Food security has been a driving force in human adaptation and evolution from the beginning. Thousands of years BCE, human civilizations started to expand to the point where hunting and gathering were no longer sufficient. Through the domestication of various plants and animals, humans were able to develop the practices of agriculture and animal husbandry respectively.
For centuries, the Maasai have relied on this practice of animal husbandry as their primary source of sustenance and wealth. This was made possible by their proximity to vast grazing land; that was sustainably used by herders who would nomadically guide their settlements and furthermore the cattle in order to prevent over-grazing. In the past century, however, these vast savannahs have started to be converted into conservation land and the Maasai have been forced to move elsewhere.
Now the Maasai, in Longido, find themselves without ample grazing land and a pseudo-sedentary lifestyle that leads to population growth. Eventually the lifestyle that has sustained them for hundreds of years will no longer be able to support the community in the same way our ancestors thousands of years realized with hunting/gathering.
Enter: Apiculture
Beekeeping has been shown to not only aid in the development of agriculture, but also to provide a wide array of benefits to the community harvesting. A long standing tradition both in Eastern Africa as a whole, and in Tanzania, beekeeping is already being practiced by many on a small scale. In many cases, however, this beekeeping is not the sustainable, commensal relationship usually seen in apiculture; it is opportunistic harvesting of wild hives. Albeit satisfying when found, these hives cannot be continually used as they are destroyed in the act.
The immediate draw of interest for beekeeping is to harvest and ingest the various food products supplied by the bees’ hard work, however, the benefits are further reaching. Many bee products can be used in traditional medicine regimes; effectively providing two avenues for the harvesting party to start small businesses based on their beekeeping.
Apiculture is not without challenges, though: due to the necessity of particular equipment both for harvesting and the colonies themselves there is an initial investment, and in order to practice sustainably, keepers must be properly educated. In order to introduce apiculture to the Maasai in Longido successfully, these two challenges must be considered. By producing easily accessible materials and equipment that are intuitive to use and maintain, the community will be able to start improving their food security as well as possibly generating some wealth for themselves in the process.
Sources:
Kimaro, J., Liseki, S., Mareale, W., & Mrisha, C. (n.d.). Enhancing rural food security through improved beekeeping in Northern Tanzania. Retrieved September 27, 2018, from http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd25/12/kima25222.html
Qaiser, T., Ali, M., Taj, S., & Akmal, N. (2013). Impact Assessment of Beekeeping in Sustainable Rural Livelihood.
Enabel – Belgian development agency. (n.d.). Developing Beekeeping in Kigoma Region – Tanzania. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IInw5pZN71k