FCO, DFID and FCDO have never had a post located in Benin, Burkina Faso or Cabo Verde.

The UK continues to monitor the deteriorating situation across the Sahel, and the impact on coastal West African countries including Benin. We are supportive of the efforts of the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States and the Accra Initiative to respond to increases in insecurity and the threat to Benin and other countries.

The UK Minister for Armed Forces and the former Minister for Africa have visited the region to understand how the UK could support regional security initiatives. At the UK-Ghana Security Dialogue in July the UK Government confirmed our ambition to help regional partners to galvanise international support for such efforts. Meanwhile, the UK continues to support partners to strengthen their security capability. In the last year, 11 members of the Beninese Armed Forces have been sponsored by the UK to attend Professional Military Education courses that range from Planning, Leadership and Peace Support Operations.

The UK supports freedom of expression as both a human right in and of itself, and as an essential element for the enjoyment of other human rights. Following the May 2020 local elections in Benin, we were concerned at the low rate of participation and that only one opposition party took part. This was despite the provisional ruling of the African Court of Human and People's Rights that the Government of Benin should take steps to avoid the exclusion of opposition parties. The UK was also concerned to see the violence that marked the presidential elections in April 2021.

Freedom of expression is an essential quality of any functioning democracy; people must be allowed to discuss and debate issues freely, to challenge their governments, and to make informed decisions. The UK hopes President Talon's recent dialogue with his predecessor Thomas Boni Yayi in September 2021 will lead to a formal dialogue with opposition parties in Benin.

The UK supports freedom of expression as both a human right in and of itself, and as an essential element for the enjoyment of other human rights. Following the May 2020 local elections in Benin, we were concerned at the low rate of participation and that only one opposition party took part. This was despite the provisional ruling of the African Court of Human and People's Rights that the Government of Benin should take steps to avoid the exclusion of opposition parties. The UK was also concerned to see the violence that marked the presidential elections in April 2021.

Freedom of expression is an essential quality of any functioning democracy; people must be allowed to discuss and debate issues freely, to challenge their governments, and to make informed decisions. The UK hopes President Talon's recent dialogue with his predecessor Thomas Boni Yayi in September 2021 will lead to a formal dialogue with opposition parties in Benin.

Full budgets per country and a final audited spend for 2021/22 will be published in due course, including in our regular Statistics on International Development and in the FCDO Annual Report and Accounts.

The UK Government notes the outcome of local elections in Benin on 17 May. Participation was low and only one opposition party took part, despite the provisional ruling of the African Court of Human and People's Rights that the Government of Benin should take steps to avoid the exclusion of opposition parties. These concerns stand in contrast to the fact that Benin was one of the first nations in West Africa to deliver free and fair elections, in the 1990s. Elections are the responsibility of the Government of Benin, all political parties and the Beninese people. The UK remains committed to peaceful, free and credible elections, in line with international law, the importance of maintaining political space and an inclusive democratic process.

As outlined in our answer to HL16250, the British Government is taking a number of actions to prevent conflict. In Sub-Saharan Africa, we are:

• Using funding from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) which has led, for example, to the roll out of new peacekeeping-intelligence architecture in the three missions with the highest number of casualties - Mali, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Central African Republic. Our sizeable funding contribution to the UN is used as leverage to advocate for UN reform and improve the way it operates.

• Promoting peace and security in Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali through diplomacy and targeted support. We support UN and French security efforts through direct contributions to MINUSMA in Northern Mali and the deployment of three RAF Chinook helicopters to France’s Counter-Terrorism Operation Barkhane. We work closely with the G5 and other partners to provide life-saving assistance and protection to people on the frontline of conflict. The UK is also focusing on developing programmes to tackle the long-term drivers of instability and poverty.

• Urging all parties in Benin to engage in dialogue to overcome their differences and find a peaceful solution. We share the concerns of the EU, France, the US and the UN about acts of violence in Benin following the 28 April legislative elections.

• Regularly addressing the situation in the North-West and South-West (Anglophone) regions of Cameroon with international partners including the UN, EU, Commonwealth and African Union to encourage and support efforts to resolve the crisis. The UK remains deeply concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian and human rights situation in the Anglophone regions and the impact it is having on the lives of ordinary civilians. We have shared experiences with the Government of Cameroon (GoC) on conflict resolution; and remain ready to provide further support. We raised our concerns during briefings at the UN Security Council on 4 and 12 June, and led on a statement with Austria at the UN Human Rights Council in March, which was supported by 39 countries, calling on the GoC to establish a credible political dialogue to address root causes of the conflict.

• Providing the Central African Republic (CAR) with significant humanitarian spend (£63m since 2013) and core contributions to key multilateral organisations on the ground, such as the World Bank and the EU. Support to UN peacekeeping efforts include assessed contributions (£40.5m per annum to MINUSCA peacekeeping mission and €2m to the EU Training Mission).

• Pressing our long-term approach to stability in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including through significant contributions to the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO). We are supporting security reforms, stabilisation and peace building initiatives through DFID programmes and the CSSF.

• Providing training to Nigeria’s armed forces combat insurgent groups, support communities to better respond and manage the effects of violent conflict, and to support the reintegration of former members of Boko Haram. We are also working closely with the EU, US and UN to provide technical support to the Nigerian Government to address the underlying causes of intercommunal violence affecting many parts of Nigeria, including the recently announced National Livestock Transformation Plan, which aims to mitigate escalating violence between pastoralists and farmers. We are currently reviewing how we might further assist the Nigerian Government in their efforts to tackle conflict in the northeast of the country.

• Building on the work of the UK-hosted London Conference on Somalia in 2017, which brought together Somalia’s key partners, including the UN, EU and a number of members of the Commonwealth. This established a set of agreements that provide the foundation for a more coherent international approach to Somalia with conflict resolution at its core. We are careful to ensure that all UK policies and programmes in Somalia maintain a focus on conflict sensitivity, and regularly undertake conflict analysis to support this. In particular, our work includes activity under the CSSF to address the drivers of conflict and build capacity at both local and regional levels.

• Supporting community-based peacebuilding programmes, in concert with the UN and other international partners, namely the African Union, in areas of instability and conflict in Sudan. The UK has a long standing role in supporting sustainable peace in Sudan. As a member of the Troika and bilaterally, we have supported progress in the Peace Process seeking to find a solution to the conflicts in Darfur and the Two Areas. In addition the UK plays a leading role in the UN Security Council, particularly as the penholder on the mandate for UNAMID – the African Union hybrid Mission in Darfur.

• The Minister for Africa met with Togolese President Gnassingbé and reiterated the importance of delivering 2020 Presidential elections on time and a return to inclusive politics. The UK continues to encourage all parties to avoid violence and respect the human rights of all Togolese people. The UK supports the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) brokered roadmap, along with the EU, which has seen Togo recently adopt two-term limits on presidential terms, in line with other ECOWAS states. The change however does not apply retrospectively and has been rejected by the opposition.

The Government is committed to tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and helping to conserve nature and wildlife. Strengthening law enforcement is a key strand of our work. It is one of the topics on which organisations, such as the International Fund for Animal Welfare, can bid for funding from the Government’s Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund. Currently through the IWT Fund and with some additional funding from Defra, the UK is funding Interpol and the International Consortium on Combatting Wildlife Crime, which is an international initiative to help countries strengthen their criminal justice systems and enhance enforcement. The UK has committed up to £4 million to this initiative.

The British Government strongly supports the delivery and upholding of human rights for all. Benin have made welcome progress on human rights, abolishing the death penalty and implementing the Children's Code, adopted in 2015.

The continued practice of ritual infanticide in Benin remains deeply troubling and we continue to urge the Government to eradicate this practice.

The Government of Benin continues to harmonize national legislation with international conventions, taking measures, particularly in the security sector, to improve the human rights situation.

​The British Government has not made representations to the Government of Benin regarding the new electoral law passed on 3 September 2019. The British Government nevertheless continues to encourage Benin to continue to reform its electoral processes in advance of the 2019 parliamentary elections in order to further safeguard and consolidate the country's positive democratic progress.

Female Genital Mutilation is a high priority for the UK and we will continue to work with governments and partners to end the abusive practice. DFID leads our international efforts on FGM and it is raised by our Heads of Missions, officials and visiting Ministers. We will continue to do this, including in the countries raised.

We also work closely with international partners, including the EU and UN, especially in countries where we do not have an Embassy, to press governments to prevent FGM. Supported by UK funding, the UN Joint Programme on FGM and cutting has led coordinated efforts to influence national policy and legislation in 17 high prevalence countries.

Ambassadors and High Commissioners have raised Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) with the governments of Chad, Cameroon, Eritrea, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. The Secretary of State for International Development raised it with the President of Sierra Leone during her visit earlier in November. The UK does not shy away from raising FGM with governments as part of our wider human rights dialogue.

The UK is committed to working with governments and international and local partners to eradicate the abusive practice of female genital mutilation. Our ongoing commitment is demonstrated through the 2014 UK-hosted Girl Summit, our flagship £35 million regional programme and bilateral work in many countries.