BENIN GENDER LANDSCAPE Color Key This briefing showcases the gender landscape in Benin on key indicators Improvement helpful for monitoring gender equality and designing effective policy Deterioration interventions. Gender equality fosters productivity gains, minimizes losses No Change in wealth, reduces poverty, boosts shared prosperity, and supports green, resilient, and inclusive development. Click the indicators below to explore the World Bank Gender Data Portal. Latest* Comparison Year Value SSA LMC World Progress in ending all forms of gender-based violence Proportion of women subjected to physical and/or sexual violence in the last 12 months (% of ever 2018 15.0 20.3 16.9 NA partnered women ages 15-49) Women who were first married by 18 (% of women 20-24) 2022 27.5 NA NA NA Adolescent fertility rate (births per 1,000 women 15-19) 2022 90.8 98.7 44.7 41.9 Stronger and more resilient human capital Learning poverty: Share of children at the end-of-primary age below minimum reading proficiency Female NA NA 85.9 57.9 50.0 (%) Male NA NA 86.8 61.3 53.7 Female 2022 27.7 43.3 73.9 77.0 Lower secondary completion rate (% of relevant group) Male 2022 30.4 46.4 72.3 76.3 Female share of graduates from STEM programs, tertiary (%) 2015 54.9 NA NA NA Maternal mortality ratio (modeled estimate per 100,000 live births) 2020 523 536 261 223 Contraceptive prevalence, any modern method (% of married women 15-49) 2018 12.4 28.6 47.3 55.7 Female 2017 0.68 NA NA NA Fraction of children under 5 not stunted Male 2017 0.64 NA NA NA Mortality from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, or chronic respiratory disease between Female 2019 21.0 20.1 19.3 14.8 ages 30 and 70 (%) Male 2019 24.5 22.8 25.2 21.8 More and better jobs, including jobs of the future Female 2023 56.7 60.7 38.6 48.7 Labor force participation rate (% 15+) Male 2023 68.8 72.8 75.3 73.1 Female 2022 16.8 17.9 27.9 53.1 Wage and salaried workers (% of employment) Male 2022 25.3 25.9 33.8 51.3 Female 2022 14.0 51.6 47.4 25.6 Employment in agriculture (% of employment) Male 2022 40.3 51.8 35.8 26.9 Female 2022 17.5 NA 34.1 NA Share of youth not in education, employment or training (% of youth population) Male 2022 12.9 NA 11.8 NA Female 2023 4.57 11.0 15.2 15.4 Youth unemployment (% of labor force 15-24) Male 2023 3.17 9.51 12.7 13.4 Greater ownership and use of economic assets Women who do not own land (% of women 15-49) 2018 87.0 NA NA NA Men who do not own land (% of men) 2018 59.8 NA NA NA Female 2021 17.5 33.8 55.6 71.9 Financial institution account (% 15+) Male 2021 30.6 45.9 61.3 76.0 Wider access to and use of enabling services Female NA NA 28.4 44.5 61.6 Individuals using the Internet Male NA NA 38.9 54.8 67.2 Female 2021 3.37 14.1 8.43 31.8 Used a mobile phone or the internet to pay bills (% 15+) Male 2021 11.3 19.4 14.8 37.0 Advances in women’s participation in decision-making Female share of employment in senior and middle management (%) 2022 23.5 NA NA NA Firms with female participation in ownership (% of firms) 2016 36.7 29.9 30.8 33.8 Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%) 2023 26.6 27.0 23.2 26.7 Proportion of women in ministerial level positions (%) 2022 17.4 23.9 18.4 22.8 * Latest value shows the latest available value from 2012 onwards. Color coding of the latest country value represents a more than 10 percent change upward or downward from the country’s baseline value from either 2010 or 2011. No coloring applied whenever there is no data for 2010 or 2011. Notes: (1) Benin is part of the Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region and a lower middle income country (LMC) as classified by The World Bank Group. Peer Comparison shows how Benin performs relative to its peers in the region, income group, and the world. (2) Data and definitions can be found on the Gender Data Portal. Data is as of October 13, 2024. BENIN GENDER LANDSCAPE A closer look at digital Turning human capital investments into economic gains means addressing barriers to women‘s economic empowerment, including access to digital and financial and financial services. Financial inclusion for women has many benefits, including more inclusion in Benin influence over their household’s spending priorities, and more resilience to weather unexpected expenses. Similarly, closing the gender digital divide can facilitate greater and more equal economic participation. Despite progress, gender gaps persist in both domains. DIGITAL FINANCIAL LEGAL ENVIRONMENT ACCESS TO CAPITAL WBL Entrepreneurship Score 100 A measure of legal barriers to women In Benin, 35 percent of firms with a female starting businesses, with scores below top manager perceive 100 100 indicating restrictions on access to credit, access to finance as a constraint. contracts, banking, or business registration. LEARN MORE GENDER FINANCIAL INCLUSION DIGITAL INCLUSION - World Bank Gender Strategy - The Global Findex Database - Using Digital Solutions to Address 2024-2030 - Women Entrepreneurs Finance Barriers to Female Entrepreneurship - World Bank Gender Data Portal Initiative (We-Fi) - Digital Progress and Trends Report Sources: All charts show the latest value available as of September 2024 Digital: Gallup World Poll 2024. Financial: Global Findex Database. Legal Environment: Women, Business and the Law (2024) Legal 1.0. Access to Capital: (1) Global Findex Database. (2) World Bank Enterprise Survey Database, if available.