More than 80 percent of rural Afghans depend on agriculture for their income and survival.
Abu Ahmad lives in Bahrak, a district located near the Afghan border with Tajikistan. Here he and his fellow villagers have suffered from years of poor farming and livestock production due to drought and war.
Afghanaid gave Abu his first beehive and he has never looked back. “I now have six beehives and have received ongoing training. I am able to sell the honey at market in the summer. I also trade and sell honey with other parts of the district.”
Beehives require little maintenance allowing farmers like Abu to attend to their daily tasks. By managing bees to encourage good pollination, Afghan farmers increase crop yields.
£6 provides the education and equipment for a new beekeeper while only £24 buys a bee colony.
Ghulman Sakhi remembers the drought and living hand to mouth. “I could barely harvest 300 kilograms of wheat from my 2000 square meters of irrigated land.”
He says, “Years ago I had learnt of beekeeping. No one in my village had heard of this, so I gathered some local farmers and we approached Afghanaid and received three beehives.”
“When we received the beehives an Afghanaid staff member worked with us regularly for one year until we understood the beekeeping techniques. The women in my family were also trained and now contribute to the family income.”
Today the number of beekeepers in Ghulam’s village is more than 70 with at least 10 shops selling the honey.
Bees perform a vital function in Afghan livelihoods by increasing the quality of agricultural production and people’s health whilst giving farmers a supplemental income.
SEE AFGHANAID'S BEEKEEPER AND HEAR ABOUT HOW BEE'S CONTRIBUTE TO LIVELIHOODS
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More than 80 percent of rural Afghans depend on agriculture for their income and survival.