Total natural resource rents in Benin
Benin: Total natural resource rents was 2.3% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Total natural resource rents in Benin, 1970–2021
Source: The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Benin recorded 2.3% for total natural resource rents in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 52 years on record.
That represents a change of down 5.1% on the previous year and down 33.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total natural resource rents in Benin peaked at 12.0% in 1977 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 2021.
Benin ranks 94th of 211 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 52 years of available data.
Total natural resource rents in Benin, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 6.7% | — |
| 1971 | 5.8% | -13.6% |
| 1972 | 5.3% | -7.8% |
| 1973 | 7.3% | +36.0% |
| 1974 | 7.3% | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 8.2% | +13.0% |
| 1976 | 7.2% | -13.1% |
| 1977 | 12.0% | +67.0% |
| 1978 | 9.9% | -17.5% |
| 1979 | 7.2% | -27.4% |
| 1980 | 7.3% | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 8.4% | +15.5% |
| 1982 | 10.5% | +24.1% |
| 1983 | 9.2% | -11.9% |
| 1984 | 9.9% | +7.0% |
| 1985 | 8.4% | -15.3% |
| 1986 | 7.6% | -9.3% |
| 1987 | 7.1% | -5.8% |
| 1988 | 7.0% | -1.5% |
| 1989 | 8.3% | +17.6% |
| 1990 | 8.0% | -3.8% |
| 1991 | 7.2% | -10.0% |
| 1992 | 9.0% | +25.5% |
| 1993 | 5.8% | -36.0% |
| 1994 | 9.2% | +59.3% |
| 1995 | 9.2% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 8.3% | -9.8% |
| 1997 | 8.0% | -3.5% |
| 1998 | 7.5% | -6.0% |
| 1999 | 3.1% | -58.2% |
| 2000 | 3.3% | +3.6% |
| 2001 | 3.1% | -5.4% |
| 2002 | 3.3% | +7.1% |
| 2003 | 4.1% | +25.4% |
| 2004 | 3.1% | -24.5% |
| 2005 | 3.1% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 3.0% | -0.8% |
| 2007 | 3.6% | +19.0% |
| 2008 | 3.6% | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 3.7% | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 3.4% | -7.6% |
| 2011 | 3.5% | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 3.9% | +12.7% |
| 2013 | 3.6% | -9.2% |
| 2014 | 3.7% | +4.0% |
| 2015 | 4.3% | +16.1% |
| 2016 | 4.5% | +3.6% |
| 2017 | 4.1% | -8.0% |
| 2018 | 2.6% | -36.4% |
| 2019 | 2.5% | -5.4% |
| 2020 | 2.4% | -1.6% |
| 2021 | 2.3% | -5.1% |
Benin compared with similar countries
- Benin's 2.3% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4.4%, 52% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Benin's 2.3% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 7.7%, 30% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.7% | 5.3% | 12.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 8.4% | 7.0% | 10.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.5% | 3.1% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.4% | 3.0% | 4.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.6% | 2.5% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.4% | 2.3% | 2.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Benin
More reference data data for Benin
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1979 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.67 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1562 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6635 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.5244 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.56 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.8505 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total natural resource rents in Benin?
- Total natural resource rents in Benin was 2.3% in 2021, according to The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total natural resource rents recorded in Benin?
- The highest recorded value was 12.0% in 1977.
- What is the lowest total natural resource rents recorded in Benin?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 2021.
- How does Benin rank for total natural resource rents?
- Benin ranks 94th out of 211 countries with data for 2021.
- Is total natural resource rents rising or falling in Benin?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Benin data come from?
- The figures come from The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank staff estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Total natural resource rents. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 52 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Natural resources rents are estimated as the difference between the price of a commodity and the average cost of producing it. Total natural resources rents are the sum of oil rents, natural gas rents, coal rents, mineral rents, and forest rents.