Participants in a group photo after the training

Today in Musanze District, The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in collaboration with the Rwanda Agricultural and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) and Rwanda Standards Board concluded the first phase of a series of training for 100 beekeepers.

During this exercise, trainers focused on key areas of intervention in the entire beekeeping value chain with the aim of meeting national and international quality and safety requirements for honey and other bee products.

The topics discussed during this training include traceability in the beekeeping value chain, equipment, and machinery used in the beekeeping value chain, the safety of bees, avoiding pests that affect bees, and how to increase, both the quality and quantity of bee products to satisfy market demand.

While officiating this training, Dr. Solange Uwitunze, Deputy Director General in charge of Animal Resources Development at Rwanda Agriculture Board called upon beekeepers to make sure that they apply the knowledge gained through this training to improve the quality and quantity standards of honey products to cover their shortage on the local market and for export.

 “I would like to thank FAO for organizing this important training. I have no doubt that it will add so much value not only to bee farming practices but also to increase productivity in terms of quality and quantity. Today we are able to produce only 5800 tons of honey per year. However, the demand for honey on the domestic market alone is 17,000 tons, we are far short of the quantity needed on the local market later alone on the regional and international markets. We have to use the skills gained through this training to improve the quality and production of bee products but mainly honey.” Dr. Solange Uwitunze said

Celestin Munyankindi, a beekeeper from Gicumbi Beekeepers Cooperative  (GIBCO) said that the training was very useful because it helps him to address issues he faces on daily basis and what he has to do to address these issues.

“This training has helped me to improve ways of producing honey from point of where bees collect honey ingredients to the final product which is honey. The trainers taught us how to take care of bees and their surroundings and how to improve the quality and standard of products for them to be competitive both in the local and international markets. We thank FAO, RAB, and Rwanda Standards Board for organizing this important workshop. It was really useful to us”. Munyankindi Said.

The training on quality standards and value addition to honey products was attended by over 100 beekeepers from the Districts of Musanze, Rulindo, Nyabihu, Gicumbi, Rutsiro, and Rubavu. After Musanze, this training will be extended to further Districts of Muhanga, Huye, Nyamagabe, Nyaruguru, Gatsibo, Nyagatare, and Kirehe districts.

Dr. Christine Mukantwali, a Food Systems Expert at FAO indicated that the objective of the training is to capacitate beekeepers across the country in order to improve the quality and quantity of honey production domestically and for export.

“Through this training, beekeepers gained knowledge on how to produce quality honey that meets national and international standards. The two important takeaways from this training is that the trainees will go on to train other members of cooperatives countrywide. Also, during the training, each beekeeping cooperative was assisted to draft a five-year action plan which will guide them toward increasing the quality of honey and honey products’’. Mukantwali concluded 

The training was organized with the purpose of improving the standards required for bee products to obtain an S-mark. Trainees were also equipped with the required skills for traceability and commercializing of honey products.

In the quest to modernize the apiculture sector in Rwanda, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations recently introduced an initiative titled ‘’One Country One Priority Product” (OCOP)” and the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources has chosen “Honey” as the target product for the OCOP initiative.

This initiative aims to improve and move the sector from traditional to modern beekeeping practices by ensuring that beekeepers are well equipped with the latest technology and modern beekeeping equipment that will facilitate them to improve the quantity and quality of honey acceptable at the local and international market.