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Poverty & Hunger

Republic of

Benin

In the early years of the 21st Century

Description: Description: Benin

CAUTION:  The following links and accompanying text have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in Benin in the early years of the 21st Century.  Some of these links may lead to websites that present allegations that are unsubstantiated, misleading or even false.   No attempt has been made to validate their authenticity or to verify their content.

HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE

Students

If you are looking for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on this page and others to see which aspects of poverty are of particular interest to you.  You might be interested in exploring the relationship between distribution of labor and per-capita GDP, for example.  Perhaps your paper could focus on life expectancy or infant mortality.  Other factors of interest might be unemployment, literacy, access to basic services, etc.  On the other hand, you might choose to include some of the possible outgrowths of poverty such as Human Trafficking, Street Children, or even Prostitution.  There is a lot to the subject of Poverty.  Scan other countries as well as this one.  Draw comparisons between activity in adjacent countries and/or regions.  Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper resources that are available on-line.

Teachers

Check out some of the Resources for Teachers attached to this website.

*** Extreme Weather ***

According to the Climate Change Knowledge Portal, Benin is vulnerable to extreme weather events such as floods and droughts. In 2010, Benin experienced its worst floods since 1963, which resulted in the loss of lives and property. In 2023, Benin was one of the top 10 African countries facing record-breaking heat waves, with temperatures reaching 82.45°F.  Microsoft BING Copilot

*** ARCHIVES ***

The World Factbook - Benin

U.S. Central Intelligence Agency CIA

www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/geos/bn.html

[accessed 10 November 2020]

World Factbook website has moved to ---> www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/benin/

[accessed 5 January 2021]

During the first two years of President TALON’s administration, which began in April 2016, the government has followed an ambitious action plan to kickstart development through investments in infrastructure, education, agriculture, and governance. Electricity generation, which has constrained Benin’s economic growth, has increased and blackouts have been considerably reduced.

GDP - per capita (PPP): $2,300 (2017 est.)

GDP – composition by sector of origin

agriculture: 26.1% (2017 est.)

industry: 22.8% (2017 est.)

services: 51.1% (2017 est.)

Unemployment rate: 1% (2014 est.)

Population below poverty line: 36.2% (2011 est.)

Maternal mortality rate: 397 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 58.7 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 61.4 years

Drinking water source: improved: total: 76.4% of population

Physicians density: 0.05 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

Sanitation facility access: improved: total: 36% of population

Electricity access: electrification - total population: 41.4% (2016)

The Borgen Project - Benin

borgenproject.org/category/benin/

[accessed 21 January 2021]

The Borgen Project works with U.S. leaders to utilize the United States’ platform behind efforts toward improving living conditions for the world’s poor.  It is an innovative, national campaign that is working to make poverty a focus of U.S. foreign policy.  It believes that leaders of the most powerful nation on earth should be doing more to address global poverty. From ending segregation to providing women with the right to vote, nearly every wrong ever righted in history was achieved through advocacy. The Borgen Project addresses the big picture, operating at the political level advancing policies and programs that improve living conditions for those living on less than $1 per day.

~ Homelessness In Benin

borgenproject.org/homelessness-in-benin-five-things-to-know/

~ Improving Health And Healthcare In Benin

borgenproject.org/healthcare-in-benin/

~ How Crop Diversification Can Reduce Poverty In Benin

borgenproject.org/poverty-in-benin/

~ Solar Energy In Benin Empowers Women And Girls

borgenproject.org/solar-energy-in-benin/

~ Hunger In Benin

borgenproject.org/hunger-benin/

~ 5 Products Tackling Global Poverty

borgenproject.org/5-products-tackling-global-poverty/

~ A Look At Humanitarian Progress In Benin

borgenproject.org/humanitarian-progress-in-benin/

~ Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions In Benin

borgenproject.org/top-10-facts-about-living-conditions-in-benin/

~ Girls’ Education In Benin

borgenproject.org/girls-education-in-benin/

The World Bank in Benin

www.worldbank.org/en/country/benin/overview

[accessed 16 April 2021]

The World Bank supports Benin’s poverty reduction strategy to increase growth, improve basic services access, governance and institutional capacity building.

Looking back a few years …

Advameg, Inc., Encyclopedia of the Nations

www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Benin-ECONOMY.html

[accessed 14 December 2020]

Agriculture is the most important sector in the Benin economy, accounting for some 36% of GDP (2001). About 90% of this output is produced on family farms using low-technology inputs and focusing primarily on domestically consumed crops, such as maize, sorghum, millet, paddy rice, cassava, yams, and beans. Typically, Benin is self-sufficient in food. Cotton, palm oil, and groundnuts are grown and exchanged for cash.

The government was pursuing liberal economic policies, but rapid population growth, inefficient state-owned enterprises, and high civil service salaries continue to offset economic growth. Corruption remains a major obstacle to economic development.

All material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial, nonprofit, and educational use.  PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES.  Cite this webpage as: Prof. Martin Patt, "Poverty - Benin", http://gvnet.com/poverty/Benin.htm, [accessed <date>]