Touni Dé Timiri - Honey Work - Le Travail du Miel

Current Situation -

Touni Dé Timiri is a beekeeping project in which families in a Togolese village are generating income through the sale of honey.

The project currently has a trained beekeeper, a hive constructor, and all the essential equipment such as a smoker, an extractor, and bee suits. This project could expand spectacularly, and in a sustainable way, to become the village's industry but needs investment to build a large number of hives that will allow many more families to fight their financial poverty. At this time the hope is to build one hundred more hives at the cost of 2000 US dollars.

Why this project -

Beekeeping can provide income to rural families through the sale of honey and its bi-products. The sale price of honey is much more stable than the price of crops such as corn that often dip just at the moment when farmers need money the most. Unlike crops, honey is easily stored and does not easily spoil. In addition to honey, bi-products such as wax can be processed into sellable items like candles and soap.

Beekeeping allows farmers to make money without depleting soil fertility. When in need of money, farmers clear more land and plant more crops. Without a way to sustainably maintain the fertility of the fragile tropical soil, their land becomes less and less productive every year. Beekeeping helps the soil by providing a sustainable non-soil-depleting source of income.

More bees mean higher crop yields from the soil that is plowed. The sooner crops are pollinated the more they can grow. Having more bees in or adjacent to fields can improve crop yields.

Background -

The head beekeeper was trained in beekeeping and other trades at the Opportunities Industrialization Centers (OIC), located in Notsé, Togo. He returned to his home village to work on egg production and beekeeping projects. In collaboration with other village members, the Togolese Diaspora, and a Peace Corps Volunteer based in his village, the head beekeeper has helped launch 18 families into the beekeeping business and acquire necessary equipment such as an extractor, a smoker, and bee suits. Regular meetings that bring together all of the beekeepers in the village are now being held to consolidate and expand beekeeping.

There has not been a problem selling the honey. Buyers have been numerous and have bought in large quantities for resale in cities and for use in the industrial production of certain foods. There is a great amount of unmet demand for honey and this village hopes to alleviate its poverty by attempting to meet that demand.

Management and Expansion -

Three families have fully self-funded construction of their beehives. The rest of the families have paid five (5) US dollars per hive for subsidized beehives that cost 20 US dollars each to construct. The money raised by the five dollar payments has gone to pay the head beekeeper for his transport and his services of installing the beehives, attracting bees into the hives, and performing needed maintenance. Honey harvesting is also performed by the head beekeeper and he is paid per harvested hive. A tax on harvests performed with the extractor has been imposed in order to fund eventual repairs to the extractor.

A selection committee selects which families will be offered subsidized hives and consists of the head beekeeper, one other of the village's founding beekeepers, and the Returned Peace Corps Volunteer who worked in the village.

Action Plan -

The project will continue to be managed as it has been. This is outlined in the "Management and Expansion" section above. Meetings will continue to take place to allow the beekeepers to share and organize.

More photos to come soon...