COTONOU, Benin Republic — Romuald Wadagni was officially sworn in on Sunday as the new president of Benin Republic during a ceremony held on the esplanade of the Palais des Congrès in Cotonou.
The event was attended by 16 foreign delegations and approximately 6,000 guests, marking the formal transfer of executive power in the West African country.
Okay News reports that Wadagni, who won the April 12 presidential election with 94 percent of the vote under the ruling coalition, succeeds his mentor, Patrice Talon, after the completion of his two five-year constitutional terms.
Notably present at the ceremony were the foreign ministers of Mali and Burkina Faso, as well as a delegation from Niger. The presence of the three member countries of the Alliance of Sahel States comes at a time when relations between Niamey and Cotonou remain strained, with their shared border closed since July 2023.
The swearing-in proceedings included the official proclamation of the election results by the President of the Constitutional Court, the investiture of Wadagni as Grand Master of the National Orders, military honors, and his first presidential address.
Prior to the public ceremony, a formal handover of power between Talon and Wadagni took place at the headquarters of the President of the Republic. Talon, who led the country for a decade, becomes a senator by right under a constitutional amendment approved in November.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, representing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was among the regional leaders present at the event to reinforce diplomatic ties between Nigeria and the incoming Beninese administration.
