By Ebuka Onyekwelu, Ph.D
The West African country of Benin is set to have a new President after the current President has served two terms of ten years. On Sunday, the country went to the polls to elect a replacement for the 68-year-old President Patrice Talon, who has governed the country since 2016. However, the outgoing President Talon had anointed his Finance Minister, Romuald Wadagni, as his successor. Based on the results so far collated by the electoral body, the 49-year-old Wadagni is currently leading the presidential election and is expected to emerge as the next president of the Republic of Benin.
With a weak opposition, Wadagni’s emergence as president was only a matter of time before he was announced. Although there are reports of incidents such as ballot boxes filled with cast ballots, among others, suggesting a serious violation of the electoral process. Yet, the closest opposition, Paul Hounkpe, is generally unable to put forward a strong competition against the ruling party.
Mr. Romuld Wadagni was picked from Deloitte, where he worked for almost two decades. He has been serving as the Minister of Economy and Finance since 2016, a position he has held to date.
There are challenges of unemployment, especially among the youth population of Benin. There are also challenges of insecurity, particularly terrorism. The new president, once declared and sworn in, is expected to hit the ground running and begin to address the real problems of the country.
