Working for Bees

I am applying so as to enhance the work I am doing within my community and the country which has impact to the peoples social, economic and environmental spheres of their lives. Many people in my community are living under a 2 usd daily earnings which classifies them as poor and they suffer from hunger as well. I am already working with community people to address a number of SDGs that include 1, 2, 5,13 and 15 which consider ending poverty in all its forms, ending hunger and achieve food security, achieve gender equality and empower women and girls, combat climate change and its impact and sustainably manage forests, combat land degradation and stop the loss of biodiversity. The bee keeping  and tree growing  initiatives we are doing must be scaled up to cover wider areas and the prize can help in making this possible.

Our organisation is called Working for Bees.

We are a beekeeping  and tree growing organisation which works with communities, schools, Vocational training centers, Universities,  farmers, church  and private organisations. Our vison is to lead the local beekeeping sector in the support of bee health , bee population growth and environment  to improve the production of eco-friendly bee products that satisfy  the  local, regional and global environmental, economic and social demands. We are into Honey production, bee equipment making, tree growing and land reclamation, training on beekeeping, pollination services on crops and orchards and  out grower programs on beekeeping.  

Our Name Working for Bees is unique and is action oriented. Many people in the sector do not really care about supporting bee health, bee population growth and the conservation of the environment where bees find their decent habitat.  Bees play and important role to the survival of human beings since most of what we take through the mouth is connected to the bee activities. This knowledge we have will be shared. Deforestation which is taking place at an alarming rate has affected the food base of bees and the raising and planting of trees shall be done to reduce the impact as well as that coming from Climate change. The rudimentary approach in dealing with bees by may beekeepers will be stopped as people will learn best practices in dealing with bees after receiving training. The growth in demand for organic honey globally has opened doors for new markets which we need to serve. Our production of organic honey will address such demand. 

Working for Bees has responded to the market demands by having a name that serves the bees and the environment and at the same time supporting the life of human beings through food coming from crops as a result of bee pollination and also from the honey itself. Our name is unique and we offer unique services and our products respect the environment  and address the economic and social needs. Our approach to beekeeping follows a market- oriented model which ensures sustainability. The honey we sell is processed using natural methods of solar wax extractor and natural dripping. Most of the customers we serve are able to trace the honey we produce direct to the source. Our honey goes through the tests at the Zimbabwe Standard Association yearly so as to monitor compliance to the honey standard. The bee hives we produce are durable and matches the environment by their green colour. The hives are produced from timber that comes from timber plantations that are sustainably managed. We also set our bee hives free of charge to our customers  if they buy ten and more. We also run out-grower programs where individuals buy get hives from us and pay back using honey at the point of harvest

The following steps that we take to achieve the planned impact. Communities have different needs. In this area we look at the needs and interest of the people. Once needs and interest have been identified we group them according to importance and priority. Once ranked we choose those that can be started using the locally available assets. In this case the chosen on is the one to keep bees. Bees and trees are locally available assets that can be converted for a financial gain. The entry point of beekeeping is easy because assets to start are available at community level. Many families/ house holds can easily start this initiative since it does not need a lot of money to start. Training of beekeepers on best practices follow and then the implementation. Once this is done one has to do monitoring and evaluation to check on the progress and effectiveness of the training given as well as measuring performance of the project. Once apiaries have been established trees must be established as well to support beekeeping through growing multipurpose trees that are bee-friendly. This can be done in line with addressing issues related to climate change and deforestation