Flag of Benin

What the flag means

Benin's national anthem explains the colours: green is hope, red is the courage of the ancestors and yellow is the country's wealth. They are also the pan-African colours.

History

France gave Dahomey limited self-government within the French Community on 4 December 1958, and the flag was chosen on 16 November 1959. It was kept at independence on 1 August 1960. After a coup in 1972, the Marxist-Leninist government renamed the country Benin and in 1975 brought in a green flag with a red star. Following the National Conference of February 1990, which restored multi-party politics, the 1959 flag returned on 1 August 1990.

Earlier flags of Benin

1. 1894–1959French tricolour, used in the colony of French Dahomey
2. 1975–1990Green field with a red five-pointed star in the upper hoist corner

Flags of Benin's neighbours

• Burkina Faso
• Niger
• Nigeria
• Togo