Kossi Mbueke Romuald Wadagni (born 20 June 1976) is a Beninese politician and businessman who has served as the ninth president of Benin since 2026. Prior to that, he served as Minister of Economy and Finance under President Patrice Talon from 2016 to 2026, and worked for the consulting firm Deloitte prior to entering politics.
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Early life and education
Kossi Mbueke Romuald Wadagni was born in Lokossa on 20 June 1976, the eldest of five children. His father, Nestor Wadagni, a statistician and economist with a degree from ENSAE, had a career in the Beninese civil service before writing a thesis in fundamental mathematics after his retirement. From an early age, he took an interest in manual work and trained himself in bricklaying and mechanics.
After obtaining a scientific baccalauréat in Benin, Wadagni continued his studies in France. From 1995 to 1999, he studied at the École supérieure des affaires de Grenoble (ESA) (now Institut d'administration des entreprises de Grenoble) where he obtained a master's degree in finance, graduating top of his class. During his studies in Grenoble, he met a partner from Deloitte who identified his potential and recruited him into the consulting firm in 1998.
Business career
At the end of his studies, Wadagni joined the Deloitte office in Lyon, where he stayed for four years and became a supervisor. In 2003, he passed the US Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and left France for the United States. In Boston, he joined the Deloitte office as an audit manager. He stayed there for 3 years, until 2006. He worked with companies including Orange, and was involved in mergers and acquisitions. In 2007, he attended the Harvard Business School and completed a training in private equity and venture capital.
Wadagni was promoted in 2012, becoming a partner at Deloitte at the age of 36. He participated in the structuring of Deloitte's activities in the zone, which in 2012 included Ivory Coast, Senegal, Benin, Gabon, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. In the DRC, Wadagni opened the Deloitte offices in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi in 2012. As Professional Practice Director for the African continent, Romuald Wadagni ensured that international standards were applied by the entire Deloitte network in Francophone Africa. In November 2015, he became the head of auditing for Francophone Africa.
In 2015, Wadagni re-enrolled at Harvard as part of the (non-degree) General Management Program of Harvard Business School. By 2016, he had accrued 17 years of expertise in French (Paris and Lyon), American (Boston and New York), and African (Lubumbashi) firms of Deloitte. He is recognized for his expertise in IFRS, US GAAP conversion assignment missions, offering-type transactions (IPO, fund-raising, etc.), as well as in the restructuring of public and private companies.
Political career
Minister in Talon governments (2016–2026)
On 7 April 2016, Wadagni was appointed Minister of Economy and Finance in the first Talon government. Faced with a country weakened by debt, Wadagni made the consolidation of public finances his priority, in order to make Benin credible to international public and private donors. He promoted a proactive debt management policy and made successful exits on the international financial market. The credibility gained by honoring its commitments allowed the country to borrow on a very long-term basis and at rates lower than other countries in the region, such as Ivory Coast and Senegal. In October 2018, Wadagni completed a €260 million loan for Benin on the international markets. This was a first for the country.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Benin's economy showed resilience. Benin was among the three countries with the highest growth rate in sub-Saharan Africa in 2020 (about 3.8%), with a rebound to 7.2% in 2021 and an estimated average of 6.4% over the 2022-2026 period. After Benin's good performance during this period, the rating agency Moody's upgraded the country's rating in March 2021 from B2 with a positive outlook to B1 with a stable outlook. In April 2022, Fitch Ratings maintained the B+ rating, with a stable outlook. Wadagni also worked to promote the private sector and entrepreneurship. In 2020, Benin became the foremost country for ease and speed of creating a new business according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
On 12 January 2021, Benin issued two Eurobonds. The first, for 11 years, was at a rate of 4.9%, for an amount of €700 million. A second, over 31 years, was with a rate of 6.9%, for an amount of €300 million. With this operation, Benin joined the limited number of emerging issuers to have a euro-denominated Eurobond with a maturity of more than 30 years. In July 2021, Benin carried out a major operation by becoming the first African country to issue a Eurobond dedicated to the financing of projects with a high impact on the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, for an amount of 328 billion CFA francs (€500 million) and an interest rate of 4.9%. This operation followed several months of work by Romuald Wadagni and his team, and trips to meet investors in Asia, Europe and America. On 29 November 2021, the country repaid part of its debt early, finalizing the early redemption of a CFA 218 billion (€332 million) bond tranche on BRVM, including more than CFA 150 billion in bonds issued through public offerings. With this operation, Benin saved more than 36 billion CFA francs (about €55 million) in non-accrued interest, which were directly injected into various social impact projects. Following this operation, the magazine Jeune Afrique published an article entitled "How Romuald Wadagni made Cotonou save 55 million euros".
Presidency (2026–present)
In September 2025, Wadagni was nominated by the ruling coalition as a candidate in the 2026 Beninese presidential election. Incumbent President Patrice Talon announced he would not run for a third term, paving the way for Wadagni's victory. On April 12, 2026, Wadagni, alongside running mate Mariam Chabi Talata, won the election with four million votes, approximately 94% of those cast.
Wadagni is sworn in as President of Benin for a seven-year term on 24 May 2026. He visited Nigeria as part of his first overseas visit as president on 1 June 2026.
Honours and awards
In 2021, the financial newspaper Financial Afrik named Wadagni "Best African Minister of Economy and Finance". In 2024, Financial Afrik named him "Finance Minister of the Year" for the 4th time in its ranking of "The 100 who are transforming Africa".
Other activities
Since 2016, Wadagni is Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and the Islamic Development Bank.