The President of the Republic of Benin, Patrice Talon, chaired his last Council of Ministers at the head of the country this Wednesday, May 13, 2026. A session marked by emotion and the presence of President-elect Romuald Wadagni, who came to participate in this weekly meeting at the Palais de la Marina.
The last Council of Ministers of President Patrice Talon’s second term was held this Wednesday, May 13, 2026, at the Palais de la Marina in Cotonou. This particularly symbolic government meeting was co-chaired with President-elect Romuald Wadagni, who will take the reins of the country in the coming days.
According to information, the atmosphere was charged with emotion during this final session of the Talon government. Speaking in front of the members of his team, the Head of State expressed his gratitude to the ministers for their commitment and dedication to the service of the Republic over the last ten years. President Patrice Talon also apologised to members of the government for the moments when he may have seemed “too rigorous” in his way of leading.
However, he recalled that this requirement was motivated by “the superior interest of the nation” and the desire to obtain results for the development of Benin. For his part, President-elect Romuald Wadagni paid tribute to the leadership of his predecessor. He welcomed the reforms undertaken under the two mandates of Patrice Talon and reassured that the actions undertaken will be continued “qualitatively” for the well-being of the Beninese people.
This last government meeting thus marks the end of an important stage in the governance of Patrice Talon and officially opens the way to a new political transition at the top of the Beninese state.
Aged 49, Romuald Wadagni will thus become, on the night of May 24, 2026, the 5th President of the Republic of Benin under the era of democratic renewal, after having taken the oath before the Constitutional Court.
