Essence du Bénin


  • Photographer
    Javier Corso
  • Prize
    Honorable Mention
  • Company/Studios
    OAK stories
  • Date of Photograph
    August, 2015

In Benin, a country bordering Nigeria, a vast network of illegal trafficking of Nigerian petrol exists. Benin does not have enough petrol stations to cover the population. It also cannot compete with Nigerian petrol prices, as Nigeria is the leading producer of petrol in Africa. From this need emerged a lucrative business opportunity. Four decades ago, Beninese traffickers started to buy petrol in Nigeria to sell it in roadside stalls around the country, at a price lower than it is in the stations. The trafficking bosses have reached a lot of power in Benin. Politicians and police have surrendered to them. Many women, people with disabilities, university students and even children depend on this activity. The streets of Porto Novo, the capital, are full of traffickers who transport drums of petrol by motorbike. They are known as “human bombs”, because they often have accidents when the petrol they transport explodes.

Story

In Benin, a country bordering Nigeria, a vast network of illegal trafficking of Nigerian petrol exists. Benin does not have enough petrol stations to cover the population. It also cannot compete with Nigerian petrol prices, as Nigeria is the leading producer of petrol in Africa. From this need emerged a lucrative business opportunity. Four decades ago, Beninese traffickers started to buy petrol in Nigeria to sell it in roadside stalls around the country, at a price lower than it is in the stations. The trafficking bosses have reached a lot of power in Benin. Politicians and police have surrendered to them. Many women, people with disabilities, university students and even children depend on this activity. The streets of Porto Novo, the capital, are full of traffickers who transport drums of petrol by motorbike. They are known as “human bombs”, because they often have accidents when the petrol they transport explodes.

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