A recounting of my experiences during my first farmer-to-farmer visit to Ghana were featured in the may and june issues of the American bee journal, an internationally distributed beekeeping trade journal (see appendices b and c for the complete article).

I worked on two separate projects on my trip: a beekeeping development project and a project to develop an integrated pest management (ipm) program for Striga; this report covers only the beekeeping portion of the trip (see for details of the Striga Project. the primary objective of the project was to qualitatively assess progress on training that had been conducted during my previous FtF service of September to October 2002. field visits were made to 15 of the 23 beekeeping communities and, in all, 227 women and 22 men (and numerous children) received on-site review of key messages for increasing income from beekeeping activities and in marketing basics for value-added products from bee hive harvests. the general findings of the assessment were that messages from previous on-site training had, indeed, been put into practice as had techniques that were transmitted to community beekeeping technicians at a five-day short-course held during my previous visit. one of the most notable results realized from previous training was the marked decreased in colonies absconding during the dearth period. by conducting proper hive harvests and hive maintenance communities were able to maintain a high level of occupancy in their hives thus maintaining the means of production and further advancement into beekeeping.

In addition to site visits, the following activities were undertaken:

Two demonstration sessions were held for PCF’s and members of the community near the regional offices about the production of moisturizing skin cream and batik dyeing

Sample labels and recipes were developed for distribution to co-op groups

Contacts were made with representatives of other development agencies with respect to expanding the beekeeping program

Local merchants were polled to develop markets for co-op products.

Future activities should focus on assisting co-op members in developing locally appropriate cottage industry manufacturing and marketing of value-added products. also, regular guidance from polycovalent community facilitators is needed to improve beekeeping skills.

B. background

The intent of the project is concisely summarized in the name: "higher incomes for beekeepers through the application of improved honey production techniques”. for further details see appendix a , “farmserve Africa; Farmer to Farmer volunteer report; higher incomes for beekeepers through the application of improved honey production techniques; trip dates September 15, 2002 to October 16, 2002” (and additional information in the “Ghana 2002” directory on the attached cd) and appendices b and c ("beekeeping in Ghana, on the road in Africa doing developmental beekeeping demonstrations," American bee journal, part 1: may 2003; part 2: june 2003).

The expected results of the project are that:

100 women beekeepers will acquire capacity for quality honey production.

Apiaries will be established in each community and managed by women beekeepers.

Simple training guidelines on successful beekeeping will be produced.

100 women in beekeeping groups will be linked up to ready markets for timely sales of honey and other hive products.

100 women beekeepers will increase their incomes from baseline levels of march 2002 by 50% by April 2004 through sales of quality honey and other hive products.

the specific objectives of my visit were to:

Assess whether previous on-site training had been implemented;

Assess whether community beekeeping technicians (CBT’s) had effectively transmitted back to their communities information passed to them at a five day short-course conducted in October 2002 in the

Oict training center in kumbungu;

Facilitate the building, in the client group, of the capacity to complete the overall project objectives by providing to both clients and PCF's:

Resource and training materials,

Supervision/guidance in harvesting raw bee products,

Advice and resources for working raw hive products into value-added goods,

Assistance with the marketing of hive products and goods.

C. Activities/results

Assistance, as during my previous visit, was provided to the OICT beekeepers association, a collection of community-based, co-op groups engaged in honey production as an income generating activity to support household incomes. each group (in each community) produces an average of 185 litres of honey per season. there are 23 communities in all, 15 of which were visited between june 6 and june 15, 2003 to conduct assessments and training reviews during which time 227 women, 22 men and myriads of children attended the review sessions. as in my previous experience I was accompanied by PCF Mohammed Ali ibrahim (ali); he provided invaluable translation skills as well as useful technical acumen. the village visits consisted primarily in dialogs designed to elicit whether the critical messages conveyed during group training of CBT's at the kumbungu training center in October 2002 had been successfully conveyed to other cooperative members. the dialog and review of important technical points was facilitated by a set of mini-flipcharts that I developed following my last FtF project (see Beekeeping-appendix_4_drawings.htm) and a set of survey questions (see Beekeeping-appendix_5_field_notes.htm). from the dialog it was apparent that in the preponderance of communities key points from the short course had, indeed, been successfully transmitted. in a number of cases women who had not participated in the short course offered details from lessons with a surprising degree of accuracy giving, for instance the correct proportions of a recipe for making beeswax moisturizing skin cream (and even noting that there was one ingredient [borax] for which we had been unable to locate a source in Ghana). I must say that I was very surprised, and gratified, that the key messages from the kumbungu training had been so effectively passed along to other members of the co-op by the CBT’s—most of whom neither read nor write and therefore depended only on memory and verbal transmission to accomplish this!

Following my first visit to Ghana I developed a set of mini flipcharts from newsprint presentations I had drawn to assist in conveying key messages to beginner beekeepers (such as shown here, how to set up an apiary properly and how to harvest honey without starving one's colonies). The mini-flipcharts were used in dialogs with co-op members to ascertain whether key messages from my previous trip had been passed on, retained and implemented. I was very satisfied to find that they had been. (see Beekeeping-appendix_4_drawings.htm for the complete set of illustrations.

When we questioned women about the number of colonies that had absconded (the numbers had been dramatically reduced from previous years) their answers indicated that not only had technical recommendations been successfully conveyed to the communities but that those recommendations were actually being put into practice. our dialog revealed that the women correctly ascribed the decrease in absconding to the fact that the bees had been left with sufficient honey stores to last them through the period when there is little food available for them in the field. this was the result, as our questioning elucidated, of the women having implemented harvesting in which honeycombs were removed only from one side of the brood nest (leaving stores on the opposite side for use by the colony). it should be noted that honey harvests on a per hive basis for this year will likely have dipped a bit allowing for the fact that the communities have been able to maintain the means of production (living colonies of bees) rather than losing the colonies to absconding by leaving the bees some of their food stores.

A number of other sundry issues were discussed with cooperative members. all communities expressed interest in ideas for manufacturing value-added bee-products such as beeswax and shea butter moisturizing cream (called 'pomade' in Ghana). as assistance in this regard, small lots of borax were distributed to the women to facilitate their experimentation in pomade manufacture. in addition, where needed, lemon grass stalks were distributed to communities (lemon grass serves as an effective bait during swarm season). cooperative members promised to discuss the details of manufacturing and marketing options for pomade amongst themselves and Ali and I committed to providing the following:

Contact information for some shopkeepers in Tamale willing to sell pomade,

Handouts portraying pomade recipe in picture format,

Approximate costs of pomade ingredients,

Additional recipes and sample labels for other value-added products.

The above information, plus labels for honey and pomade, were delivered to OICT staff prior to my departure from Ghana (see Beekeeping-appendix_6_pomade.htm, Appendix_g-pomade_label.pdf, Beekeeping-appendix_h-honey_label_(landscape).pdf, Beekeeping-appendix_i-honey_label_(portrait).pdf, Beekeeping-appendix_7_candles.htm). Ali will follow up with co-op members to ascertain the direction in which they hope to direct their marketing efforts.


	Integration of OICT's beekeeping project with other development work, such as that of Peace Corps, could have synergistic results. Beekeeping fits well into integrated development programs as it is compatible with agroforestry, can create spin-off micro-enterprises such as batik dyeing or lost-wax metal casting and provides useful lessons in school agricultural or environmental science programs.

As one of the recommendations I made as part of my first visit I recommended that efforts be made to foster greater collaboration between development agencies. as an example of such networking PCF Mohammed Ali Ibrahim has been in communication with agricultural and rural development Tamale giving them advice on beekeeping issues. (in sanha and palaga ard has apparently conducted some beekeeping activities.) Ali and I visited their offices and left some technical information. (a follow-up letter was sent outlining further means in which OICT might be able to assist ard). similarly, while working with OIC communities in the damango district we took the opportunity to visit the wildlife preserve of mole national park. while there we discussed with park personnel the possibility of using bee hives as a means of excluding elephants from crop areas. this may serve as both a novel means of preventing conflicts between agriculture and wildlife at park boundaries but might also be used as a means of gaining program donations from “non-traditional” sources—the donor “market share” for wildlife protection projects is probably distinct from the groups that normally donate to development programs. A follow-up letter was sent to the chief warden requesting written confirmation of information offered by junior staff in the hopes of extending beekeeping activities to the communities surrounding the park and possible fund-raising (see Beekeeping-appendix_8_letters.htm). in sanha, an organization called Africa 2000 is doing work on shea butter extraction-- this might offer opportunities for a tie-in collaboration with pomade manufacture—but I did not have an opportunity to find out more about this organization. finally, amongst the potential partners in marketing bee products is colwod designs, a for-profit enterprise specializing in the sale of batiked fabric and clothing manufactured there from. the enterprise is overseen by sister jacqueline picard, a catholic nun, and is designed to develop life-skills and a marketable trade to disenfranchised women in Tamale. I believe that the goals of colwod designs could dovetail very nicely with those of the OICT beekeeping association (see sister jacqueline’s contact info in Beekeeping-appendix_6_pomade.htm). colwod designs might, at the very least, offer a market for beeswax for use in their batik dyeing. however, I believe that it would be a waste of profit potential to sell beeswax at prices that would be competitive with the paraffin currently used in the dye process. instead, I think it would be more profitable to attempt to arrive at some kind of consignment arrangement in which products (candles, pomade, honey) made by the beekeeping association would be sold at the colwod designs outlet. but frankly I m not much of a businessman when it comes to retail sales and I was not in much of a position to know what kind of commitments or arrangements would be amenable to the OICT co-op members. I highly recommend that a working relationship between colwod designs and the beekeeping association should be explored-- and OICT can be instrumental in catalyzing that relationship. there is also the opportunity to hire the colwod designs members to build on the very basic batik skills that I passed on to the beekeeping association during the kumbungu training of October 2002.

Colwod designs is targeting a local market for its batik fabric, clothing and other wares—a strategy that I think is extremely wise. similarly, I very strongly believe that the beekeeping association should concentrate on fully exploiting local sales opportunities before embarking on any overseas international marketing ventures. the added expenses of shipping will severely impact the potential for Ghanaian bee products to compete in european and north american markets until such time that fairly large volumes can be produced. (and even at such a juncture, I remain unconvinced that international markets offer greater potential profits than do local sales).

D. Follow-up

It should be the objective of any development agency to work itself out of a job-- at least with respect to a particular project/client group. with many of the beekeeping cooperative cells it may be close to the point at which "hand-holding" can be withdrawn (either because project objectives have reached a suitable point of maturity or because the client group has demonstrated a reluctance to adopt practices consistent with achieving goals). in a number of communities it has become apparent that communities are not willing to invest the effort necessary to properly stock or maintain all of the hives that have been entrusted to them; in other cases co-op members have demonstrated that they have developed a sufficient level of acumen that project support services are best employed elsewhere (for instance some communities have already taken the initiative to produce pomade for home use). in light of this I make the following recommendations which I hope that Dr. John Azu, technical advisor and Samuel Arku-Kelly, technical officer, will introduce to ben ?, the program manager and the PCF’s and to convince and cajole them to get them on-board to complete:

By mid-August 2003 Ali should distribute to communities "master copies" of the honey label and pomade label, recipes, ingredient cost information and list of marketing concerns;

Concurrently with the above, Ali should distribute lemon grass and borax to any communities which need them; (in conjunction with this Sammy and john would be ideal candidates for identifying local sources of borax);

Ali should review demonstrate the manufacture of candle condoms during these same meetings or as a separate function (since it may entail a greater time commitment and may also be of service to a wider audience). he should co-ordinate with staff working in public health to use this demonstration to review the utility of condoms in family planning and in the reduction of hiv transmission (see Beekeeping-appendix_7_candles.htm).

To take full advantage of the swarming season, by September 2003 hives which are not being properly cared for or maintained should be withdrawn from negligent communities and distributed to communities where they may be better utilized and Ali and microfinance officer sumani osuman (osuman) should maintain a record of costs, production and income associated with production from the transferred hives;

I brought about a dozen coveralls donated from a linen service in nanaimo canada, these should be distributed to villages that have demonstrated a high degree of enthusiasm and initiative in beekeeping (i suggested to Ali that each village which has demonstrated that they have produced pomade be given a set of coveralls until they have all been distributed);

I would recommend that by April of 2004 (during whatever period village women are least occupied by other tasks) an entrepreneur involved in the domestic, commercial production of cosmetics either in Tamale or Accra be recruited to provide a one-day seminar to CBT's with "nuts-and-bolts" instruction on where to acquire receptacles, order labels, maintain hygienic conditions, etc. In relation to the production of shea butter and beeswax pomade and that Ali or osuman maintain records of monthly costs and profits associated with pomade production for a period of one year in order to ensure that the enterprise is progressing well. osuman might also assist in providing training to cooperative members in basic accounting and business principals (maybe he is already doing this?) since very often villagers do not consider the value of their own labor in setting prices for their wares— if he would accept the task, he would also be an excellent intermediary, between colwod designs and the co-op members;

By late August 2003 Samuel Arku-Kelly should follow-up on the inquiries addressed to ard and mole park (see Beekeeping-appendix_8_letters.htm). (it may be advisable to have florence pul, technical coordinator, or Dr. John Azu, technical advisor, as co-signer of correspondence to ensure good communication and co-ordination amongst staff.) Sammy might also look into contacting Africa 2000 to find out if there is any interest in collaborating on shea butter extraction (at the very least, they might have some expertise in purifying the butter to eliminate the characteristic odor of the shea butter—which is seen, or rather smelled, by Ghanaians as detracting from the quality of the pomade we produced with it). and finally I think that Sammy would be a very good person to serve as liaison with colwod designs because, again, I think there is an excellent opportunity for partnerships and mutual learning amongst OICT’s and colwod’s client groups.

One of Ghana's national treasures is mole national park where populations of native wildlife are still intact. In some parts of Africa, elephants have recently been discouraged from raiding farms or regenerating forests by installing beehives-- even elephants are not immune to the fury of disturbed African bees since the insects can locate and target the elephants tender nostrils and ear canals. A "bees for babar" program promoting beekeeping as a means to avoid conflicts between agriculture and wildlife conservation could be a novel way to create synergistic partnerships as well as draw donations from sources not formerly tapped by OIC.

Acknowledgements:

I’d like to thank Mohammed Ali ibrahim and Bismark Marley for their efforts in assisting me to complete the objectives of the beekeeping portion of my trip while on a very tight schedule. I’d also like to thank yao afantchao and Samuel Arku-Kelly for their conversation and company which helped me to crystallize some of the nebulous ideas I had regarding marketing concerns.

For more information on the farmer-to-farmer program write to

Farmserve Africa Program
OIC International 240 West Tulpehocken Street
Philadelphia, PA 19144


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Trip dates june 1 to july 16, 2003

Part 1: beekeeping

(beekeeping activities conducted from june 5 to june 16, 2003)

A. executive summary

B. background

C. Activities/results

D. Follow-up