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World > Africa >
Benin > Geography (Facts)
Benin - Geography (Facts) |
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Location: |
Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Benin, between Nigeria and Togo |
Geographic coordinates: |
9 30 N, 2 15 E |
Map references: |
Africa |
Area: |
total: 112,620 sq km land: 110,620 sq km water: 2,000 sq km |
Area - comparative: |
slightly smaller than Pennsylvania |
Land boundaries: |
total: 1,989 km border countries: Burkina Faso 306 km, Niger 266 km, Nigeria 773 km, Togo 644 km |
Coastline: |
121 km |
Maritime claims: |
territorial sea: 200 nm |
Climate: |
tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north |
Terrain: |
mostly flat to undulating plain; some hills and low mountains |
Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Sokbaro 658 m |
Natural resources: |
small offshore oil deposits, limestone, marble, timber |
Land use: |
arable land: 23.53% permanent crops: 2.37% other: 74.1% (2005) |
Irrigated land: |
120 sq km (2003) |
Natural hazards: |
hot, dry, dusty harmattan wind may affect north from December to March |
Environment - current issues: |
inadequate supplies of potable water; poaching threatens wildlife populations; deforestation; desertification |
Environment - international agreements: |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Geography - note: |
sandbanks create difficult access to a coast with no natural harbors, river mouths, or islands |
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