President of Benin

Yayi Boni born in 1952, into a northern Muslim family, he later became an evangelical Christian.

Mr Boni is a newcomer to Benin's political scene and has spent a lot of time abroad.

He quit his job as president of the Togo-based West African Development Bank (BOAD), where he had worked since 1994, to join the presidential race.

As an economist, his campaign focussed on the economy and in particular reform of the cotton sector, the country's major export.

He is married with five children and comes from one of the country's three influential ethnic groups, the Nago.