Help women increase their income with beekeeping

Honey harvest has started beginning of April.

Several factors will affect this year harvest. This year due to an unusual cold period in December and January associated with a lack of rain, the fruit trees (mango and cashew nut tree) had very little flowers. This will lower the amount of honey per hive. 

In some villages there has been some rain early April and villagers think that at least cashew nut tree will blossom again.

Also in 2 villages terrorists displaced the villagers in the may last year. The villagers are slowly going back and have discovered that some of the hives have been destroyed.

All this does not affect the motivation of the women to have more hives. 

This week end we had a meeting in Bobo of all 12 villages where we are active. The beekeeping was very much discussed between the women. The ones who have hives want more and the ones without want some.

It will be difficult to satisfy them all.

Thank you for your support to this project which help directly the women in villages of Burkina Faso.

The rainy season in our area of Burkina Faso stops in October. During the rainy season little is done for beekeeping. 

During the rainy season, grass has grown around the beehives, the grass will dry during the dry season and there is a potential risks of destruction via the bush fires. Beekeeper are cleaning the vicinity of the hives to avoid this risk.

Another task which is done is to inspect the inside of the hives and clean some of the hive bars. Some beekeepers are collecting honey at this period. it is called the "petite miéllée". For the beekeepers we are following we ask them not to harvest honey at this time of the year.

There is little honey available and the bees need food in a period which has little flowers. Collecting the honey means that you have to feed the hives with sugary water otherwise the swarm will go away.

The sale of the honey produced by the 8 cooperatives is doing well to the point that we might be without honey in stock for 2 months before the new harvest is available for sale in late May 24.

The women beekeepers are asking us for more hives and new ones want to join the cooperatives.

Can you help them by communicating about this project to your network?

The women beekeepers in Burkina Faso thank you and wish you a healthy and happy new year!