Beekeeping also referred to as apiculture in Uganda has evolved from ancient, destructive wild honey hunting into a structured commercial sector heavily reliant on traditional practices alongside modern innovations.

Commercial apiary farming in Uganda is a fast-growing, highly profitable agribusiness that requires minimal land and low initial labor compared to other traditional farming including livestock keeping and growing crops.

A number of Apiary farmers have come on board to embrace bee keeping as income earning initiative and a good number belong to organised farming groups.

One such a group is the Batwa community living in Western Uganda who are known to be hunters in the forest with no land to practice farming.

Background

Experts explain that ancient roots of bee keeping is known to be practiced by generations of indigenous communities who practiced wild honey hunting, locating colonies in hollow trees or rock crevices and using fire or smoke to harvest.

Over time, communities transitioned to hanging handcrafted cylindrical or basket hives woven from bamboo, reeds and sticks hanged in forest trees.

Traditional methods remain widespread with estimates showing that a large majority of smallholder rural farmers still use traditional log or basket hives because they are inexpensive and easy to manage locally.

It is believed that in 20^th and 21^st century modern equipment were introduced by development organisations for farmers to adopt. They include langtroth and Kenya Top Bar hives which protect bee colonies and increase yield.

This is possible through establishment of sector apex bodies like the Uganda National Apiculture Development Organisation (TUNADO) in the 2000s and commercial entities like Malaika Honey who helped in training farmers in value addition and market standardisation.

Today, beekeeping is recognized as a vital climate-smart economic activity supporting rural livelihoods, biodiversity and agricultural pollination across regions like Northern and Western Uganda.

Bringing the Batwa community on board

Jawash Vira Arinanye TUNADO project coordinator and Apiary extension worker handling Western Uganda communities including the Batwa explains to Seeds of Gold how his team managed to bring the Batwa community on board to embrace commercial bee keeping.

This was during the 4^th African Apimondia Symposium that took place in Kampala recently.

He notes that among the Batwa community, traditionally indigenous tribe who once lived in Echuya Forest Reserve located in southwestern Uganda between the Kisoro and Kabale Districts forests, a quiet transformation is taking place through beekeeping.

The Batwa of southwestern Uganda were evicted from their ancestral forest land in the early 1990s following the gazetting of Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla National parks. Since then, many have lived landless, economically vulnerable and socially excluded.

But through the help of TUNADO, a growing number of Batwa households in villages like Rukeri and Nyakacence in kisoro and Murubindi and Karengyere in Rubanda are finding a new purpose through the Bees for Batwa project.

It was easy to include the Batwa community in bee keeping due to their connection to nature as part of their heritage.

The community according to Arinanye lived with bees and used to collect honey from tree trunks and anthills in the forest, but they have been sensitized to make their own hives.

Arinanye further explained that through a project called Bees for Batwa with financial support from a UK based development partners Bees for development, his team began training the Batwa community in commercial bee keeping in 2019.

This is after the communities were integrated to live with Bakiga people in Kabale and Kisoro. They were settled in these communities through purchasing land which is distributed to the Batwa families in half an acre.

Though majority live in settlements; in exchange for farmland, they offer labour to the landlords and the level of exploitation is unimaginable.

Signing of land use agreements and involvement of landlords in the beekeeping project is providing a levelled ground for all and earning the Batwa respect as trainers in hive weaving and beekeeping practices.

The Apiary farmers who are identified by the Resident District Commissioners including the Bakiga communities have been trained to adopt best practices in order to obtain better yield.

Best Practices

These practices include, setting up the Apiary location and site where they are advised to place hives where there is shade and the hives must be kept away from highways, power stations and industrial areas.

Ensure the Apiary sites near abundant flowering plants like coffee, sunflower, fruit trees, or eucalyptus to provide nectar.

Clear the land and remove dry leaves to prevent accidental fires and maintain a clean, constant source of fresh water nearby.

It is important to choose the right type of hive namely KTB which costs between Shs120, 000 and Shs200, 000. With each hive yileding15 to 30 kg of honey per year.

 It is ideal for small-scale or organic farming because you do not need a honey extractor.]

Langstroth Hives costs between Shs250, 000 and Shs400, 000 yielding a higher volume of 30 to 50 kg per year. It uses movable frames and is best for commercial operations targeting large production.

Uganda has two main harvesting windows: March to June and August to October and farmers are advised to allow their colonies to build up during the first year. And full commercial honey harvesting begins in the second year.

They are trained to use modern equipment such as protective suits, smokers and modern mobile hives to keep bees safe and improve honey quality.

Market and Revenue

TUNADO has come up with a unifying market price where raw or processed quality honey sells at farm gate prices at Shs15, 000 to UGX 20,000 per kg and retail prices Shs20, 000 to Shs30, 000 per kg.  Beeswax sells for Shs10, 000 to Shs15, 000 per kg.

Stingless bees

Since the Batwa have knowledge about stingless bees, Arinanye and his team trained 5 Batwa bee keepers to domesticate and keep stingless bees alongside honey bees

These farmers have the knowledge to spot the colonies of the stingless bees in the forest because previously the community members were hunting them from the ground,

For the last two years they have been harvesting the colonies and domesticating them.

Stingless bees are medicinal in nature and it is known for treating wounds and as such it fetches more money. One litre is sold at Shs100, 000.

Farmer experience

Wilber Kaira aged 67 is Batwa bee keeper hailing from Kacherere Sub County, Murubidi community in Rubanda district.

He told Seeds of Gold that he began practicing bee keeping at the age of 10 with one bee hive using rudimentary methods which he learnt from his father who by then was a bee hunter.

He practiced bee keeping purely for consumption but he realised that keeping bees in hives led to better yield which led him to add 6 more hives. He later graduated to 10 hives and now he owns167 bee hives.

He belongs to Batwa Bakiga Tukole Hamwe bee keeping Association comprising of 39 members.

Last year he harvest 210 kg of honey some of which he sold to purchase Potato seed which he also grows on his half an acre land.

The available market for honey in his community is to supply it to local shop owners where they sell a Kg at Shs10, 000. However they association group members have begun bulking their honey which is sold to Processors who purchase in lump sum.

He acknowledged that last year he was able to earn Shs1.5miliion out of the portion he sold from the total harvest.

Kairu is a family man with 6 children with the last three going to school curtsey of developmental partners who support the Batwa community with children’s education

He says the Batwa have been ignored by the government because there is no clear settlement scheme for them yet the community would wish to engage in practice agriculture for better livelihood.

Challenges

Despite the progress in bee keeping, challenges remain. The Batwa community own no land and this comes with the challenge of having limited access to hive weaving materials

It is believed the the forests in the vicinity have abundance of bamboo, reeds and sticks,  however there is restricted access by the forest authorities since it is forbidden to be found anywhere close to the forest most especially in Kisoro district.

In Rubanda, the Batwa community has been fully integrated to the neighboring community, they are more accepted and can site their beehives in the forest.

Oher challenges are high cost of protective gear, hive tools and harvesting equipment which hold back production.

Just like all smallholder farmers, Batwa beekeepers are not immune to climate stressors that affect flowering cycles.

Yet, the determination is unwavering. And this is seen form women like Jane Nyirangano, a leader in a small Batwa beekeeping group in Nyakacence, who is training others, advocating for recognition and dreaming of expanding into value-addition honey products for processing wine.

The Batwa beekeepers believe in the potential in beekeeping with continued investment in training, mind set change, skill development and access to markets

They contend honey can become more than a community product because it can be a symbol of inclusion, cultural resilience and environmental harmony.

Visitors trekking through Mgahinga and Bwindi are already enjoying a taste of honey from the heart of the Batwa Highlands. Kairu contends soon the community will have specialty honey with a limited edition, branded, not only sweet in flavor, but in the story it tells.