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DE RUEHCO #1175/01 3341602
ZNR UUUUU ZZH (CCY ADDED ADDEE/ADDED SLUG LINE - AD5342C5 - 555)
O 301602Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY COTONOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9052
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UNCLAS COTONOU 001175 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
C O R R E C T E D C O P Y--(ADDED ADDEES AND SLUG LINE) 
 
DEPT FOR AF A/S FRAZER, NSC/AFRICA PITTMAN AND HUDSON AND AF/W BANKS 
FROM AMBASSADOR BROWN 
 
DEPT ALSO PASS TO PEACE CORPS AND USAID 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL EWWT EAID MARR MASSPHUM PGOV EFIN PINR CASC
PTER, BN 
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR PRESIDENT BONI YAYI OF BENIN'S USA VISIT, 
DECEMBER 13-16, 2006 
 
REF:  (A) Cotonou 1167, (B) Brown/Banks e-mail dated 11/24/06 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Benin's new pro-American President Boni Yayi 
welcomes his December 13-16, 2006, USA visit to meet with President 
George W. Bush, and other USG, IFI and private sector officials. 
President Yayi likely will express his appreciation for the US 
support to Benin via its $307 million MCC program.  However, he may 
stress that continued USAID and Peace Corps programs to support 
education and health improvements also remain vital to Benin's 
development.  Yayi also will affirm his commitment that US aid will 
be well-spent and his belief that combating corruption is crucial if 
he is to attract the "massive" US and other foreign private 
investment that he believes Benin must receive to spur economic 
growth. He may also seek support for legislative elections in 2007, 
training for his personal bodyguards and reinforcement of the 
country's porous borders. 
 
¶2. (SBU) SUMMARY (cont.): This is an opportunity to express our 
support for Benin's role as a model of democracy and stability in 
West Africa and note our appreciation for GOB hosting of the recent 
Gulf of Guinea maritime security conference.  We should encourage 
continuation of regional peacekeeping initiatives, underline our 
desire to support his reform agenda particularly in addressing 
corruption and improving the business climate, and affirm our 
ongoing USG assistance programs, including the December 14 
announcement that Benin will be part of the President's Malaria 
Initiative.  We could reiterate our request for GOB assistance in 
locating a suitable site for construction of a new embassy, as a 
symbol of the importance of our bilateral relationship. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Rejecting the old guard's attempts to torpedo presidential 
elections, and with strong USG and other donor support, Benin's 
people voted overwhelmingly in March 2006 for Boni Yayi's vision of 
"change."  For President Yayi, change means a focus on economic 
development and poverty reduction via administrative and fiscal 
reforms, a fight against corruption, increased agricultural 
productivity, and improved access to basic education and health for 
the population.  Implementation of his vision, however, is 
threatened by entrenched corruption, administrative inefficiency, a 
devastating drop in cotton production and its adverse budget impact 
(REF A), chronic water and electricity shortages and high petroleum 
prices. 
 
¶4. (SBU) On November 23, President Boni Yayi convoked the Ambassador 
for an hour-long meeting to discuss his USA trip and the "crisis" 
situation in Benin (REF B).  Yayi has been lobbying for this 
Washington visit since the day of his election.  The visit, which 
will be followed by a stop in Chicago, is the climax of a series of 
trips that have taken him repeatedly to Europe, Asia and other parts 
of Africa in search of donors and investors.  The trips have been 
well-received when they have resulted in specific boosts to Benin's 
economic development, but they have begun to be seen by many in the 
Beninese public and the dip corps as a distraction when they produce 
little visible benefit for the country. 
 
¶5. (SBU) In President Yayi's view, the precarious economic situation 
he inherited from former President Mathieu Kerekou has been 
aggravated by a poor cotton harvest, problems in the education 
sector, water and electricity shortages countrywide, and the high 
cost of petroleum.  Stating that Benin was not a "chasse gardee," he 
reaffirmed shared values with the US, notably building democracy; 
fighting corruption and terrorism; supporting education; and 
promoting "massive" US investment in the Port of Cotonou, roads, and 
other infrastructure; and working toward a common strategy to 
achieve mutual goals in Benin.  To address corruption, for example, 
he plans to personally monitor MCA Benin's progress, requiring 
weekly updates from the director.  To underscore the anti-corruption 
efforts of the President, it is notable that since he took office 
some ten high-level public sector officials have been arrested for 
their fraudulent and corrupt practices in the past.  Further, 
according to a press report, December 8 will be declared 
Anti-Corruption Day in the country. 
 
KEY ISSUES: MAKING THE DEMOCRATIC DIVIDEND PAY 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶6. (SBU) Benin President Boni Yayi assumed office with a strong 
mandate, having won 75 percent of the run-off vote. Despite Benin's 
political stability, economic growth over the past several years has 
been disappointing. The country has few natural advantages or 
resources to spur growth or endow it with geo-political strategic 
importance. It is only Benin's democratic tradition that has 
qualified Benin to feature on almost every list of beneficiaries for 
various aid programs such as Millennium Challenge, AGOA, HIPC debt 
relief, President Bush's Women's Justice and Empowerment Initiative, 
the President's Malaria Initiative, and the EU's program of direct 
budget support.  Approval of the World Bank's Education Fast-Track 
 
Initiative is expected soon. 
 
¶7. (SBU) This "democratic dividend" is vital for Benin, but can only 
spur real economic growth if it is combined with improved economic 
governance.  Botched privatizations of Benin's cotton and petroleum 
parastatals, Benin's largest export and import items, respectively, 
combined with difficult world market conditions for both products, 
have weighed heavily on Benin's economy over the past three years. 
Endemic corruption and inefficiencies in managing crucial 
infrastructure such as the Port of Cotonou, also negatively affect 
growth.  Yayi and his Finance Minister, Pascal Koupaki, have made 
significant steps to improve fiscal management, as acknowledged by 
the IMF Board in its November 27 decision to disburse SDR 880,000 
($1.3 million) to Benin under an SDR 6.19 million ($9.3 million) 
Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility. 
 
MCC, USAID AND PEACE CORPS 
------------------------------- 
¶8. (SBU) The United States is perfectly positioned to work with the 
new government on these issues.  In February 2006, Benin signed an 
MCA Compact, which entered into force on October 6.  President Yayi 
has underscored his commitment to maintaining Benin's eligibility 
for MCC, notably by addressing the problem of endemic corruption. 
The five-year, $307 million Compact is designed to address key 
constraints to increasing investment and private sector activity in 
four program areas: land tenure, commercial dispute mechanisms, 
financial services, and access to markets (which is predominately to 
improve the functioning of the Port of Cotonou). 
 
¶9. (SBU) USAID (with $12-15 million annual spending) and Peace Corps 
(with around 100 Volunteers) will continue their programs in key 
social sectors, particularly health and education.  Our health 
assistance promotes increased access and quality of primary health 
care, including childhood vaccinations, polio eradication, family 
planning, malaria control, and HIV/AIDS information and treatment. 
The USAID education program focuses on primary education including 
curriculum reform, teacher training, improved school supervision, 
and increased enrollment and retention of girls in primary school. 
 
REGIONAL STABILITY AND MILITARY COOPERATION 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) Entry into force in 2005 of an Article 98 agreement (which 
the GOB prefers to call a "non-surrender" agreement) has allowed us 
to increase the tempo of military training and cooperation with the 
Beninese forces. Our IMET program restarted in FY06. Benin is also a 
beneficiary of the Africa Contingency Operations Training Assistance 
(ACOTA) program and makes an important contribution to regional 
stability both through its example and troop commitments. Benin has 
over 1,200 peacekeeping troops deployed in the Democratic Republic 
of Congo (MONUC) and in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI), as well as military 
and police observers in Darfur and Haiti. It has expressed interest 
in making a contribution of troops, but to sustain such a 
contribution, the GOB would require USG support.  Benin would be an 
attractive prospect for FMF funding. 
 
A BRIEF HISTORY OF BENIN 
------------------------ 
 
¶11. (U) Benin's status as one of the most peaceful and democratic 
countries in Africa is a real achievement. Benin was the first 
African country to suffer from a military coup in the post-colonial 
era, and from 1963 to 1972 Benin saw more coups and changes of 
government than any other African state. From 1972 to 1989, Benin 
lived under Mathieu Kerekou's Marxist regime. 
 
¶12. (U) Benin became a trailblazer in a more positive sense in 1990 
when it was one of the first African countries to undergo a 
democratic transition. A new Constitution was adopted in December 
1990, and, in elections in February 1991, Kerekou was defeated and 
peacefully stepped aside for new President Nicephore Soglo. In 1996 
Kerekou resumed office after defeating Soglo in democratic elections 
and won re-election in 2001 in a vote marred by allegations of 
fraud.  On April 6, 2006, Kerekou became the first African leader 
ever to leave office constitutionally twice as a result of 
democratic elections. 
 
BIO NOTE ON PRESIDENT BONI YAYI 
------------------------------- 
 
¶13. (SBU) Dr. Thomas Boni Yayi, a Paris-educated economist who had 
never held elected office and who had no political party 
affiliation, skillfully crafted a campaign projecting himself as 
both an economically literate technocrat, and the embodiment of 
change for Benin.  President Yayi views the United States as a key 
partner for his new government. An evangelical Christian, he 
emphasizes that he shares "American values" such as the importance 
 
of good governance and the promotion of investment and economic 
growth. Both issues feature prominently in his government's program. 
 
BROWN