| Making a beeline for prosperity |
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28/10/2009 Meet Aziza Farah*, a 38-year-old mother of 3 from northern Buurhakaba. Apart from receiving equipment from the organization, Aziza and many others have been trained by ARAO and now have the skills required for beekeeping. “I had no idea how to keep bees. Then ARAO conducted a three-day, hands-on training. It’s also providing advisory services on beekeeping. I now feel I have got the ‘ABCs’ of this business,” she says. Aziza uses the proceeds for subsistence, but has big prospects for the business. “I hope to increase my beehives to six next year. This will double my income from the business. It will also give me self-satisfaction regarding my own ability to generate income and reduce dependency on others. What I like about it is that it has good profit but a very low level of investment and risk.” Currently, beekeeping is widespread in northern Buurhakaba ‒ it can be found in 8 villages and benefits 1,200 households. The beekeepers are planning to extend their sales to major towns. “We are eager to conquer the local market and are already think of selling our honey in major towns like Baidoa and Mogadishu,” says Aziza. “Who knows, soon we may be exporting our product outside of Somalia.” The Area-Based Early Recovery project aims at improving productive and sustainable livelihood assets in selected regions of South Central Somalia, namely Middle Shabelle and Bay. The project is funded by the Bureau for Conflict Prevention and Recovery. Read more: http://www.so.undp.org/index.php/Area-Based-Early-Recovery.html *name has been changed |