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Western Africa just west of Nigeria. A little smaller than Pennsylvania, with a 100 kilometer strip bordering the ocean.
Independence from France: 1960. Military governments to 1972, followed by power by Marxist-Leninists, to 1989. Democratic elections in 1991. Multi-party rule with electoral politics and a unicameral legislature.
Figures unless otherwise stated are from the CIA Factbook.
Estimated per capita GDP:
2007 $1,500 (Ranks 193rd)
2006 $1,100
2005 $1,100
2004 $1,200
2003 $1,100
GDP annual growth rate estimated for 2007: 4.5 percent. (Ranks 126th)
Factbook: "The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade."
Estimated Deaths and Births per 1,000 persons
For 2007: deaths: 11.94, down from 13.76 in 2005; births 38.1, down from 41.99 in 2005
Estimated for 2007: 8.295 million, up from 7.46 million in 2005. Growth rate estimated for 2008: 2.619 percent per year. Density estimated in 2005: 67.4 persons per square kilometer.
More arriving than leaving, a net gain of 0.5 persons per 1,000 population.
Infant mortality estimated for 2008: 76.19, down from 85.0 for 2005 (deaths before the age of one year, per 1,000 live births).
Average life expectancy estimated for 2008: 53.85, up from 50.51 in 2005
Living with HIV/AIDS, ages 15 to 49: 1.9 percent (2003)
SOURCES:
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/
Copyright © 2008 by Frank E. Smitha. All rights reserved.