Benin
Benin Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni, who is the favourite in this weekend’s presidential elections, vowed Friday to go “even further” in economic change that has brought about one of the region’s strongest growth rates.
On the final day of campaigning before Sunday’s polls, Wadagni, 49, the chosen successor of outgoing president Patrice Talon, rallied several thousand supporters and leading members of the ruling bloc in the commercial capital Cotonou.
Talon, 67, is barred under the constitution from standing again after two terms in power.
“We are going to move forward, go even further with what began before your very eyes,” he said, referring to a decade of economic transformation in the west African country.
In 2024, the economy expanded by 7.5 percent, the highest since 1990, and growth is expected to average 7.1 percent over the period 2025-2027, according to the World Bank.
Wadagni, who is backed by the two main parties making up the ruling bloc, has crisscrossed the country during the campaign. His sole rival on Sunday Paul Hounkpe has had a much lower profile.
Seeking to move away from his image as a technocrat, Wadagni has adopted a casual no-tie look and made brief speeches without notes, also mingling with his supporters.
“You can’t do everything overnight, especially when you’re a country with few natural resources,” he said.
He talked about his economic and social policies, which include easier access to microcredit and involving traders more in the running of modern markets that replaced informal ones.
“That’s the beauty of continuity: what has begun will grow, and we’ll correct certain mistakes,” he said.
Hounkpe, a former culture minister seen as a moderate from the FCBE party, has vowed to reduce the price of basic products and to secure the release of opponents imprisoned under Talon’s administration.
The main opposition party, The Democrats, was barred from running after failing to gather enough signatures.
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