[4] In 1899, Father François Steinmetz - an SMA priest and future bishop[5] - established a farm near the city to feed the population and increase their resources.
An extension was soon necessary and in 1929 the Diocese of St Gallen in Switzerland was given the responsibility of constructing a major seminary which bore its name.
Given the status of regional seminary in 1952, it was run by the Priests of Saint-Sulpice from 1955 to 1971 and played a role in the socio-economic development of the French colony of Dahomey which became independent during this time.
In 2011 the seminary welcomed 147 seminarians, and was run by 13 diocesan priests, including two Sulpicians who live in community with them.
[8] On November 19, 2019, during his apostolic trip to Benin, Pope Benedict XVI prayed at the tomb of a former seminarian, cardinal Bernardin Gantin, who is buried in the chapel.