initial government reluctance. The Paris Club and bilateral
creditors have eased the external debt situation, while pressing for
speeded-up structural reforms.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $7.38 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $1,100 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 38% industry: 15% services: 47% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
37% (2001 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.3% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
NA
Unemployment rate:
NA%
Budget:
revenues: $377.4 million
expenditures: $561.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(2001)
Industries:
textiles, food processing, chemical production, construction
materials (2001)
Industrial production growth rate:
8.3% (2001 est.)
Electricity - production:
274.3 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 14.2% hydro: 85.8% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
631.1 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
376 million kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
700 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
11,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
4.105 million bbl (37257)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
608.8 million cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products: cotton, corn, cassava (tapioca), yams, beans, palm oil, peanuts, livestock (2001)
Exports:
$207 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities:
cotton, crude oil, palm products, cocoa
Exports - partners:
India 25%, Italy 11.1%, Indonesia 7.4%, China 7.2%, Thailand 6.7%,
Brazil 6.1%, UK 4.4%, Niger 4% (2002)
Imports:
$479 million c.i.f. (2002)
Imports - commodities:
foodstuffs, capital goods, petroleum products
Imports - partners:
China 30.7%, France 15.7%, UK 4.8%, Italy 4.2% (2002)
Debt - external:
$1.6 billion (2000)
Economic aid - recipient:
$342.6 million (2000)
Currency:
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XOF); note - responsible
authority is the Central Bank of the West African States
Currency code:
XOF
Exchange rates:
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar - 696.99
(2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.7 (1999), 589.95 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Communications Benin
Telephones - main lines in use:
51,000 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
55,500 (2000)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: fair system of open-wire, microwave radio relay, and
cellular connections
international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic
Ocean); submarine cable
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 4 (2000)
Radios:
660,000 (2000)
Television broadcast stations:
1;; (2001)
Televisions:
66,000 (2000)
Internet country code:
.bj
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
4 (2002)
Internet users:
25,000 (2002)
Transportation Benin
Railways: total: 578 km narrow gauge: 578 km 1.000-m gauge (2002)
Highways:
total: 6,787 km
paved: 1,357 km (including 10 km of expressways)
unpaved: 5,430 km (1999 est.)
Waterways:
streams navigable along small sections, important only locally
Ports and harbors:
Cotonou, Porto-Novo
Merchant marine:
none (2002 est.)
Airports:
5 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2002)
Military Benin
Military branches:
Armed Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force), National Gendarmerie
Military manpower - military age:
18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - availability: note: both sexes are liable for military service females age 15–49: 1,536,036 (2003 est.) males age 15–49: 1,597,562
Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15–49: 805,603
females age