Benin Data Book

Last update: October 17, 2024

This page contains information about some of the data available in the FEWS NET Data Explorer (FDE) for Benin. This is not a comprehensive guide.

For information about using the filters and fields for specific domains in the FDE, see Choose a Data Domain.

Summary table

Country food security context

Statistical reporting units

Administrative (admin) units are the geographical areas into which a country is divided. FEWS NET uses the following terminology: National boundary = admin 0, First sub-national division = admin 1 (e.g., states in the United States), Second sub-national division = admin 2 (e.g., counties in the United States), and so on.

Admin 1: Département

Admin 2: Commune

Admin 3: Arrondissement

Benin’s crop statistics are generally reported at the Admin-1 “département” or Admin-2 “commune” levels. The Ministry of Agriculture has defined, and sometimes refers to, eight agro-ecological zones (see Compendium des statistiques agricoles, 1992) which generally group more than one commune together based upon common physical, climate-based, and agronomic features. Some of the zones do not respect commune boundaries.    

Crop data

Explore our crop data.

View our documentation on using the Crop Domain.

Crop estimate data sources

The Ministry of Agriculture, or a closely-related ministry, like that of Rural Development is generally the source of the country’s crop estimates and reporting.

Crop statistics in Benin are generally prepared annually at the national level, delivering estimates generated at the commune or departement level, only for the “main” season. Other production system information (e.g. irrigated, commercial and small-farmer, etc) is generally not provided.

Benin’s crop statistic reporting generally distinguishes between no production (néant), and several categories of statistics that were not (yet) available: non-disponibles, non-parvenus, ne figurent pas dans les tableaux pour une autre raison.    

The Benin record of crop production found in the FDW covers the 1970 to present period. Historical annual crop statistics reporting, often published in annual reports, has been difficult to find. Here, they have been supplemented by multi-year (often 5 years) summary reports published by the principal ministries involved.

Year and season definition

Benin’s annual cropping and statistical reporting cycle begins on January 1 and ends on December 31.

The country’s “Main” cropping season is generally considered to run between April 1 and November 30 (approximately, depending upon latitude), with zones in the North planting later and harvesting earlier (by September 30) than in the center and south.

Prior to the annual commencement of the main season rains in April, heat and humidity move northward following the annual pattern of movement of West Africa’s principal climate driver, the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), and the rains follow. Sometime late in the normal “main” season, the ITCZ begins its annual seasonal southward retreat, and the heat, humidity and rains retreat with it.  

Within this larger national cropping pattern, farmers perceive, and adapt locally to, four micro-seasons, two of which are rainy, and two of which are dry:  

• Large/grande rains between April and end of July;

• Small/petite dry season between August and September;

• Small/petite rains between September and November;

• Main/grande dry season between December and March.

Benin’s season dates are very similar to those for Togo and Ghana and even major parts of Nigeria, except where local features figure prominently (hills/mountains, bodies of water, settlement patterns, etc.).

Cropping years are generally referred to by a two-date notation (xxxx-yyyy), in which the planting and harvesting is carried out in the “xxxx” year, and the “yyyy” year is the marketing year.  When a cropping year is referred to with one notation (e.g. “xxxx”) that refers to the year of planting and harvesting (“il a été retenu de mettre l'année n pour désigner la campagne n/n+1”).         

Example: 2015 refers to 2015 - 2016.                                

Methodology

Annual surveys generally occur only once per year generally close to the harvest. Therefore, the area planted variable is not provided, only area harvested.