Capital city
Porto-Novo
Area
114.763 km²
Poverty
38.5% of the population lives below the poverty line of $2 a day
UN Development Index
Ranking: 166 out of 191
Population figures
13 million
Doctors per million inhabitants
160
Languages
Fon, Yom, Yoruba, and French
Mercy Ships in Benin
Mercy Ships has visited Benin five times. In 1997, the Anastasis docked in Cotonou, followed by the Africa Mercy in 2001, 2004, 2009. The most recent field service in 2016 was originally scheduled for 2014, but was postponed due to a major Ebola outbreak in the country.
During the 10-month visits, surgeries were performed on board the ship and Mercy Ships assisted in building medical capacity.
Partnering with Benin's health care leaders as well as health professionals has led to lasting change for the nation.
Overview of the operations delivered by Mercy Ships in Benin in 2016
78
ORTHOPAEDIC SURGERIES
494
MAXILLOFACIAL SURGERIES
182
RECONSTRUCTIVE PLASTIC SURGERIES
451
GENERAL SURGERIES
676
OPHTHALMIC SURGERIES
52
WOMEN’S HEALTH SURGERIES
24
AMBULATORY SURGERIES
Our development programme
Mercy Ship’s medical and nursing staff train hundreds of its own doctors and nurses and organise a range of training courses. Courses are typically in safe surgery according to UN regulations, anaesthesia and advanced emergency care. A ‘Food for Life’ programme trains 30-40 of the country’s trained farmers in sustainable agriculture.
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