 |
|
| Benin Facts and Figures |
|
from |
|
Encarta |
|
 | |
| Basic Facts |
| Official name |
Republic of
Benin |
|
| Capital |
Porto-Novo |
|
| Area |
112,622 sq
km |
|
43,484 sq mi |
|
|
|
|
|
| People |
| Population |
7,041,490 (2003
estimate) |
|
| Population
growth |
| Population growth rate |
2.95 percent (2003
estimate) |
|
|
| Projected population in
2025 |
11,780,613 (2025
estimate) |
|
|
| Projected population in
2050 |
17,991,423 (2050
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Population density |
63 persons per sq
km (2003 estimate) |
|
162 persons per sq
mi (2003 estimate) |
|
|
|
| Urban/rural
distribution |
| Share urban |
43 percent (2001
estimate) |
|
|
| Share rural |
57 percent (2001
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Largest cities, with
population |
| Cotonou |
650,660 (2000
estimate) |
|
|
| Porto-Novo |
232,756 (2000
estimate) |
|
|
| Djougou |
132,000 (1994
estimate) |
|
|
| Parakou |
144,627 (2000
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Ethnic groups |
| African (42 ethnic groups,
the largest being Fon, Adja, Yoruba, and Bariba) |
99 percent |
|
|
| Other |
1 percent |
|
|
|
| Languages |
| French (official), Fon and
Yoruba (most common vernaculars in south), Bariba and Somba
(most common vernaculars in north), indigenous languages |
|
|
| Religious
affiliations |
| Indigenous beliefs |
52 percent |
|
|
| Roman Catholic |
21 percent |
|
|
| Muslim |
20 percent |
|
|
| Protestant |
4 percent |
|
|
| Other |
3 percent |
|
|
|
| Health and Education |
| Life expectancy |
| Total |
51.1 years (2003
estimate) |
|
|
| Female |
51.8 years (2003
estimate) |
|
|
| Male |
50.4 years (2003
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Infant mortality rate |
87 deaths per
1,000 live births (2003 estimate) |
|
| Population per physician |
29,680 people
(1999) |
|
| Population per hospital bed |
4,280 people
(1994) |
|
| Literacy rate |
| Total |
40.9 percent (2003
estimate) |
|
|
| Female |
26.5 percent (2003
estimate) |
|
|
| Male |
56.2 percent (2003
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Education expenditure as a
share of gross national product (GNP) |
2.6 percent
(1999-2000) |
|
| Number of years of compulsory
schooling |
6 years
(2000) |
|
| Number of students per teacher,
primary school |
53 students per
teacher (1999-2000) |
|
| Government |
| Form of
government |
| Multiparty republic |
|
|
| Voting qualifications |
Universal at age
18 |
|
| Constitution |
2 December
1990 |
|
| Armed forces |
| Total number of military
personnel |
4,550 (2001) |
|
|
| Military expenditures as a
share of gross domestic product (GDP) |
1.8 percent
(2001) |
|
|
|
| Economy |
| Gross domestic product (GDP, in
U.S.$) |
$2.4 billion
(2001) |
|
| GDP per capita (U.S.$) |
$370 (2001) |
|
| GDP by economic
sector |
| Agriculture, forestry,
fishing |
35.5 percent
(2001) |
|
|
| Industry |
14.4 percent
(2001) |
|
|
| Services |
50 percent
(2001) |
|
|
|
| Employment |
| Number of workers |
2,910,013
(2001) |
|
|
| Workforce share of
economic sector |
| Agriculture, forestry,
fishing |
64 percent
(1990) |
|
|
| Industry |
8 percent
(1990) |
|
|
| Services |
28 percent
(1990) |
|
|
|
| Unemployment rate |
Not
available |
|
|
|
| National budget
(U.S.$) |
| Total revenue |
$272 million (1993
estimate) |
|
|
| Total expenditure |
$375 million (1993
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Monetary unit |
| 1 Communaut* Financière
Africaine (CFA) franc, consisting of 100 centimes |
|
|
| Major trade partners
for exports |
| Italy, India, Brazil,
Indonesia, and Thailand |
|
|
| Major trade partners
for imports |
| China, France, United Kingdom,
Thailand, and Germany |
|
|
| Energy, Communications, and
Transportation |
| Electricity
production |
| Electricity from thermal
sources |
14.23 percent
(2001 estimate) |
|
|
| Electricity from
hydroelectric sources |
85.77 percent
(2001 estimate) |
|
|
| Electricity from nuclear
sources |
0 percent (2001
estimate) |
|
|
| Electricity from geothermal,
solar, and wind sources |
0 percent (2001
estimate) |
|
|
|
| Number of radios per 1,000
people |
422 (2000
estimate) |
|
| Number of telephones per 1,000
people |
9 (2001) |
|
| Number of televisions per 1,000
people |
42 (2000
estimate) |
|
| Number of Internet hosts per
10,000 people |
0.78 (2001) |
|
| Daily newspaper circulation per
1,000 people |
5 (1999) |
|
| Number of motor vehicles per
1,000 people |
8.1 (1997) |
|
| Paved road as a share of total
roads |
20 percent
(1999) |
|
| Sources |
| Basic Facts and
People sections |
| Area data are from the
statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population,
population growth rate, and population projections are from
the United States Census Bureau, International Programs
Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban
and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT
database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and
political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of
individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are
largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
World Factbook and from various country censuses and
reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue,
Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics
International (www.sil.org). |
|
|
| Health and Education
section |
| Life expectancy and infant
mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau,
International Programs Center, International database (IDB)
(www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per
hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO)
(www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
database (www.unesco.org). |
|
|
| Government
section |
| Government, independence,
legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting
qualifications data are largely from various government Web
sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The
armed forces data is from Military Balance. |
|
|
| Economy section |
| Gross domestic product (GDP),
GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and
national budget data are from the World Bank database
(www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining,
manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner
information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook
and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
|
|
|
| Energy,
Communication, and Transportation section |
| Electricity information is from
the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database
(www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper
information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the
World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). |
|
|
| Note |
| Figures may not total 100
percent due to rounding. |
|
|
