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Benin
Women in decision-making positions
4%
Members of local deliberative bodies are women (64 elected women)
No woman is Head of State/Government
27%
Parliamentarians are women
24%
Ministers are women

Government organization

Spheres of government

Benin is a unitary republic with two spheres of government: central and local.

One tier of central government and one tier of local government (municipalities).

  • Head of State: The President is directly elected by voters.
  • Head of Government: The President is the Head of State and the Head of Government.
  • Legislative body: The National Assembly is a unicameral legislature whose members are directly elected by voters.
  • Executive body: The Council of Ministers, presided over by the President, is composed of members appointed by the President after an advisory opinion of the National Assembly.

  • Organization: Local government is organized into 77 municipalities, which include the three special-status municipalities of Porto Novo, Cotonou, and Parakou. Special-status municipalities may be established in large urban areas with a population of over 100,000 inhabitants.
  • Competencies: Local government is responsible for developing and adopting its own development plan, adopting its own autonomous budget, and managing its own revenues.
  • Ministerial oversight: Ministry of Decentralization and Local Governance

Overview of local government

Local government composition

Deliberative body: The municipal council is composed of 9-49 elected members. The mayor and two deputies (in municipalities) or three deputies (in special-status municipalities) are elected by and from the municipal council to preside over it. The election of the mayor and deputies takes place no later than 15 days following the announcement of the results of the municipal council election. The mayor and deputies are also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The mayor, as assisted by the deputies.

Local government elections

Electoral system for local deliberative bodies: majority/plurality (first-past-the-post) and proportional representation (closed list)

  • The boroughs, administrative subdivisions of the municipality, serve as the electoral districts for the purpose of municipal council elections. Each borough is allocated at least one seat in the municipal council.
  • In boroughs that are allotted only one seat in the municipal council, members are elected using the majority electoral system.
  • In boroughs that are allotted more than one seat in the municipal council, members are elected using a closed-list proportional electoral system. The majority of council seats are allocated to the list which has obtained an absolute majority, or at least 40%, of the votes cast in the respective borough. Seats are allocated in the order provided in each list. The remaining seats are distributed among all the lists proportionally, excluding the lists having obtained less than 10% of the total votes cast.

Electoral system for local executive bodies: no direct elections

  • The mayor and the deputies are designated by the political party having obtained absolute majority of councillors. If there are none, the mayor and the deputies are designated by the political parties that create a municipal governance agreement. if neither of these apply, the mayor and the deputies are elected by and from the council by absolute majority system.

Source: Electoral Code, 2019 (amended through 2020), articles 186 – 187.6, articles 189 and 190

  • Gender quotas: No
  • Additional quotas: No

  • Term length: 5 years
  • Last local elections: 2020
  • Next local elections: 2025

Autonomous National Electoral Commission

National legal framework on local government

  • Constitution of the Republic of Benin, 1990 (amended through 2019);
  • Electoral Code, 2019 (amended through 2020)
  • Law on the Territorial Administration, 2021.

There are no constitutional provisions that establish local government in Benin. Local assembly elections are mentioned in Article 98 of the Constitution of the Republic of Benin of 1990 (amended through 2019).

The National Assembly is responsible for establishing the national legal framework on local government. The key piece of legislation which regulate local government is the Law on the Territorial Administration of 2021.

Sources:

1. UN Women: Data on share of women in local government as of 1 January 2025.

2. UN Women: Information on Head of State and Government as of 1 December 2025.

3. Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU): Data on share of women in the single/lower chamber of parliament as of 1 January 2025.

4. UN Women: Data on share of women Cabinet ministers as of 1 January 2025.

5. Information on local government organization as of 1 January 2023.