Bénin revises national accounts base, GDP 2023 jumps by 25.2%
Bénin revises national accounts base, GDP 2023 jumps by 25.2%
The National Institute of Statistics and Demography (INStaD) has completed the rebasing of Benin’s national accounts, adopting 2023 as the new reference year in place of the previous 2015 base. This statistical adjustment has revised the country’s 2023 GDP to 14,020.2 billion FCFA, marking a significant 25.2% increase—a reflection of improved tracking of recent economic transformations in Benin.
Rebasing aligns with global standards
This overhaul aligns Benin’s economic measurement with the 2008 United Nations System of National Accounts, which advocates regular updates to the base year for more accurate economic estimates. The INStaD noted that the conventional five-year revision cycle was delayed due to global economic shocks between 2019 and 2022. The selection of 2023 was driven by its relative economic stability for Benin, coupled with extensive statistical operations conducted during 2019-2023 that better captured the nation’s evolving economic landscape.
Revised GDP reflects statistical improvements, not sudden wealth creation
While the 2023 GDP now stands at 14,020.2 billion FCFA—up from 11,200.7 billion FCFA under the 2015 base—the INStaD emphasizes that this surge does not indicate a sudden surge in wealth. Instead, it highlights enhanced statistical coverage and more precise measurement of economic activities nationwide.
Sectoral contributions to this revision reveal significant growth in the secondary sector, which surged by 56.1%. On the demand side, the most notable change is the gross fixed capital formation, revised upward by 36.6%—a shift attributed to better documentation of investments in infrastructure, construction, and productive equipment, including those tied to economic zones.
Collaboration drives accuracy in economic assessment
The INStaD’s rebasing initiative was supported by key technical and financial partners, including the World Bank, AFRISTAT, the IMF, GIZ, the African Development Bank, STATFRIC, the ECOWAS, and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU). Peer reviews were also conducted in collaboration with the national statistics institutes of Burkina Faso and Mali, ensuring methodological rigor and comparability.
The INStaD has announced plans to extend this work by retroactively calculating national accounts from 1999 to 2022. This next phase will deliver a complete, updated series of national accounts based on the 2023 benchmark, providing policymakers and analysts with a more reliable foundation for economic decision-making.
