Benin returns to the polls on Sunday

Benin is headed to the polls on Sunday in a presidential runoff that will be closely fought for.

It is a straight contest between current Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou and businessman Patrice Talon, who came first and second respectively during the first round of the presidential elections on March 13.

Ahead of the main poll, the two had battled it out in a debate that aired on national television. The debate bordered on agriculture; health, energy and equality among others.

Regional body, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) will deploy a team of observers to monitor the poll.

With a former banker and a businessman as candidates for the presidency, analysts said that there has been a resurgence of interest from voters, who hope that their new president will steer the economy ahead and create jobs.

Benin is the first sub-Saharan country to have succeeded in its transition from Marxist dictatorship to a presidential multi-party system.