Benin

Childbearing, Child Rearing, and Marriage

The typical woman in Benin who lives to 51 will birth more than seven children, higher than the World Health Organization rate for West Africa. Women in rural areas have a higher total fertility rate than in urban areas. Women employed in the formal sector are eligible for 14 weeks of maternity leave benefits, at 100 percent of pay. Most women work in the informal sector, and have six years or less of formal schooling. Girls represent about 35 percent of secondary enrollment.

Childbearing is an expected social norm. Yoruba and Goun are two Benin ethnic groups. Goun men are expected to provide a home and basic needs for their families; Yoruba women are expected to use the dowry as capital for their entrepreneurial activities and support themselves and their children. Yoruba women are more likely than Goun to be in polygamous marriages.

Vodum, recognized as an official religion alongside Christianity and Islam, is the dominant religion. Worship takes place at shrines, which are the center of the family, clan, or lineage. Introducing the child to the family community is the most important Vodum rite of passage.

Most women attend one prenatal visit, and about two-thirds attend at least four visits. Women seek prenatal care when they experience symptoms that are unusual or interfere with their daily tasks. About 50 percent of births are attended by a skilled assistant. The maternal mortality rate is very high.

Government protection of mothers is written into the Benin Constitution. The goal of the Ministry of Social Welfare and the Status of Women is to improve family health, including maternal outcomes. Divorce is legal, but different grounds apply to men and women. In some regions, divorce is not allowed [Page 111]for any reason. Twenty-one percent of households are headed by females. The government authorized the creation of a Family Planning Association in 1971. Many women rely on withdrawal and lactation to space out the births of their children. Contraceptive prevalence for modern methods is 3.4 percent. Abortion is illegal but common; abortion-related deaths account for 23 percent of recorded deaths.

Kamarou, a child in Benin (right), is happy that he will soon join his mother. USAID and the UNICEF-funded Le Bon Samaritain transit center rescued him from child traffickers. Benin's high birth rate and minimal formal education for women contribute to poverty.

Famous Benin women include Marie-Elise Akouavi Gbèdo, a mother of two who ran for president of Benin in 2001 and 2006, and was the first female presidential candidate in West Africa. Anjelique Kidjo, mother of one, was one of the most successful performers in World Music in the 1990s and 2000s, and won a 2008 Grammy Award for her song “Djin Djin.”

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