Project presentation
In Senegal, 70% of the country’s honey production comes from the Casamance region, where the tropical climate and the biodiversity of mangrove ecosystems create particularly favorable conditions for beekeeping. Despite this potential, the sector remains largely traditional and underdeveloped, with limited technical capacity and modest income opportunities for rural populations.
The project led by the association LAAFI aims to strengthen the local beekeeping sector while promoting women’s economic empowerment. In the commune of Nyassia, 100 rural women will receive training in beekeeping techniques provided by the specialized organization APISEN. This training will combine theory and practice and will cover honey production, mangrove biodiversity conservation, marketing, cooperative management, as well as topics related to workers’ rights and savings management.
At the end of the training, each participant will receive five beehives and a complete beekeeping kit to launch her activity. The women will be supported throughout the project to consolidate their skills and address potential challenges. In parallel, a honey processing facility will be built to enable honey extraction, packaging, and storage before commercialization in local markets. The project also includes the creation and support of a cooperative to pool equipment, structure the value chain, and ensure the long-term sustainability of the activity.
Beyond improving participants’ incomes, beekeeping will also contribute to the preservation of local biodiversity thanks to the essential role of bees in pollination.
