![Ouidah, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Benin's economic hub of Cotonou, was one of the main slave staging posts to the Americas. [Yanick Folly/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/3c1dc13fe6814e4fba86ae9e9587f301_8.jpeg?resize=570%2C380)
Renovation of Ouidah’s history museum part of Benin’s drive to ensure future generations know ancestors’ suffering.
Benin
As anti-racism protests in the US and Europe grew, so did demands for the removal of statues linked to slavery – a city in West Africa is going the other way.
![Electoral agents and party observers at a polling station in Cotonou where voter turnout was low [Yanick Folly/AFP]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/307dfc946cb74f82a5d1a8bbd6d7e037_18.jpeg?resize=570%2C380)
Critics warned health risks were too high for a vote opposition insisted should not be happening in...
![Voters will head to the polls on Sunday to elect local representatives [File: Akintunde Akinleye/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/46408d198f92412da0c6427341a1fc7b_18.jpeg?resize=570%2C380)
Critics have called on voters to boycott polls over ballot absence of key opposition parties and...
![Established as commonplace after World War II, the franc's use frequently triggers debate about the region's continued economic dependence on France [File: Bloomberg]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/b9fe8e130bae48febb1b71562c2e929d_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
Regional central bank to manage the reserves and distribute them to partners around the world, says Benin’s president.
![Citing safety reasons, the Norwegian shipowner did not reveal the crew's nationalities or how many had avoided capture [Courtesy: JJ Ugland Companies]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/fde200c4b1fc415b8f0e537316979fcf_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
MV Bonita was anchored off the entrance of Cotonou port when it was boarded by pirates, local authorities say.
![Nigeria is heavily reliant on imports to feed its booming population of some 190 million, but the government is seeking to bolster domestic agriculture as it looks to diversify the oil-dependent economy [File: Temilade Adelaja/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/bbdba8d0b841450aac26dcfbe44cb49c_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
Ban since summer on goods imported via land borders has pushed up food prices and pummeled neighbouring Benin’s economy.
![Former Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou lives in France [File: Benoit Tessier/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/c9ddec173ad942788fa2fe17855a6568_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
Former Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou was handed a suspended 6-month jail term over 2016 campaign breaches.
![The CFA franc is currently used by eight West African nations, but its days could be numbered [Thierry Gouegnon PW/SM /Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/50e1803ede1b4efeaac8e28aae7bfe59_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
The CFA franc’s days could be numbered in West Africa.
![The African Free Trade Agreement commits governments to greater economic integration, as the signatory states move toward removing trade barriers including tariffs on 90 percent of commodities [Nyancho NwaNri/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/2ee7783a854f4e029c77570a26af91bf_18.jpeg?resize=270%2C180)
Trading will start in July 2020 to give member states time to adopt the pact framework.
Benin is asking France to return thousands of artifacts looted from the country during the colonial wars.
For more than 250 years, people have been living on the water in what’s thought to be Africa’s largest lake community.
In Benin, protesters are still demanding the president resign after days of violent demonstrations.
Uneasy standoff with soldiers in Benin, opposition call for international mediation after last week’s election.