Turkey boosts Somaliland livelihoods with beehives

By Magdalene Mukami

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) - Turkey’s state development aid agency has donated 300 beehives to help boost the livelihoods of farmers in Somaliland, an area of the Horn of Africa country Somalia.

In a statement, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) noted that farmers in Hawd, Somaliland were trained on modern bee-keeping techniques before being given modern beehives to supplement the production of their traditional ones.

After training the farmers, ”300 Langstroth type of hives, protective materials and honey extractors were distributed to the farmers,” the statement said,

The modern advantage of the Langstroth hive over the traditional beehives is that with the former, the bees can make honeycombs into frames which can over time be removed and inspected to see if they are ready compared to the traditional beehives common in Somaliland which are hollow with scattered honeycombs.

Turkey is the world’s second-largest beekeeping country and through TIKA it has been supporting beekeeping projects that include training and provision of materials in African countries.