2008 Benin floods 2008 Benin floods The 2008 Benin floods struck the nation of Benin between July and October 2008, and affected the other West African nations of Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Togo. According to the Red Cross of Benin, the flooding in Benin initially affected almost 7,000 people, including the displacement of 1,560 children. and by August 19, 2008, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that the flooding had displaced at least 150,000 people. Some 500,000 people in total were at risk of additional flooding. The floods begin in the last week of July 2008 with a series of storms
Benin has had a tumultuous history since then, with many different democratic governments, military coups, and military governments. A Marxist–Leninist state called the People's Republic of Benin existed between 1975 and 1990. In 1991, it was replaced by the current multi-party Republic of Benin. During the colonial period and at independence, the country was known as Dahomey. On 30 November 1975, it was renamed to Benin, after the body of water on which the country lies—the Bight of Benin. This had been named by Europeans after the Benin Empire in present-day Nigeria. The country of Benin has no connection to Benin