Benin Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou on Monday conceded defeat to businessman Patrice Talon in presidential elections.

"I called Patrice Talon tonight to congratulate him on his victory and wish him luck," Zinsou said in a statement on his Facebook page.

Zinsou and Talon were competing in a second-round run-off vote after neither won an outright majority in the first round of voting on March 6. He conceded after early results overnight gave Talon 64.8 percent of the vote to Talon, against 35.2 for Zinsou.