Bees for Development Journal 100
Apis cerana apiary of a beekeeper in Chamoli District of Uttarakhand, India
Apis cerana colonies in a farmer’s house in Kavre District, Nepal
policies, and gender and social equity are rarely included in courses. Our project has developed and strengthened partnerships with technical institutions and universities developing curricula on sustainable apiculture for a wide range of stakeholders. Basic beekeeping training courses tested by partners in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal were well received by the participants as they addressed new areas including honey value chains and social issues such as gender. Academic curricula have also been developed jointly with partners in Bhutan and Pakistan. These curricula are being implemented for teaching undergraduate courses in agriculture universities in Pakistan and at the College of Natural Resources, Bhutan.
Pollination and ecosystem services
There are indications of a marked decline in the diversity and abundance of pollinators as a result of indiscriminate pesticide use, land use change, and other factors. This must have adverse impact on natural pollination, agricultural productivity and maintenance of biodiversity. ICIMOD has focused effort to raise awareness of this issue and to promote honey bees as an input in agricultural production technologies. However, we still need to gather hard data on the value of pollinators to convince those at policy and planning level.
A beekeeper in Maoxian (China) with his apiary of over 100 Apis cerana colonies
Project outcomes
Our project is helping HKH countries to develop residue monitoring plans, traceability parameters, national honey sampling policies, and Good Manufacturing Practice guidelines to address the issues of quality and honey trade. The results are being shared with our partners, beekeepers and honey processors.
In its current phase our project and our partners in India, Nepal and Pakistan are undertaking various activities including field demonstrations of the impact of bee pollination on crop yield and quality, organising awareness camps, wall painting, developing posters and brochures to raise awareness of the importance of pollination services provided by honey bees.
Although many agricultural universities, training centres, vocational training institutes, and NGOs provide training in beekeeping, the content and delivery of the curricula vary, and topics like value chains, honey trade
More information at www.icimod.org
INCREASE IN EU SUPPORT FOR BEEKEEPING
It is hoped to increase the effectiveness of the programmes and demonstrate the proactive approach of the Commission towards resolving the problems of a highly sensitive sector.
All MS have communicated their national beekeeping programmes to the Commission. The programmes relate to different measures: control of Varroa, support for laboratories, restocking of hives, applied research programmes and technical assistance. All 27 programmes are eligible for co-financing. It is calculated that the total number of hives in the 27 MS is almost 14 million.
The EU Commission approved the national programmes of its 27 Member States (MS) to improve the production and marketing of apiculture products during the period 2011-2013. The EU contribution to the financing of the programmes has increased by almost 25% compared to the previous period (2008-2010), from €26 (US$37) million to €32 (US$46) million per year. The health of the beekeeping sector is a sensitive issue given the fundamental role of bees for pollination. For several years the sector has been facing an unprecedented mortality of bees. This makes the economic situation difficult for beekeepers and poses a threat to biodiversity. The national programmes are currently the only tool available to partially offset the loss of bees. MS have been satisfied with the benefits provided by these programmes, and the positive effect of measures funded under national programmes is widely recognised by beekeepers.
Each MS has the option every three years to submit a national apiculture programme to improve the conditions for production and marketing of apiculture products, including a study on the structure of the sector. For the next period all MS expressed an interest in these programmes.
For the full report see www.beesfordevelopment.org/portal/ and search for EUROPA Press Release 7
