Adnan Adams Mohammed
The Federation of Ghana Bee-Keepers Association (FGBA) has estimated that Ghana can produce about half a million tons of honey annually at an estimated value of US$1.5 billion.
The Board of the Ghana Export-Import (GEXIM) Bank has approved an agreement between Ghana and Slovenia an amount of GHC12.0 million to support and develop the beekeeping industry in Ghana. The Bank plans to add honey to the Non-Traditional Export commodities list by the next three years.
To achieve this, a Beekeeping Development Project (BeDP) has been launched in Accra, last week. The initiative is to improve the beekeeping industry through large scale production and processing into diverse derivatives. This is to be achieved in two phases with phase one already commissioned which involves a comprehensive feasibility study and pilot of the honey production industry. The phase two would concentrate on the production and processing of the honey by-products for local and international consumption.
“Ghana is reported to be having one of the best climatic conditions suitable for bee and honey. Despite this condition, the country imports more than 600 tons worth of honey worth millions of cedis every month”, the CEO of the bank, Lawrence Agyinsam revealed, adding that, “the Board of the bank has approved an amount of GHC12 million to support the beekeeping project.”
GEXIM stands ready to support the development of the beekeeping industry into a world-class producer of bee-related products for export. This initiative will no doubt help all bee value chain players and to provide financial freedom, eradicate poverty, and generally empower the vulnerable and deprived in our society, he added.
It (GEXIM) seeks to develop a world-class Honey Production Industry with a transparent, efficient, and cost-effective supply chain ecosystem that delivers quality products to both domestic and international markets.
The bank wants to drive the transformation of the Honey Industry in Ghana by financing the proponents of the value chain. It envisions the following: Training of beekeepers, Capacity building, Creation of public awareness, Provision of high tech honey test centers for quality assurance,
The other proponents are; providing financing solutions for industry proponents (small, medium size and large), Support for establishing processing and packaging facilities, and Business Development (market entry opportunities) for the industry proponents.
“To provide financial support for the industry, GEXIM needs to understand the current state of the industry, the future state for sustainability, growth and the building blocks required to achieve the objectives”, the CEO noted.
The objective of the assignment is to understand the technical capacity of Ghana’s bee value chain and requirements for its transformation. Specifically the study shall cover: Market Feasibility of the bee and honey processing industry in Ghana; Understand the appropriate financial model for the industry; Analysis on the expected future industry training and create public awareness; Environment and social impact of the industry; and Provide technical and financial support for at least three (3) bee keeping communities on pilot bases.
