Benin
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: Republic of Benin
conventional short form: Benin local long form: Republique du Benin local short form: Benin former: Dahomey |
| Gevernment type | republic |
| Capital |
name: Porto-Novo (official capital)
geographic coordinates: 6 29 N, 2 37 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Cotonou (seat of government) |
| Flag description | two equal horizontal bands of yellow (top) and red (bottom) with a vertical green band on the hoist side |
| Currency | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible authority is the Central Bank of the West African States |
| Internet country code | .bj |
| Ports and terminals | Cotonou |
| Agriculture products | cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts; livestock |
| Industries | textiles, food processing, construction materials, cement |
| Geography |
| Location | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
| Coordinates | 9 30 N, 2 15 E |
| Continent | Africa |
| Area |
total: 112,620 sq km
land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
| Boundaries |
total: 1,989 km
border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
| Coastline | 121 km |
| Climate | tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
| Terrain | mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
| Natural resources | small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
| Natural hazards | hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
| People |
| Population | 7,862,944
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 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | African 99% (42 ethnic groups, most important being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, Bariba), Europeans 5,500 |
| Religions | indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20% |
| Languages | French (official), Fon and Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), tribal languages (at least six major ones in north) |
