BUUMBA CHIMBULU writes
ZAMBIA should harness beekeeping to raise export earnings and contribute to economic growth, the World Bank has said.
Between 2010 and 2015, Zambia earned US$35 million from the sale of liquid honey and US$8.4 million from the sale of bees wax in the same period.
According to the World Bank report, these products could become a much larger share of exports in Zambia with appropriate investments.
The bank emphasised that beekeeping could improve Zambia’s Non-Traditional Exports (NTEs) through production of honey.
Honey production contributed 0.01 percent in 2014 and 0.04 percent in 2018 to Zambia’s total exports.
The bank in its latest Zambia Economic Brief dupped “Wealth Beyond Mining: Leveraging Renewable Natural Capital” said beekeeping was a sector which was considered to have the potential to grow significantly and was thus one of the untapped renewable resources.
According to the bank, there was a high demand for both honey and bees wax on the international market.
“Zambia is a traditional beekeeping country and the apiculture (or beekeeping) practices are important to the Zambian economy in terms of raising export earnings, employment creation and poverty reduction.
“Although production is barely meeting domestic demand, it has immense potential to increase production both for the domestic and international markets,” said the bank.
World Bank said the price of one tonne of bees wax compares relatively well with that of copper on the international market saying” and so is an important source of foreign exchange for the nation.”
The bank observed that despite the economic value of beekeeping as a source of employment, poverty reduction, and foreign exchange, Zambia was yet to realise its potential.
