The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday approved the release of about US$118 million to Benin after completing the seventh and final review of the West African country’s Extended Fund and Extended Credit Facility programs, and the fourth review under its Resilience and Sustainability Facility.
The disbursement comes as Benin has shown strong fiscal performance, reducing its budget deficit to 3.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024, while maintaining priority social spending. The IMF praised the government for sustaining domestic revenue mobilization and adopting policies aimed at fostering inclusive growth and maintaining debt sustainability.
The IMF Executive Board noted that Benin has fully met all performance criteria under the EFF and ECF arrangements and completed the remaining structural benchmarks under the RSF program. The funding will be split between US$36.3 million under the EFF/ECF and US$81.6 million under the RSF arrangement, bringing total disbursements under the programs to roughly US$868 million.
“Benin has completed its Fund-supported programs with a strong performance,” said Okamura, IMF Deputy Managing Director and acting chair, following the board’s discussion. “The authorities’ commitment to economic reform has yielded tangible dividends, with higher and more stable growth, favorable access to international markets, and continuous support from development partners.”
Economic momentum in Benin has been strong. Growth is projected at 7.5 percent in 2025, matching 2024 levels, while the current account deficit has narrowed following previous pressures from professional services imports linked to the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone. Exports from the country’s special economic zones are expected to rise, further improving the balance of payments.
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The IMF highlighted that central government debt was revised up to 60.5 percent of GDP at the end of 2024 due to reclassification of certain external loans previously held by public and semi-public enterprises. Despite this increase, Benin remains at moderate risk of debt distress, thanks to a stronger debt-carrying capacity and proactive debt management.
Officials also emphasized that the government’s 2026 budget aims to maintain a deficit below the West African Economic and Monetary Union ceiling of three percent of GDP. Fiscal consolidation is anchored in a Medium-Term Revenue Strategy and streamlined expenditure management, while efforts to rebalance debt toward domestic sources are ongoing.
The RSF program helped Benin implement reforms to strengthen climate-related public financial management, reform water tariffs, launch an agricultural insurance scheme, enhance social protection, and improve climate-financial-information systems. The IMF urged authorities to maintain the momentum on these initiatives to ensure long-term fiscal and balance-of-payments stability, and to attract private climate finance.
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“Continued attention to fiscal transparency, public enterprise governance, and supervision of financial institutions will be critical to safeguard stability and limit risks,” the IMF said. Authorities are also encouraged to formalize parts of the economy and support small and medium enterprises, while improving the targeting and efficiency of social assistance programs.
Benin’s completion of the IMF-supported programs marks a significant milestone for the West African nation, which has benefited from technical and financial support aimed at strengthening macroeconomic stability and fostering inclusive development over the past several years.
