Human rights in Benin citizens?" The report called on Benin to "[d]ecriminalize sexual relations between consenting, same-sex individuals and establish educational programs and appropriate policies for police that promote the personal security of all Benin citizens regardless of sexual orientation". It is illegal to discriminate against people based on HIV status, and overt instances of such discrimination are reportedly not frequent. There is no majority ethnic group in Benin. A range of ethnic groups is represented in the public sector. There is a system for protecting refugees, of which the country held about 7,300 at the end of 2010, most of them from Togo.
Benin–United States relations is one of the most successful in Africa, in part because of Beninese receptivity and collaboration. Currently, trade between Benin and the United States is small, but interest in American products is growing. The United States is interested in promoting increased trade with Benin in order to contribute to U.S. trade with Benin's neighbors, particularly Nigeria, Niger, and Burkina Faso, which receive large amounts of their own imports through the port of Cotonou. Such trade also is facilitated by Benin's membership in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and in the CFA franc monetary zone. The U.S. Government