Beehives replace livestock, tourism incomes in Kenya

Harvesting honey from beehives provided by the World Vision charity has been a lifesaver for a group of women in Kenya, who pre-Covid had relied on selling livestock and making beaded ornaments to sell to tourists, writes Brian Byrne.

The late Pastor Robert Dunlop of Brannockstown was very involved in the Irish branch of the charity, which this week launched its Christmas appeal for donations. The charity has highlighted the story of the Nashipa Ramat Women’s Group in Laikipia County, Kenya, which has 20 hives donated earlier this year.

“Just last week, we harvested 46 kilogrammes of honey from beehives that we received from World Vision, early in the year," says the group's apiary caretaker, Margareta. "This is a big deal as the honey will give us cash to support our families. It is very important for women to be able to earn our own income in Kenya. It makes us self-sufficient, and it increases the overall household income."

She says that because Covid-19 has caused the livestock markets to be closed, and there are no tourists to sell their ornaments to, the beehives came at a very useful time. “Now we’ll sell the harvested honey to our Naitumtum Lotoro Beekeepers Co-operative society. The cash will help us to take good care of our children and family.”

Co-operative societies play a key role in sustaining beekeeping enterprises in Kenya as they provide a ready market for honey harvested by their members. The aggregated honey is then sold to clients in external markets at lucrative prices that boost the share value of members, enabling them to get additional income through yearly dividends.

World Vision says beekeeping also encourages communities to conserve the environment around them. As well as providing the beehives, the charity trained the recipient groups on effective beekeeping strategies and supported community groups like Margarete’s to transform the activity into a business venture.

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