Bees for Development Journal 138 April 2021
SUCCESSFUL BEEKEEPING DEVELOPMENT!
Beekeeping brings hope near Digya National Park in Ghana Kwame Aidoo, Director, Bees for Development Ghana; Giacomo Ciriello, Project Manager, Bees for Development and Isaac Mbroh, Apiculture Development Coordinator, Bees for Development Ghana One problem that dampens the potential for beekeeping to lift people out of poverty across rural Africa is that training is often delivered in the context of micro aid projects. These projects target community groups whose headcount is limited by how much money there is in the budget to purchase hives. They do not cast their net wide enough to engage nearby people who already have an interest in, and knowledge of honey bees. They commonly have inadequate resources and expertise, do not reach areas that can support extensive beekeeping, and rarely generate enough produce and momentum to build the sustainable value chains that deliver strong livelihoods and unlock opportunities. Yet the right people, in the right place, with the right knowledge and skills, can achieve great results – starting with as little as a bundle of green palm fronds. This is the story in Afram Plains in eastern Ghana. Here Photos © Isaac Mbroh and TSL Films
Gideon, a master beekeeper trained by BfD Ghana, carries a Borassus palm hive to its siting place (Abomasarefu)
Participants weaving a palm frond hive at the workshop in Hwanyanso 5
