Benin report - Institut Africain de la Gouvernance

CHAPTER TWO: HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND CURRENT CHALLENGES__________________________________________________________________________2001 (20 March) Nine of the 25 members of the CENA resign in protest against theconditions under which the second round of the elections wereorganised.2001 (24 March) Mathieu Kérékou is re-elected for a second mandate of five years.2001 (6 April) Mathieu Kérékou is sworn in for his last mandate as president ofBenin.2002 (15 December) Municipal and local elections.2003 (30 March) Legislative elections.2006 (5 March) Organisation of the first round of the fourth presidential elections (26candidates are authorised to participate in the race).2006 (19 March) Organisation of the second round of the fourth presidentialelections. Dr Thomas Boni Yayi is elected president of the republicin the second round.2006 (6 April) Boni Yayi is sworn in as president.2007 (31 March) Legislative elections.2.4 The current dynamic drive and its sluggishness: thestrong points and weaknesses of the advent of anemerging Benin68. Apprehension about the challenges to be met in terms of governance depends,on the one hand, on an analysis of the history of Benin, and on the other, onthe nature of the transformation that the country wanted to make given itsvision for the future.69. Under the French colonial system, the coastal countries had clearly definedfunctions. Apart from supplying raw agricultural and/or mining products toParis, and providing markets for finished products from the latter, their mainfunction was to provide passage to and from towns in the interior that did nothave access to the sea. Benin‟s economy was, therefore, structured toaccomplish these functions and to provide routes for landlocked countries likeNiger, present-day Burkina Faso and part of Mali. The main mission of thepolitico-administrative machinery was to ensure that this function waseffectively performed. The formation of an integrated economic fabric and anintegrated economic space at the national level was not a concern of thecolonial system. This required a different state machinery, and constitutes botha goal and a challenge for the independent country in the future.51