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- Title
System Mapping of the Production and Value Chain to Explore Beekeeping Potential in Southwest Ethiopia.
- Authors
Bayissa, Mulubrihan; Lauwers, Ludwig; Mitiku, Fikadu; de Graaf, Dirk C.; Verbeke, Wim
- Abstract
Simple Summary: The demand for apiary products in a global market is increasing, while the beekeeping sector still faces multiple challenges, in particular in developing countries. For example, Ethiopia, despite belonging already to world's top producers of honey and beeswax and having favorable agroclimatic conditions and biodiversity, still has a huge unexploited beekeeping potential. However, the beekeeping system remains mostly traditional, so its contribution to the local community and the country's economy remains minimal. This study aims to explore the development potential of beekeeping by combining systems analysis of the current production with a SWOT-PESTEL analysis. The study identified the core challenges that hinder the exploitation of the potential and the existing opportunities. System mapping revealed that the unproductive practice and orientation of smallholder beekeepers towards poor quality honey production mainly for local beverage making affected the use of the potential and its contribution to beekeepers' income and the country's economy. In contrast, the focus of private investors and cooperatives on the production of fully and semi-processed honey for the local and global market had a positive impact on the use of the potential. Providing smallholder beekeepers with training and connecting them to modern input suppliers may help to exploit the existing potential. Ethiopia has a high potential for the production of honey and other apiary products due to its ideal agroecology. This potential is, however, not yet well utilized due to weak production and valorization systems. The study analyzed beekeeping systems and their honey value chain to detect the barriers and to explore ways to better exploit the existing potential. Descriptive statistics, a SWOT and PESTEL matrix, and system mapping were utilized for analysis. Ethiopian beekeeping is still dominated by traditional production systems, followed by modern and transitional systems, differing in types of beehives and the average amount of honey yield. The combined SWOT-PESTEL analysis revealed challenges like a limited supply and high cost of modern beehives, shortage of credit, absence of a honey marketing legal framework, pest and predator attacks, absconding, and uncontrolled application of agrochemicals. Opportunities include the globally increasing demand for honey, availability of good investment policy, conducive agroecology, and support from NGOs. The less productive techniques of smallholder beekeepers' crude honey production for local beverage making affected the good use of the potential and minimized its contribution to the local and national economy. On the contrary, strengthening private investors and cooperatives towards the production of fully and semi-processed honey impacted the utilization of the potential positively.
- Subjects
ETHIOPIA; BEEKEEPING; VALUE chains; FARMERS; INDIVIDUAL investors; SWOT analysis; BEEKEEPERS
- Publication
Insects (2075-4450), 2024, Vol 15, Issue 2, p106
- ISSN
2075-4450
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/insects15020106