Beekeeping in Kenyas arid and semi arid areas needs an integrated approach

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1 Beekeeping in Kenyas arid and semi arid areas needs an integrated approach Rware H. I, 1 International Livestock Research Institute Correspondent Author: h.rware@cgiar.org Introduction Beekeeping greatly contributes to food security, poverty reduction, employment creation and income generation in not only in the arid and semi arid areas in Kenya but in majority of the sub-sahara Africa rural areas. The government of Kenya in its strategy for development of apiculture and emerging livestock, it has identified honey production and development of apiculture as one of the few means by which people in ASAL areas can earn an income and make them better adapt to climate change without damaging the environment they depend on to survive. Traditionally many communities have practiced bee keeping but owing to the fact that the techniques and equipments they have used, quantity and quality of honey produced has been of low quality to attract good prices. Although there is unmet demand for honey in both national and international markets, beekeepers face a number of problems that prevent them from taking advantage of existing opportunities, such as continued natural resources degradation, climate changes, inefficient beekeeping methods, lack of market information, and difficulties in getting their honey from remote rural areas to urban-based buyers. There are no economies of skill in the approach, wide spread lack of investment capacity and trade finance - little growth of the business, poor infrastructure, equipment, lack of technical, management and business skills at all levels - little ability to access premium markets and the poor quality and insufficient supply does not attract good commercial partnerships with ethical private operators and to access premium markets. This article is aimed at stimulating shift from the current approach to developing beekeeping in the dry areas in different countries in the region to embrace development that is integrated and holistic. Many efforts that have focused on only one aspect that is training beekeepers how to take care of bees without intervening on other aspects that ensure sustainability have had short-lived impacts and at the end the farmers/beekeepers end up reverting to the old way of doing things. 1

2 Climate change and traditional technologies major undoing to beekeeping in ASAL areas in Kenya The largely employed traditional techniques in beekeeping in Kenya are vulnerable to climate change impacts. This has denied even the renowned beekeepers from producing reasonable honey quantities as a result of bees migration when there is no water or forage. The traditional techniques further destroys the bees colonies thus reducing bees population needed for honey production and this indirectly arguments the effects of other factors including climate changes. Moreover, the hives are scattered into different places in the forests and therefore framers do not even at times get to clean the hives early enough in preparation for the swarming periods. As a result, hive occupation has been as low as 5% in some areas further reducing the total production per farmers. Owing to the identified factors despite the fact that beekeeping has been touted as an alternative livelihood source in these areas is highly hit by the drought as water is no longer available and as a result bees migrate to higher grounds living empty hives. In many occasions, the people living in the dry areas of Kenya are on relief since they suffer serious food insecurity following a serious drought that not only kills livestock but also threatens people s lives and destroys beekeeping as an option. More often, climate change adaptations and integrated production options are focused on agricultural production and little efforts have been focused adapting beekeeping to climate change despite its great potential for employment creating and poverty alleviation among the majority populating living in the ASAL areas.. The Potential in Beekeeping Industry and the missed opportunities in Kenya Despite the potential and various bits of efforts to promote beekeeping in Kenya, there is still a high honey and beeswax annual potential of 100,000MT and 10,000MT respectively (Gok, 2005). However, the opportunities in beekeeping in Kenya have not been fully tapped. As shown above there is a huge production potential especially from the abundant of natural resources, and in fact Kenya has the ability to produce organic honey and uniflora and multiflora honey from the undisturbed and virgin forest in the arid areas. Many efforts More often, developmental agencies came up with intervention that links environmental conservation and poverty reduction, by providing beehives and related beekeeping equipment to communities and individuals and establishing systems that could guarantees market access for the honey produced by small-holder farmers, by collecting honey at farm-gate and pays for on-the-spot at fair trade prices. These systems were managed by external persons (either institution or company) and therefore they had little impact on the lives of people and therefore these initiatives have had a short life span. There is an existing entry point to these communities. The communities have kept bees for ages and there exists traditional knowledge and skills for beekeeping. 2

3 Why Integrated approach to beekeeping Continued honey production assures income, food security and employment throughout the year is the major objective of commercialized beekeeper. Additionally, community ownership and participation in developmental initiatives is critical to sustainability of the intervention and prolonged impacts. Therefore, building on what beekeepers are currently doing and integrating improved beekeeping technologies and natural resources development in beekeeping offers a pathway that guarantees sustainable beekeeping in Kenya ASALS. Past efforts have only concentrated in developing existing beekeeping skills and linkages to the market without addressing other root challenges embedded in beekeeping but critical to beekeeping. It is common knowledge that beekeeping is dependent on natural resources and therefore any effort to repackage/improve beekeeping in ASAL areas in Kenya, should be hand in hand with the natural resources development. Further to natural resources development and management including gradual departure from the traditional beekeeping techniques from hives to methods of management and harvesting important for anyone to be considered in commercial beekeeping. The manipulation of bee behavior plays a major role in honey production. When beekeepers in Baringo Central were introduced to the concept and through support of some development organizations they established a bee conservation area and developed a water dam, they reported increase hive occupation by 60% which was retained even during the drought period from a mere 25% colonization rate. The Integrated beekeeping will entail but not limited to the following 1. Training beekeepers to understand the advantages of clustering their hives into areas that are easy to access and manage their hives. Currently they are scattered in the forests and therefore during the swarming periods when they are supposed to clean and prepare the hives for occupation few are cleaned in time and thereafter miss the opportunity for their hives to have bees. This will make management easier and therefore those framers with many hives will be better placed to prepare hives in good times and thereby increase the levels of hive occupation (colonization). This will also allow feeding bees in times of dearth period using sugar syrup (maintenance feeding) 2. The establishment of conservation areas (referred to as bee reserves in Tanzania) where tree species important to bees are introduced and managed to ensure there is food for bees throughout the year 3

4 3. Water development in these conservation areas to ensure there is water supply for the bees throughout the year; this will counter the problem of bee absconding especially during the dry seasons. 4. Market linkages as well as linking beekeepers to other service providers such as financial service providers, trainers from private and public sectors 5. Continue adaptive research with community participating to develop the model further to fit in different eco-zones in Kenya 4

5 Outcomes The model Husbandry Skills development Linkage to equipment suppliers Linkage to financial service providers Water resources development (dams and earth surface dams) Improved technology introduction Natural Resources management regimes Providing sugar syrup and water for bees during drought period Establishment of Conservation areas Trees diversity improvements Beekeeping in arid lands Increased awareness on environmental conservation Sustainable beekeeping Controlled bees absconding Increased hive occupation Increase honey production throughout the year Increased household income Reduced poverty levels Sustainable employment Increased bees colonies Increase use of improved bee technologies Increased quality and quantities of honey harvested 5