Bertin Borna Babiliba (20 November 1930 – 15 June 2007) was a

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

ese politician. He served as

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

. He was born on 20 November 1930 in

Tanguiéta Tanguiéta is a town, arrondissement and commune located in the Atakora Department of Benin.The commune covers an area of 5465 square kilometres and as of 2013 had a population of 74,675 people. As of 2007 the town had an estimated population o ...

and received an international education. Borna attended the Parakou Congress of 1957 and aligned himself with

Hubert Maga Hubert Coutoucou Maga (August 10, 1916 – May 8, 2000) was a politician from Dahomey (now known as Benin). Born a peasant in 1916, Maga served as a schoolmaster from 1936 to 1945, during which time he gradually gained considerable influence among ...

. Borna served as vice president of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

from 1959 to 1960. He was minister of

public works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...

from 1958 to 1960. That year, he was named

finance minister A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

, a post he held until the coup in 1963. Christophe Soglo brought him back as finance minister in 1966, but his appointment led to agitations that resulted in the 1967 coup. Borna was accused of being involved in the 1975 coup attempt and was sentenced to death in absentia on 7 March 1975. Remaining in

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N'ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the largest city and the former capital of Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of the overall population ...

and

Lomé Lomé ( , ) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in Togo, largest city of Togo. It has an urban population of 837,437

, Berta remained active in international trade. He became a UN director for the

Sahel The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...

in 1982. After returning to Benin in 1990, Borna unsuccessfully ran for president in 1991. He did manage to be elected to the national assembly that year however.Houngnikpo & Decalo 2013, p. 86 He died on 15 June 2007.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Borna, Bertin 1930 births 2007 deaths Finance ministers of Benin Public works ministers of Benin Beninese lawyers Members of the National Assembly (Benin) People from Atakora Department Candidates for President of Benin 20th-century lawyers