Hello everyone, welcome to my video blog. Today I'm going to talk about Benin and its currency. Benin is a country in West Africa that has a rich and diverse history and culture. Let's learn more about this fascinating place.
First, let's talk about the location of Benin. Benin is bordered by Togo, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, and Niger. It has a coastline of 121 kilometers on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. Benin covers an area of about 114,763 square kilometers, which is slightly smaller than the state of Pennsylvania in the United States.
Benin has five natural regions: the coastal region, which is low, flat, and sandy; the plateau region, which is higher and more fertile; the Atakora Mountains in the northwest, which are part of the Togo Hills; the Niger River valley in the northeast, which is part of the Sudanian Savanna; and the Oueme River valley in the south, which is part of the Guinean forest-savanna mosaic.
Next, let's talk about the history of Benin. Benin has a long and complex history that dates back to ancient times. Before colonial rule, Benin was home to many independent kingdoms and ethnic groups, such as the Yoruba, the Dendi, the Bariba, the Fula, the Ottamari, and the Fon.
The most famous and powerful kingdom was Dahomey, which was founded in the 17th century and expanded its territory through wars and slave trade. Dahomey was known for its fierce warriors, especially its female soldiers called Amazons. Dahomey resisted French colonization until 1894, when it became part of French West Africa. In 1960, Dahomey gained its independence from France and changed its name to Benin in 1975.
Now, let's talk about the present status of Benin. Benin is a stable democracy with a multiparty system and a presidential form of government. The current president is Patrice Talon, who was reelected for a second five-year term in April 2021.
The official language is French, but many people also speak local languages such as Fon and Yoruba. Benin has a population of about 12.5 million people as of 2021, with a high fertility rate of 5.4 children per woman and a life expectancy of 61.2 years. The national poverty rate is 38.5%, while the unemployment rate is 2.4%. Benin's economy is based on agriculture, especially cotton and cashew nuts, and on trade with Nigeria.
Finally, let's talk about the currency of Benin. The official currency of Benin is the West African CFA franc (XOF), which stands for Communauté Financière Africaine (African Financial Community). The CFA franc is used by eight countries in West Africa that form the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA).
The CFA franc is pegged to the euro at a fixed rate of 655.957 CFA francs = 1 euro. The CFA franc is issued by the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO), which is located in Dakar, Senegal. The CFA franc has been in circulation since 1945, when it replaced the French West African franc.
The CFA franc has six denominations of banknotes: 500, 1000, 2000, 5000, and 10,000 francs. The banknotes feature portraits of prominent African figures such as Aline Sitoe Diatta (500 francs), Kwame Nkrumah (1000 francs), Samori Toure (2000 francs), Almamy Samory Toure (5000 francs), and Felix Houphouet-Boigny (10,000 francs). The banknotes also have security features such as watermarks, holograms, microprinting, and color-changing ink.
The CFA franc has eight denominations of coins: 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 200, and 250 francs. The coins feature images of animals such as elephants (1 franc), lions (5 francs), antelopes (10 francs), camels (25 francs), rhinos (50 francs), zebras (100 francs), giraffes (200 francs), and buffaloes (250 francs). The coins also have inscriptions of the name of the currency, the issuing authority, and the year of minting.
The old currency of Benin was the Dahomey franc, which was used from 1958 to 1960, when Dahomey was an autonomous republic within the French Community. The Dahomey franc was equal to the French franc and had four denominations of banknotes: 50, 100, 500, and 1000 francs.
The banknotes featured images of local scenes such as a market, a mosque, a palace, and a port. The banknotes also had inscriptions of the name of the currency, the issuing authority, and the signatures of the governor and the cashier.
That's all for today's video blog. I hope you learned something new and interesting about Benin and its currency. Thank you for watching and see you next time. Bye!
