New resources for beekeeping in Nepal

Peace Corps Volunteer Jeff serves in a small farming community in the high hills of Gandaki Province in Nepal. Beekeeping hives are a common sight in Jeff’s village, as honey provides a valuable addition to household nutrition and income.

Many local hives, however, are empty, having been abandoned by the bees. One farmer with empty hives reported not supplying food to the hives. This seems to be a common scenario—most farmers know they need to feed their hives, but overall there is not a high level of beekeeping expertise.

During a community meeting, local farmers affirmed that growing a local beekeeping industry is a high priority. They even formed a farmers' group made up of 24 households to improve and promote beekeeping. The plan was to get proper beekeeping training and procure improved beehives and beekeeping gear. Jeff saw an opportunity to collaborate with this group to promote beekeeping.

Jeff collaborated with the farmers' group to write a grant proposal, which was soon funded through the USAID Small Project Assistance (SPA) program, with 66 percent of the total expenses covered by the community itself. The ward office and local school provided space and training materials. The main goal was to train community members on beekeeping and provide improved beehives with bees to selected households. One prominent farmer with technical expertise in beekeeping and a local bee vendor were identified as trainers.

Community members used a random lottery process in order to identify 12 households among the 24 members to receive improved beehives. Following the training, local beekeeping experts and PCV Jeff have been following the farmers' progress with beekeeping and so far, community members are taking it seriously. Recently, the village was hit hard by an intense hailstorm that destroyed many crops. The beehives, however, were unharmed by the storm, demonstrating an advantage to beekeeping that may become more crucial as the climate changes.

One elderly farmer, who is also a member of the beekeeping farmers' group, noted, “As we are getting older, it is really hard for us to keep on track with cattle herding. Maybe, we should sell our buffaloes and focus only on beekeeping as it is easier on our aging bodies.” Her bees will be transferred to another hive in a few months.

Jeff feels that the relationship that grew between motivated local beekeepers and local beekeeping experts during this project is something to cherish, as farmers now have local resources to support their beekeeping activities.