Honey Producers in Kisoro, Uganda
Kisoro Honey Producers: A Beekeeping Project in Uganda
Julian Willford
Walking through Banana and eucalyptus forests surrounded by stunning volcanic mountains in a very fertile valley, I felt a long way away from Exmoor. The Ugandan countryside and climate in Kisoro has given rise to lush vegetation and, with it, the perfect environment for honey production. The countryside is scattered with many small villages each with a resident beekeeper who has passed knowledge and traditions from father to son for generations.
My first contact with Uganda was made at the Southwest Festival of Bee Keeping in 2006, part of the celebrations of 100 years of the Somerset Beekeepers' Association, at which I met David Stearns, a resident of Entebbe. David had contacts with Beekeepers in Kisoro in the far south-west of the country, particularly Dan Ngirabakunzi who had started a producer group of beekeepers. His plan was to purchase honey at fair trade prices, process it and market it in Uganda. The money made would be used to educate and train beekeepers' teenage sons and daughters in vocational skills, thus giving them a skill to earn a living.
I have been a beekeeper for 30 years and during 2006 I attended a course organised and run by the charity Bees Abroad about supporting bee projects. I felt it was time for me to put something back into the industry. Pam Gregory, a member of Bees Abroad, was very helpful giving advice and help with project proposals and ideas of how to proceed.
In 2007 I invited Dan to England to look at UK beekeeping. He stayed for six weeks and received a comprehensive view of beekeeping in this country. He returned the favour in 2008 when I spent February in Uganda, exploring the idea of working with beekeepers to help improve the quality of life for them and their families.
For the first two weeks Richard Bolton, a fellow bee farmer, joined me and together we visited many beekeepers around Kisoro. Even though the area produces a good quality honey, they have very little or no money to pay for education and medical supplies.
The beekeepers are very good at the basic beekeeping skills so introducing western methods must be done with great care and thought as more expensive equipment must be used throughout the process. Protective clothing and smokers would be essential additions and these could be made locally and cheaply.
As regards to introducing European hives, I am not altogether convinced. I presented some Langstroth hives to some progressive bee farmers and will make a judgement on their success during my next visit in February 2009. The one hive I did see was colonised by very angry bees. They followed us for about three quarters of an hour! My feeling is that top bar hives will be the best option as they can be made from local materials and are very cheap.
My main concern before I arrived in Uganda was that I would not be able to contribute anything constructive as I am a farmer and beekeeper in England, with all that entails. However, after immersing myself into the Kisoro Producer Group, I felt as though I made some positive contributions.
Such as: bee proofing the honey shed, introducing a honey melter, better filtering, fresh ideas on bottling and labelling, five new honey outlets, arranged meetings with other producer groups to stabilize price for honey, held training meetings with local bee farmers
setting future objectives.
I met other project leaders and made many useful contacts.
My purpose in going to Uganda for a month was to gain a better understanding of the country and its people. This I did and, after seeing the effect more knowledge, skills development and support can have on the community, I have decided to devote time and effort to this project over the next few years.
To help me make a truly sustainable impact on the lives of these communities, please feel free to make a donation to Bees Abroad. Visit www.beesabroad.org.uk for more information or call me on 01643 841555.
Project code: 0708.JW.KIS
