But
for thousands of farmers in rural Uganda it's a vital source of income
that can make the difference between having a proper home to live in or
sending their kids to school.
Typically those beekeepers have used traditional method but these are often ill-efficient and wasteful.
Even
more of a problem is that the farmers live faraway from their main
markets and are at the mercy of middlemen who buy the honey for cheap
and keep prices down. That means basically that farmers struggle to get
paid the right amount for the honey they produce.
And that is where we come in.
Malaika
Honey was set up by Australian Simon Turner back in June 2006 with the
aim of helping Ugandan farmers get a fairer price for their honey and
training them in modern beekeeping techniques.
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We
provide a direct link between the farmers in distant rural communities
with the producer -- us. This cuts out the middlemen and allows the
farmers to get the money they deserve for the work they do.
Simultaneously,
we have run workshops across the country to train up farmers, supply them with beehives and equipment so that
they can work more effectively and be more reliable honey and hive product suppliers.
Essentially it's a win-win situation for both them and us.
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Some of our successful initiatives
include research and development where have authored a practical
beekeeping guidebook book in transitional beekeeping techniques for the poor
farmer, a hive tool specially designed for a KTB hive in association with
Design without Borders (Norwegian NGO) and pioneering the commercial output and
production of propolis tincture (a broad
spectrum natural antibiotic from the beehive).
Currently we are now developing an
improved KTB hive to increase honey production and planning for a queen rearing
project that would expand on the productivity of commercial beekeeping here in
Uganda for the farmers as well as improve colonization in hives with new queens!
We also constructed a Bee fence
along Queen Elizabeth national park to protect farmers from elephants coming
and destroying their crops. See full story Here
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Don't
get us wrong. We are a for-profit organization. That is because we see
the only way of creating sustainable development in the sector is for
there to be a functioning market and that is what we want to help
create.
Obviously, however, some things are beyond our humble means for now but that doesn't mean we can't set our sights high.
That
is why we're asking you to help fund the building and creation of the
honey resource centre as a permanent place where we can train up and
help equip farmers to help them go from just scraping by to providing their families with a regular income
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We've
saved up some $45,000 for the project but are looking for another
$260,000. It may sound ambitious but it is a dream -- not just for us
but for the thousands of families in rural Uganda it will help.
Thanks so much for your support! Webale nyo, nyo!
Simon and the team at Malaika Honey