French President Emmanuel Macron pledged to support Benin by investing in security, education and a new French cultural centre in a joint press conference with Benin’s President Patrice Talon in Cotonou on Wednesday. Macron’s visit to the west African nation comes after French opposition lawmakers warned of an “alarming” increase in human rights abuses in Benin.
Macron’s visit to Benin is the second stop of a three-nation tour of west African states. The four-day tour, ending in Guinea-Bissau Thursday, marks Macron’s first trip to Africa in his new term as French president as he seeks to reboot France’s postcolonial relationship with the continent.
