First group for 2011…………………….

17th Jan – 22nd Jan saw the first group of participants for the BEST program for 2011. It was a diversify group because all of them came from various district in Uganda. Even the participants attended were getting more challenging.

Some of them had never kept bees while there is one who is a beekeeper. He is 74 years old. He had been in Uganda for more than 25 years as a development worker introducing sustainable agriculture activities through education on basic accounting and book keeping.

They were prepare to go through the program to overcome the fear in order to embark on the business.

TC-BP1005

Participants were taught to overcome the fear by gradually letting them handle colonies of different strength progressively.

Fr. Stanislas

This training is a “MUST” for anyone who is willing to keep bees. In this training, I learned how to handle bees in a very gentle way. My fear for bees has reduced – Building a relationship between the beekeeper and the bees is very crucial.

Father Reverend Stanislas is from Togo and currently he is pastoring a church in Lira, Northern Uganda. They had embark on beekeeping for sometime now but he felt that the project has rooms for improvement. He came for the training so that he came equip himself with more knowledge so that he can share it with his fellow folks in Lira. Fr. Stanislas is very hands on himself.

Stan Burkey

The first of importance is how to handle the bees – keeping them calm, non aggressive, how to use smoke to calm and to move the bees. How to handle the bars – all in all, very practical and very hands on. Instructors was very open to discussion, patient, willing to evaluate new ideas. Excellent foundation for further bee management.

Stan Burkey is a private consultant providing a very important component in rural development enterprise – financial planning, book keeping. Many small scale farmers do not know how to manage their earnings, calculate profit and loss. Stan would assist them in getting their books right. 40 years of experience in a few African countries. His contribution had enlighten many such farmers, turning them into entrepreneurs.

Muyomba Wilberforce

I have realised that in order to benefit from beekeeping, one has got to know how to handle the bees and make them your friend instead of enemies. This program teaches how to use the bee tools in order to deal with the bees, not to mistreat them but use the tools to work with the bees.

I so much like the hands on training that we have had which expels out the fear and panic. I aslo like the interactive training whereby you ask and discuss all that you have seen in the apiary.

This training is introductory but really loves a lot of indepth information like how the bee behave and their program in the hive such that you know the time to work with them.

Wilber force is currently working with an NGO is agriculture sustainability. He is embarking on this enterprise so that he can develop his own bee farm at his home. He hopes in the not to far future, he can use his apiary as a model bee farm to help his community to start beekeeping as another source of income to supplement their current earnings.

William K Mugisha

I liked the creative aspect of the training..Practical, Participatory and Interactive. The training emphasized the establishment of a relationship with the Bees.. at the end of the training all of us the participants were confident enough to drop the veils and the gloves, to get Up-close and passionate with the bees. (theoria cum praxi)

Lesster confidently evaluated The beekeeping Industry (based on his 10 years experience in the industry in Uganda) and  gave us the challenges in the industry. The participants discuss the Bee-economics and individual prospective investment plan which he selflessly discusses.

William work as an Information Systems Consultant in his own company where he is the Director. He is also an Associate Consultant at Uganda Management Institute in the Department of Information Technology. He is looking forward to start his Commercial Bee keeping as well as promoting Api-Tourism back home in Kisoro District and to create his own Honey Brand.

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Lessons turning into action…………………….

Last Friday morning, we visited some of our trainees to see how far had they gone with our training. It was indeed a very nice surprise when we met with Simon Peter and his family.

When we arrived at his place, he was in his working clothes, out in the field. He was happy to see us and was so enthusiastic that we were there. Immediately he led us to one of his shade to show us what he had done – 20 local bee hives! He was in the midst of identifying a suitable plot of land to start his apiary. Simon is also a brick maker. He told us that once he is able to get some income from his selling of his bricks, he will start his apiary.

To me this was very motivational. The effort that all had put in had not gone to waste. Although the results are slow, but there are results from the training. Nothing is more satisfying than to see the participants benefitting from the program. I am proud to have Simon as one of our BEST farmer.

Simon and wife, the beginning of a success story.

BEST Program on 30/08/10 to 04/09/10…………………….

Photos by Lesster Leow, Aug 29, 2010

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BestProgram300810_040910, posted with vodpod

Class TC-BP1003

Simon Peter – The training has been fantastic. I had learnt a lot from the apiary. Before I came for the workshop, I had it in mind that bees were the greatest enemies of human being in life, but after I came to learn that once when you attend to them carefully and tenderly, they can give you whatever you want from them. They can know that you are their master and cannot be aggressive to you. I have learnt how to make money from bees and how to sustain myself by getting money from bee-products like honey, beeswax. I am now very much conversant with making bee hives and this will help me to make money from it. This is all I have learnt from this workshop. Thanks Timothy Centre and thanks Lesster and Karl.

Doreen Semucho – This training has improved our understanding on how to handle bees so carefully for the better harvest of honey. We have also learnt other uses of bees like pollination. The training has been practical which has enriched the trainees interest on how to keep bees as an economic activity. We’ve really learnt so many other things and we are committed to put this to practice and to teach our community the goodness of protecting and keeping bees.

When there are bees, there will be honey…………………….

“BEST” Program @ Timothy Centre…………………….

BEEKEEPING for ECOLOGICAL, SOCIAL and TECHNOLOGICAL program. This is what BEST stands for.

TOP GUNS - Training the trainers.

Finally, all the hives are in place at Timothy Centre and the apiary is now fully operational. Last week we saw the first team of farmers embarking on our “BEST” program. They will be the first batch of trainees to be appointed as trainers when the program goes full throttle.

These 6 bee masters had been working with us for the last 3 years in the North and they were selected for their performance and dedication to beekeeping.

With the grant given by US Embassy, we make sure that only genuine bee farmer who has the desire to embark on beekeeping as a source of income generating activity, will be given priority to benefit from it. In this way, the grant would then be utilized properly and productively. Years and years of research, trial and errors from Organizations had shown that if you were to ask any farmer who wants to go into beekeeping, every single farmer would raise their hands. All they wanted is just to ride on the free benefit, get whatever equipments they can get hold of, after which whether they make use of it or not, nobody cares. Worst case scenario, they would sell it just to make a little bit of money to go to town and buy themselves a beer.

Here at Timothy Centre, we are going to make that difference. There will be no free rides but only genuine, dedicated beekeepers who are willing to part take in our “Entrepreneurial Skills” program. These farmers have to fully understand the whole idea of being a self employed rather than a recipient. On performance based, interviews and on site visits to their existing operations will be conducted before enrollment. The farmers will be accessed based on our findings. This way, we will then be able to maintain the quality in all areas. Without neglecting the social base (social), our 26 modules allow some would-be farmers who are serious and wants to try out on honey farming, can still enroll in our basic beekeeping courses. In order not to let these farmers taking this opportunity for granted, and due to their low income capacity, they have to play their part by contributing back to the Centre in kinds, for example collecting of firewoods for the school, assist in maintaining the model apiary occasionally and others not in monetary form.

Participants were trained at my place to overcome the fear of African Honey Bees before proceeding to TC. (Do not try this at home)

“BEST” program emphasis not only on honey production alone. The three other aspects are equally important. Farmers will be trained on how to handle African bees effectively and gently, overcoming the fear of its natural aggressiveness. This is the first hurdle in becoming a good beekeeper. A beekeeper will not be considered a good beekeeper if the harvest consist of a bucket filled with dead bees. That is honey hunting.

The fundamental understanding is to accept the philosophy on how to work with nature rather than against it. (ecological)

Through generations and knowledge passed from one farmer to another, most of the harvesting were done in the night because of the fear, because of its aggressiveness. Very few beekeepers had seen the inside of a beehive in broad daylight. It will be a paradigm shift for them with this kind of practice.

During our last day before we round up the lessons, we had our evaluation. I came to realized that one of them who had attended my talk 3 years ago did not believe that we can harvest or perform any activities during the day. These short 6 days of training had totally changed his views on beekeeping methods.

The other interesting findings for them was that beekeeping is done in a very clean clear environment. All these while, they were taught that bee hives should be hidden amongst tall bushes, away from prying eyes. This has got to change. What they saw at the Centre was a total culture shock to them. Beehives were neatly arranged in order within a few meters apart from each other, not like theirs which some were placed a few hundred meters away.

Our “BEST” program encompasses different types of beehives, from traditional log hives to KTB to modern langstroth. Farmers will be able to identify the different method of beekeeping and can choose which form of beekeeping best suit them. With this direction, smooth transition from traditional beekeeping to modern methods of beekeeping (technological) will still be in place.

Apiary well trimmed.

The first lesson for them was apiary management. They did a fine job converting the whole apiary into a bees’ paradise.

Moving colonies.

Among the 6, 3 of them were their first time out of GULU. After the insurgency, they had never visited other parts of Uganda. I could see the excitement and joy in their eyes that they are going to bring back lots of stories for their children when they return.

We believe all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. In recognition for their great effort in making it all the way from GULU, we decided to let them enjoy a piece of their homeland, Uganda. 🙂

Awaiting for their well deserved meal at a local world cup crazy restaurant.

The Equator - Icon of Uganda.

Timothy Centre in co-operation with Little Honey Man. 🙂