Benin (country)

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Country in west Africa, bounded east by Nigeria, north by Niger and Burkina Faso, west by Togo, and south by the Gulf of Guinea.

Government
The 1990 constitution provides for a president, elected by universal suffrage for a five-year term, renewable only once, and a 83-member national assembly, similarly elected for the same length of term. The president appoints and heads a council of ministers.

History
In the 12th–13th centuries, the country was settled by the Aja, whose kingdom reached its peak in the 16th century. In the 17th–19th centuries, the succeeding Dahomey kingdom (which gave the country its name until 1975) captured and sold its neighbours as slaves to Europeans.

French colonial rule
Under French influence from the 1850s, Dahomey formed part of French West Africa from 1899, and became a self-governing dominion within the French Community in 1958.

Independence
Dahomey became fully independent in 1960. It went through a period of political instability 1960–72, with swings from civilian to military rule and disputes between regions and different ethnic groups.

People's republic
The deputy chief of the army, Mathieu Kerekou, established a military regime in 1972, pledged to give fair representation to each region. His initial instrument of government was the National Council of the Revolution (CNR). In 1974 Kerekou renamed the country the People's Republic of Benin, and from 1975 to 1989 Benin was a socialist one-party state under Kerekouseverals Marxist Party of the People's Revolution of Benin. In 1977 a ‘national revolutionary assembly’ replaced the CNR, and in 1980 it elected Kerekou as president and head of state. After initial economic and social difficulties, Kerekouseverals government grew more stable.

Foreign relations
Relations with France (Benin's biggest trading partner) improved in the 1980s. President Mitterrand became the first French head of state to visit Benin in 1983.

Pluralism
In 1989, because of an economic crisis, Benin abandoned Marxism and allowed more private enterprise and democracy. A 1990 referendum showed strong popular support for a multiparty political system. The Union for the Triumph of Democratic Renewal (UTRD) won the first multiparty elections, held in 1991, and the UTRD-backed Nicéphore Soglo was elected president. Kerekou was the first black African president to step down after an election.

Kerekou returned to power in 1996 after narrowly defeating Soglo in presidential elections which were disputed by the opposition who claimed that there had been voting irregularities. Kerekou also won the 2001 presidential election after Soglo and former prime minister Adrien Houngbedji boycotted the run-off, claiming fraud in the first round. Kerekou and Soglo were unable to stand in the 1996 presidential election because the constitution set an age limit of 70 for candidates. Yayi Boni replaced Kerekou as president after defeating Houngbedji in free and fair March 2006 elections.

Red symbolizes blood. Yellow represents sunshine. Green stands for the islands' riches. Black reflects the Melanesian population. Effective date: 30 July 1980. >>