Benin’s Economy
Benin’s Economy
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Benin’s Economy
Did you know Benin has a very fertility rate with an estimated number of 5 children per woman? The official currency of Benin is the CFA Franc. The Franc was first spread in the West African nation when they were managed by the administration of the French in the year 1945. The deliberate reason was to incorporate from the French West African Franc. The CFA Franc is of very little value compared to the US dollar. 1 CFA Franc is equal to 0.0017300 US dollar. (“Convert West African Franc to United States Dollar | XOF to USD Currency Converter,” n.d.).
Benin is a West African country bordered by Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Togo. Regardless of its small size, Benin has a reputable population of approximately 11.80 million in 2019. It rose from 10.6 million in 2014. It is rated the 83rd most populous country on the planet. Most of the people population lives in the southern coast of Bight of Benin. The capital city of Benin is Porto-Novo which has a population of 265,000, whereas the most prominent city which is Cotonou has a population of 685,000. Benin is a somewhat small country; the 101st largest country in the world; with population analysis of 78 people per square kilometer. (“Benin Population 2019 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs),” n.d.).
Benin’s natural resources are restricted and minimal offshore oil reserves, limestone and marble. Their mining industry is not as developed as other countries’. But due to their countries’ favorable climate, they are known for agricultural products. They are known for growing cotton; whereby they are the fourth greatest country that produces cotton. Fish is another excellent export for them since they have rivers and ocean features which are known as lagoons, and they are rich in fish.
Benin is also known for Oil whereby they started mining oil in the 20th century. It was drilled until the year 2004, and they ceased producing oil. Nonetheless, their government has plans to refurbish the country’s oil industry. Therefore oil production is expected to restart after oil companies have settled and set up the shop for the country. (“What Are The Major Natural Resources Of Benin? – WorldAtlas.com,” n.d.).
Benin’s economy is still impoverished; they depend on the agriculture of subsistence farming and cotton. They also produce textiles, cocoa beans, and textiles. Cassava, yams, maize, cashew nuts, beans, peanuts, and rice are grown for subsistence farming; which is growing crops for local use rather than exporting. They also provide fish for domestic consumption and even for exporting mainly to Europe. Government-owned commercial activities were made private. Small businesses which are privately owned by the citizens of Benin are the principal sectors that contribute to Benin’s growth. (“Trade Policy Review: Benin – Google Books,” n.d.).
Benin is the 156th largest export economy on earth. In 2017. Benin exported and imported products resulting in negative trading balance. The leading exports of Benin include; coconuts, cashew nuts, scrap copper, brazil nuts, gold, refined petroleum, and raw cotton. They mostly export their products to South Korea, India, USA, China, Lebanon, and Mali. Their imports are palm oil, fake hair, cars, rice, woven cotton in which they import these items from countries like the US, China, Malaysia, India, and France. (“OEC – Benin (BEN) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners,” n.d.).
Different countries and areas have different trading blocs. There are regional trading blocs in Africa. Different blocs have a purpose of removing tariffs, economic cooperation and barriers of trade. Examples of regional trade blocs include (COMESA) Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, (ECOWAS) Economic Communities of West African States,( SACU) Southern African Custom Unions, (SEMAC) Central African Economic and Monetary Community, (SADC) Southern African Development Community and (EAC) East African Community. (“Trade blocs in Africa: a road map to real integration,” 2015). Benin is also a member of the world trade organization. They are also a part of the ECOWAS community. Benin agreed to be part of the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency whose purpose is to help in improving the investment chances of developing countries.(“Benin – Trade Agreements | export.gov,” n.d.).
The sum value of goods produced and services are given to a country in a year is called gross domestic product (GDP). The GDP in 2017 was of 9.27 billion dollars’ worth in Benin. The GDP value of this country is represented by 0.01 percent in the whole world’s economy. The GDP average of 1960 to 2017 is 2.74 dollars which it reached 9.71 dollars all-time high and 0.23 dollars record low in 1960. (“OEC – Benin (BEN) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners,” n.d.).
The gross national product is the sum of all finished products and services that a country has produced in one year(GNP). The GNP of Benin’s percent is the national gross income is however$ 5,234,544,014,510.(“GNP and GDP by Country – Benin Data Portal,” n.d.)
In Benin, the rate of unemployment is measured by the number of people who are looking for jobs actively as a percentage of the labor force. The rate of employment remained 2.50 percent in 2017 while it was still the same in 2016. The rate of unemployment was 1.44 percent in 1991; in 2011 the rate rose to 2.70 which was so high then dropped to 2.50 in 2016 and 2017. (Benin Unemployment Rate | 2019 | Data | Chart | Calendar | Forecast | News).Every country in the world has a certain amount of debt. Even when Benin has some people who are unemployed the country has some foreign debts. The country has a debt of $2.716 billion in 2017, while in 2016 they had a debt of $2.476 billion. This shows that Benin is increasing its foreign debt every day. (“Benin External debt – Economy,” n.d.).
Benin free market has grown for four consecutive years, although it started slowing down in 2017 due to the unemployment rate rising and the foreign debts increasing. In 2016 the government began to implement their plans of development through investing in infrastructure, governance, and education. The electricity generation which has affected Benin’s economy growth highly has expanded and reduced blackouts in the country. Benin will, however, need more efforts to have more infrastructure, to cut off corruption which is widely grown and have more access to foreign trading markets. (“Benin Economy 2019, CIA World Factbook,” n.d.).
The United States and Benin are in great relations since Benin adopted democracy. The government of the US has been helping Benin with improving the infrastructure and living standards of the citizens of Benin. The US government national interest and value are to reduce poverty and promote growth in Benin. The USAID have a national interest; they have programs that are effective in primary education. Women and children health, family health and even in education that will help in reducing sexually transmitted diseases like HIV.
Benin and Us government also signed a million Millennium Challenge Compact(MCC) in February 2006. To help in removing limitations to growth and development in Benin. The MCC should be able to support improvements in institutional and private infrastructure in four critical sectors which are; justice, land, market, and financial resources. These proposed propjets will thus increase Benin’s economy by 17 percent. Today, Benin and the US government trades is very small, but America’s interest is still growing. The United States is interested in increasing trade between them and Benin. (“Benin–United States relations – Wikipedia,” n.d.).
References
Benin – Trade Agreements | export.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://www.export.gov/article?id=Benin-Trade-Agreements
Benin Economy 2019, CIA World Factbook. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://theodora.com/wfbcurrent/benin/benin_economy.html
Benin External debt – Economy. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://www.indexmundi.com/benin/debt_external.html
Benin Population 2019 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from http://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/benin-population/
Benin–United States relations – Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benin%E2%80%93United_States_relations
Convert West African Franc to United States Dollar | XOF to USD Currency Converter. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://themoneyconverter.com/XOF/USD.aspx
GNP and GDP by Country – Benin Data Portal. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from http://benin.opendataforafrica.org/aewtuqe/gnp-and-gdp-by-country?location=Benin
OEC – Benin (BEN) Exports, Imports, and Trade Partners. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://atlas.media.mit.edu/en/profile/country/ben/
Trade blocs in Africa: a road map to real integration. (2015), 9.
Trade Policy Review: Benin – Google Books. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=NqWFAAAAIAAJ&q=major+features+of+economy+in+Benin&dq=major+features+of+economy+in+Benin&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjtt9W1rNngAhWE5OAKHcM-AOMQ6AEIKDAA
What Are The Major Natural Resources Of Benin? – WorldAtlas.com. (n.d.). Retrieved February 26, 2019, from https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/what-are-the-major-natural-resources-of-benin.html