Benin Hospital Beds

Benin’s hospital‑bed density fell from 1.23 beds per 1,000 people in 1960 to an all‑time trough of 0.22 in 1992 before a modest recovery that peaked at 1.46 in 1980 and settled at 0.43 in 2021, placing the country 121st globally. The long‑term decline reflects chronic underinvestment in health‑care infrastructure during the structural adjustment era of the 1980s and 1990s, when fiscal constraints limited public spending on hospitals. By contrast, neighbouring Togo records 0.41 beds per 1,000, while Tanzania maintains a higher level of 0.64, underscoring regional variation in health‑system capacity. The 22‑year coverage span of the World Bank series shows that Benin’s recent modest increase has not closed the gap with peers, and the nation remains far below the sub‑Saharan average. Continued expansion of public financing and targeted donor support will be required to reverse the downward trajectory and raise bed availability toward regional benchmarks.