Lucie Sessinou, President of REFELA-Benin
The Network of Locally Elected Women in Africa, Benin chapter, held a series of conferences in June 2024. Through its thematic commissions: “Digital and Innovation” and “Health, Education and Culture”, local elected women discussed the themes: “Health by women and for women: a guarantee of a secure local economy” and “Beninese women in politics and the use of digital communication tools: What added value?”.
The meetings took place on June 20 and 21, 2024, and were chaired by Lucie Sessinou, President of REFELA-Benin.
For her, “health is essential for economic growth and human development”. The session brought together various stakeholders to identify the challenges faced by Beninese women in accessing healthcare, and their crucial role in local economic development. Debates and group work enabled all participants to commit to making women’s health a central pillar of development.
During discussions on the second theme, the president of REFELA-Benin stressed that “social media offer a valuable platform for users to promote their personalities or ideas to the general public, beyond physical encounters such as meetings or TV appearances. It is therefore imperative for Beninese female politicians to exploit these platforms to better communicate and mobilize”.
The presentations by experts and resource persons invited to the session covered key topics such as the use of social media by female politicians, communication strategies for the 2026 elections, and the importance of personal branding and e-reputation. Group work enabled participants to discuss specific issues, identify best practices in digital communication and develop strategic approaches to strengthening their online presence.
Bio Express
Lucie Ablawa Sessinou is the mayor of Kétou. She was the city’s first mayor in 2003, during Benin’s first decentralization mandate in the 2002 municipal elections, a position she lost in the 2008 municipal elections before being re-elected in 2020.
A teacher turned entrepreneur, Lucie Ablawa Sessinou campaigns for the involvement of Beninese women in managing the affairs of Benin and its cities. Together with other women councillors, she founded the Network of Elected Women Councillors of Benin (REFEC) in 2018. In 2023, REFEC became REFELA Benin Chapter, and the official installation ceremony took place in the presence of REFELA Africa President Rohey Malick Lowe and UCLG Africa.