Head of state and government
VerifiedElected on 12 April 2026 and sworn in on 24 May 2026, succeeding Patrice Talon (dates from Wikipedia and AllAfrica). Wikipedia names Mariam Chabi Talata, his running mate, as Vice President.
Titles are Govpedia's English translations of the official French titles on gouv.bj; names follow the spelling of the official list (which prints surnames in capitals). The government portal was read on 16 October 2026. Party affiliations and individual start dates are not recorded.
- Head of state and government
- Romuald WadagniPresident of the Republic
- Government
- Wadagni governmentSince 24 May 2026
- System
- Presidential republicCapital: Porto-Novo
- UN e-government rank
- 146 of 193EGDI 2024
Benin is a presidential republic[1]. The President of the Republic, Romuald Wadagni, is both head of state and head of government[3][4][5]. Govpedia records 25 members of its cabinet.
At a glance[2]
- Capital
- Porto-Novo
- Region
- Western Africa
- Area
- 112,622 km²
- Language
- French
- Currency
- West African CFA franc (Fr)
- People
- Beninese
- Borders
- Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Togo
- Calling code
- +229
- Internet domain
- .bj
Leadership
Who leads the state
Executive
Wadagni government
25 of 25 verified on official pages
The official government portal lists the President and 24 members (19 ministers and five ministers delegate). AllAfrica reports that the 24-member government was named on 24 May 2026, hours after the inauguration; the date rests on that report. Defence and the interior are held by ministers delegate attached to the President.
Digital government
Digital government, measured
UN E-Government Development Index[8]
2024
0.458rank 146 of 193
- Online services0.520
- Human capital0.371
- Telecom infrastructure0.482
Record of changes
Timeline
24 May 2026
Romuald Wadagni is sworn in as President, succeeding Patrice Talon.[4][6]
Sourced24 May 2026
President Wadagni names his first government of 24 members, with Aristide Medenou at the Economy and Finance and Corinne Amori Brunet at Foreign Affairs.[3][6]
Sourced12 Apr 2026
Romuald Wadagni is elected President with 94.27 per cent of the vote (final results proclaimed by the Constitutional Court on 16 April). No candidate of the main opposition party, The Democrats, was on the ballot.[7]
Sourced
Evidence
Sources
- [1]List of countries by system of government
WikipediaReferenceChecked 12 Oct 2026
- [2]World countries in JSON (mledoze/countries)
Mohammed Le Doze and contributors (ODbL)ReferenceChecked 1 Nov 2026
- [3]Membres du gouvernement
Portail officiel du Gouvernement de la République du BéninOfficialChecked 16 Oct 2026
- [4]Romuald Wadagni
WikipediaReferenceChecked 16 Oct 2026
- [5]List of current heads of state and government
WikipediaReferenceChecked 12 Oct 2026
- [6]Benin: Wadagni Wastes No Time Forming New Benin Government After Landslide Win
AllAfricaNewsChecked 16 Oct 2026
- [7]2026 Beninese presidential election
WikipediaReferenceChecked 16 Oct 2026
- [8]UN E-Government Survey 2024: country data
United Nations DESADatasetChecked 12 Oct 2026