Benin has emerged as the leading country in the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) for budget transparency, according to the latest scores published by the Permanent Observer to WAEMU (OBS).
The report places Benin ahead of Côte d’Ivoire and Senegal, highlighting its success in making public finances more open and accessible.
The country’s rapid progress is reflected in its performance over recent years. Gérard Sokégbé, Director of Performance Analysis and Synthesis at the Ministry of Finance, revealed that Benin improved its score from 65% in 2021 to 79% in 2023.
This sharp increase underscores the government’s commitment to strengthening trust between the state and its citizens. By comparison, Côte d’Ivoire recorded scores of 48% and 56% over the same period, while Senegal ranked third with 40% and 42%.
Observers say budget transparency in Benin has gone beyond simply publishing figures.
It has become a governance philosophy built on several key principles: comprehensiveness, ensuring all state revenues and expenditures are accounted for; clarity, requiring information to be presented in simple and understandable terms; and accessibility, which guarantees that data is freely available to the public. Reliability is reinforced by oversight bodies such as the Court of Auditors and the National Assembly.
Equally significant has been the country’s emphasis on citizen participation.
Civil society organisations, the media, and ordinary citizens have been encouraged to play an active role in budget discussions, creating an environment where accountability is not only demanded but enforced. Mechanisms have also been put in place to sanction mismanagement of public funds.
This approach, analysts argue, positions Benin as a model of good governance within the subregion. By making its budget processes transparent, the country has strengthened public confidence, enhanced state accountability, and laid the foundations for long-term development and stability.
Benin’s leadership in budget transparency is now being seen as a benchmark within WAEMU, proving that openness in managing public resources can serve as a driver of both economic progress and political trust.
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