New project on beekeeping to be implemented among women
By Naila Huseynli
New pilot project is planned to implement on the development of beekeeping among women in the north-west regions of Azerbaijan in the near future, said Badraddin Hasratov, chairman of Azerbaijan Beekeepers Association.
The project will be implemented jointly with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and should start in September.
“We have already selected five women from Azerbaijan’s Balakan, Sheki, Zagatala and Gakh regions each. Training will be conducted with them, after which bee families and the necessary funds for $1,000 will be allocated to each woman. During the year, a specialist in this field will work with them, who will monitor and report on the implementation of the project,” the chairman said.
Moreover, restoration and development of beekeeping in Azerbaijan’s Jojug Marjanli village is proceeding quite successfully. The conditions in this region are very favorable for the development of beekeeping, so the project can be expanded in the future.
“The project, which is being implemented jointly with the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), is proceeding quite successfully. Fifteen beekeepers were selected, and each was issued ten bee families. Before that, we conducted one-week training for all beekeepers, and we keep in touch with them by phone. In autumn we plan to conduct monitoring before wintering of bees. We hope that as a result of this project’s implementation, the selected beekeepers will be able to provide themselves with stable income. This zone is very favorable for beekeeping, so in the future we want to issue bees to 15 more families,” Hasratov explained.
Furthermore, the chairman mentioned that preparations for the annual honey exhibition, which usually takes place in the autumn, continue. Also, this year a number of new conditions will be put before potential participants.
“We are looking for a place to hold a fair. We are likely to refuse from holding the fair at the AMAY shopping center, where it was held in the previous years. We are counting on the participation of about 350 beekeepers who will supply approximately 100 tons of honey to the fair,” he said.
New requirements were introduced to the participants. For example, one beekeeper will be able to showcase no more than 500 kilograms of honey at the fair. This was done in order to ensure that all beekeepers can sell their goods completely and in order to avoid monopoly. Besides, there will be restrictions regarding the number of bee families. Thus, the beekeepers that have less than 20 or 30 bee families won’t participate in the fair, he concluded.
The rich climate of subtropics, the riotous diversity of flora and the valuable qualities of local bees - these are the favorable natural conditions of Azerbaijan, which contributed to the maintenance of the centuries-old tradition of beekeeping in Transcaucasia.
During the excavation in The Azokh Cave, where one of the most ancient settlements of the primitive man was discovered, a bowl with the bee depicted on it was found, which once again proves that beekeeping has deep roots in Azerbaijan.
From 1990 to 1999, beekeeping in the country decreased by 45 percent. There were many reasons for that. Most apiaries were destroyed in the area of military operations.
Currently, the Azerbaijani government does all its best to contribute to the rehabilitation and further development of beekeeping with creating favorable conditions for beekeepers.
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