Francis Marino Mensah Covi (5 February 1906–14 November 1966) was a Dahomeyan politician and educator. Covi was born in

Ouidah Ouidah (English: ; French: ) or Whydah (; ''Ouidah'', ''Juida'', and ''Juda'' by the French; ''Ajudá'' by the Portuguese; and ''Fida'' by the Dutch), and known locally as Glexwe, formerly the chief port of the Kingdom of Whydah, is a city on t ...

on 5 February 1906. He earned admission to the Ecole William Ponty in Senegal in 1919 and also studied in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence, or simply Aix, is a List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, city and Communes of France, commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the Subprefectures in France, s ...

, France. Covi returned to Dahomey in 1926 and became the leader of the

Porto-Novo , , ; ; ; also known as Hogbonu and Ajashe) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities in Benin, second-largest city of Benin. The commune covers an area of and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people. In 1863, following Bri ...

and later

Cotonou Cotonou (; ) is the largest city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area. The urban area continues to expand, notably toward the west. The city lies ...

school systems. He served in the General Council and later Territorial Assembly. From 1957 to 1959 he was president of the Territorial Assembly. On 30 April 1959, Covi became a senator in the

French Community The French Community () was the constitutional organization set up in October 1958 between France and its remaining African colonies, then in the process of decolonization. It replaced the French Union, which had reorganized the colonial em ...

, serving until 16 March 1961. While serving in the French Community, Covi was Secretary of the Committee on Higher Education and cultural relations.Covi Francis-Maurius: Ancien sénateur de la Communauté
French Senate He served as president of the

Dahomeyan Unity Party The Dahomeyan Unity Party (, PDU) was a political party in the Republic of Dahomey. History The party was established on 13 November 1960 by the merger of the Republican Party of Dahomey (PRD) led by Sourou-Migan Apithy, the Dahomeyan Democrat ...

and chaired the Finances and Budget Committees in 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 ...

. Covi died on 14 November 1966 in Porto-Novo.Houngnikpo & Decalo 2013, p. 125

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Covi, Francis 1906 births 1966 deaths Beninese politicians Beninese educators People from Ouidah