Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Collection
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://10.10.97.169:4000/handle/123456789/1002
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Browsing Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Collection by Author "Kassim Ally"
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Item The status of beekeeping and its potentials for development in Manyoni District, Singida Region, Tanzania(Sokoine University of Agriculture, 2015) Kassim AllyThis study was carried out between November 2013 and September 2014 to determine the status of beekeeping industry and its potentials for development in Manyoni District. Singida Region, Tanzania. The methods used included reconnaissance, field and social surveys using questionnaires on the household heads and checklists of probe questions with key informants. Data collected was analysed using SPSS software. The results revealed that the adoption status of beekeeping in the district was currently 70% and although it had started earlier than the 1970s, initially the adoption accelerated in the 1990s and 2000s. Most of the beekeeping activities were based on traditional practices using log and bark hives but the use of the modern bee hives is growing rapidly. Moreover, the results indicated that beekeepers have rich indigenous knowledge on beekeeping activities which they utilize effectively in identifying appropriate local baiting materials, tree species for hive construction and preferable bee forage plants. Most of the beekeepers harvest honey by using fire to calm down the honeybees; processing and storage of honey is locally done. The mean annual honey yield from commercial bee hives was highest followed by log bee hives, gourd hives, bark hives, Tanzania Transitional Hives and stingless bee hives. Beekeeping plays a significant role in the socio-economic development through generation of cash incomes and contribution to food security. Inadequate training and extension services, lack of capital, unreliable markets, long distance from homesteads to apiaries, fear of bees, theft of hives and forest degradation were the main constraints to beekeeping. The study therefore, recommends that the Government should enhance availability of proper beekeeping equipment, training and extension services, accessibility to credit facilities. formulation of coordinated marketing strategies of the bee products and promotion of beekeeping integration into the agroforestry practices to ensue sustainable supply of bee forage and water resources for enhanced sustainability of productivity and the beekeeping industry.