Despite its huge export potential, experts say the industry needs increased investment in research and technology. With the export and domestic market potentials for the product, beekeeping is likely to contribute to poverty reduction with emphasis on women and youth empowerment.

“Rufunsa District has the habitats required by bees and is a conducive environment where a profitable honey industry could flourish through proper training and access to markets,” says Musonda Lunkuntwe, the District Administrative Officer.

Aiming to tap into the export and domestic market potentials as a way of boosting the income of climate-stressed farmers, the SCRALA project is partnering with BeeSweet, a local group in the honey industry, which will involve an additional 5,000 smallholder beekeepers from rural communities in the value chain - from training and mentoring to improved productivity: harvesting, processing, packaging and marketing honey products.

The group conducts functional literacy classes for the benefit of beekeepers in the agricultural camps. They are being taught leadership, entrepreneurial and good management skills, especially basics of book-keeping.

Besides beekeeping, the project works with the Ministry of Agriculture to encourage farmers to grow drought-resistant crops such as millet, sorghum and cassava. The project is also supporting a flagship program of the Zambia Meteorological Department which provides regular weather forecast and agriculture advisory for farming communities aimed at minimising the impact of adverse weather on crops and boosting agricultural production.

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