Glimmer recently visited Zergie, a farmer and beekeeper participating in one of our projects, to learn about how she started her beekeeping business and how she is working with other women beekeepers in her community. 

Beekeeping is a profitable business in Ethiopia with high demand for organic honey and products like beeswax. Beekeeping can be prohibitive for women in rural areas of Ethiopia. Traditional hives are easier for men to manage, due to where they are stored in trees, and the need to harvest and transport hives at night while bees are sleeping is not seen as safe for women working alone.

Glimmer’s trainings on the business of beekeeping and provision of hives provides a way for more women to grow their beekeeping or add it as a new income stream. With updated hives and harvesting skills, more women can become successful beekeepers.

Kate, Glimmer's director of programs, visits Zergie on her farm.

Through Glimmer’s project, Zergie received beehives kept at ground level, and developed safety mechanisms to harvest with fellow beekeepers at night. Zergie was trained on splitting the beehives to separate the bee colonies for increased production.

Zergie's bee hives.

Zergie is working with three other women on the skills and techniques they have learned. Together, they are developing a sustainable supplementary income.