The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission has held a multi-day training engagement with senior media professionals, digital influencers, and civil society organisations in Benin to strengthen the country’s information environment ahead of its presidential election on April 12, 2026.
The engagement, organised by ECOWAS’s Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS), took place from March 3 to 6 at the Azalai Hotel in Cotonou. It brought together representatives from television stations, radio outlets, newspapers, and digital media platforms alongside key civil society bodies including the Plateforme des Acteurs Société Civil du Benin (PASCIB), the Maison de la Société Civile du Benin, ALCRER, and the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding Benin (WANEP-Benin).
Mr. Ebenezer Ofosu Asiedu, Head of Democracy and Good Governance at the ECOWAS Commission, representing Resident Representative Ambassador Amadou Diongue, called on participants to serve as stabilising forces during the election period and to adopt professional and ethical standards in their coverage of the campaign and polling process.
The intervention carries heightened urgency given the turbulence Benin has experienced in recent months. A failed coup attempt on December 7, 2025, led by Lieutenant Colonel Pascal Tigri, saw soldiers briefly seize the national broadcaster before being repelled by loyalist troops, with support from Nigerian air forces and ECOWAS standby forces from Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Sierra Leone.
The January 2026 parliamentary and local elections that followed the coup attempt proceeded peacefully but recorded turnout of only 36.74 percent, raising concerns about civic disengagement ahead of the April presidential contest.
Only two candidates have been approved by Benin’s Constitutional Court to contest the April vote: Romuald Wadagni, the former Finance Minister representing the ruling coalition, and Paul Hounkpè, the sole opposition candidate. The restricted field has drawn criticism from civil society groups who argue that the electoral framework disadvantages smaller parties and independent candidates.
For ECOWAS, Benin’s election represents one of the bloc’s most consequential tests of credibility in the coming months, as the organisation seeks to demonstrate its commitment to democratic governance following its failure to reverse military takeovers in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger.
