 est.).
Labor force: 3.211 million (1996).
Population below poverty line: 33% (2001 est.).
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%.
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3% (2006 est.).
Unemployment rate: NA%.
Budget: revenues: $836.8 million
expenditures: $1.064 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.).
Agriculture - products: cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, cashews; livestock.
Industries: textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement.
Industrial production growth rate: 8.3% (2001 est.).
Electricity - production: 82 million kWh (2004).
Electricity - consumption: 576.3 million kWh (2004).
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2004).
Electricity - imports: 500 million kWh (2004).
Exports: $563.1 million f.o.b. (2006 est.).
Exports - commodities: cotton, cashews, shea butter, textiles, palm products, seafood.
Exports - partners: China 31.3%, Indonesia 8.1%, India 7.4%, Niger 6%, Togo 4.8%, Thailand 4.8%, Nigeria 4.6% (2005).
Imports: $927.3 million f.o.b. (2006 est.).
Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products.
Imports - partners: France 21.8%, Ghana 7.1%, Cote d'Ivoire 7%, China 6.7%, UK 5.2%, Belgium 4.9%, Togo 4.5%, Thailand 4.2%, Nigeria 4% (2005).
Debt - external: $1.6 billion (2000).
Economic aid - recipient: $342.6 million (2000).
Currency (code): Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States.
Exchange rates: Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 522.59 (2006), 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002).
Fiscal year: calendar year.
Statistics: C.I.A. World Factbook. Updated: July 20, 2007.
Press
(Weekly), Cotonou
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Cotonou
Benin in the News
The drug trade is fast turning large parts of West Africa into areas that are all but ungovernable, with major implications for international security.
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