Benin's Startup Act — The First National Startup-Labelling Cohort

Decree No. 2023-095 (22 March 2023) created Benin's national "startup" label, administered by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Digitalization through a seven-member Technical Labelling Committee installed in June 2024.
The inaugural call for applications ran 2-12 December 2024 and drew 95 applications from micro, small and medium enterprises in digital technology, health, tourism and agriculture; 20 were judged administratively complete, and after evaluation the committee labelled 15 MSMEs on 9 May 2025, each holding "startup" status for three years.
Labelled firms are exempted from corporate income tax and employer payroll contributions for their first two years, and receive a 50 percent reduction on both in the third year; they can also access fast-tracked customs clearance for prototyping materials and state support for international promotion.
Government and independent Beninese media report matching application figures, but neither has yet published outcome data - survival rates, revenue growth or jobs created - for the 15 labelled firms. Benin's government frames the law as following the startup-act precedents already running in Senegal, Rwanda and Tunisia.

Read the full analysis: https://innovation.gouv.bj/publications/actualites/labellisation-des-startups-resultats-du-premier-appel-a-candidatures_