Benin: Seventh Reviews Under the Extended Fund Facility and the Extended Credit Facility Arrangements and Fourth Review Under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility Arrangement-Press Release; Staff Report; and Statement by the Executive Director for Benin

This paper presents Benin’s Seventh Reviews under the Extended Fund Facility and the Extended Credit Facility Arrangements and Fourth Review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility Arrangement. Benin’s macroeconomic performance and commitment to reform have been robust. Economic momentum is accelerating, with growth projected at 7.5 percent in 2025. After a significant fiscal consolidation effort, the overall fiscal deficit fell to 3.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024 and is estimated at 2.9 percent of GDP in 2025, just below the West African Economic and Monetary Union deficit ceiling of 3 percent of GDP. The approved budget targets a similar deficit in 2026. The strong reform drive has sustained development partners’ engagement and boosted international investors’ confidence, while access to international markets has been marked by successful issuances. The authorities provided revised central government debt data over 2021–2024 prior to the completion of the review. Overall, program performance has been strong. All June 2025 quantitative performance criteria and all September 2025 indicative targets were met, and the structural benchmarks for the review were implemented, albeit with a short delay for one benchmark.