Benin spent according to the WHO around 70 $ / capita on health care in 2012, which was around 4.5% of GDP. In comparison, about 11% of GDP (WHO estimate) were spent on the health care system in Austria.
Since a few years, there is an attempt to build a general social insurance system. This, however, has not entered in practice. The supply in the event of illness or old age continues to be primarily guaranteed by children, which is why the average family in Benin has at least 4 children, which financially is a great burden on the other side. People without children are often left on themselves or/and on the “rest” of the family . Due to the fact that each visit to the doctor must be financed by the patient himself, checkups or screenings are rarely performed.
According to the Beninese Ministry of Health, one physician is responsible for about 6,400 people in Benin (for comparison: in Austria there are around 200 people to a doctor), one hopital for about 16,700 persons. The treatment in acute cases usually is not carried out by doctors, but by nurses or midwives.