Digital transformation is a key priority for the Beninese government. For instance, the administration plans to allocate a budget of 16.4 billion CFA francs to digital projects in 2025.

Benin's government plans to connect an additional 18 municipalities to fiber-optic networks by mid-2025, as part of its broader goal to expand high-speed internet access to all 77 municipalities nationwide. The announcement was made by Digital Economy and Digitalization Minister Aurélie Adam Soulé Zoumarou during a November 21 television program.

The deployment of fiber optics in these new municipalities will strengthen the national backbone, which currently links 50 municipalities via approximately 2,550 kilometers of fiber. The government aims to extend this network to a total of 3,300 kilometers. Additionally, nine municipalities will be connected through alternative technologies.

These efforts are part of a larger project to deploy high-speed and ultra-high-speed internet across Benin. This initiative, with an estimated cost of 207 billion CFA francs ($330.63 million), is a cornerstone of the government's 2021-2026 Action Plan. The government aims to position Benin as "West Africa's digital service platform, accelerating growth and fostering social inclusion."

Improving Coverage and Adoption

The project has the potential to significantly enhance telecommunications coverage, particularly internet access, nationwide. The government claims 4G network coverage already reaches approximately 90% of the population, a figure supported by the International Telecommunication Union's (ITU) ICT DataHub. ITU also reports that 2G and 3G networks cover 98% and 90% of the population, respectively, while 5G services are in the early stages of commercialization.

In June 2024, the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (ARCEP) reported 11.06 million mobile internet subscribers and 20,000 fixed internet users. With a population estimated at around 13.7 million (World Bank, 2023), mobile telephony subscriptions stand at 17.8 million, while fixed-line telephony subscriptions are limited to 1,363. However, ITU data indicates internet and mobile penetration rates of 33.8% and 53.9%, respectively, as of the end of 2023.

Isaac K. Kassouwi