Beekeeping project for women with africanized … / Costa Rica - R.A. Calderon APIMONDIA 2013, Kyiv -Ukraine 1 Beekeeping project for women with africanized honey bees in two rural

CINAT-UNA / Costa Rica - R.A. Calderon

1 APIMONDIA 2013, Kyiv-Ukraine

Beekeeping project for women with africanized honey bees in two rural areas of

Costa Rica

Dr. Rafael A. Calderón F., PhD.

Bee Pathology Program Tropical Beekeeping Research Center (CINAT)

Universidad Nacional (UNA) - Costa Rica



Structure of the presentation

- Costa Rica information

- Beekeeping activity in Costa Rica

- CINAT = Tropical Bee Research Institute

- Project= Training women with Africanized bees



Costa Rica = geographical distribution

- Costa Rica is located in Central America

- Surface area = 51,000 Kms2

- Capital is San Jose = located in the Central Valley

- C.R. is organized in 7 Provinces= San Jose-Alajuela-

Heredia-Cartago (Central Valley)

- Puntarenas-Guanacaste (Pacific), Limon (Caribbean)



San Jose is located Central Valley of Costa Rica. North= Nicaragua; South= Panama; east=

Caribbean sea; West= Pacific ocean


Pacific coast of Costa Rica




Main crops of Costa Rica

- Coffee - Sugarcane - Banana - Melon - Ornamental plants



Beekeeping situation in Costa Rica - Number hives = 30,000; number beekeepers = 600

- Average hives per beekeeper = 25

- Average of honey production = 30 kg per hive

- Most beekeeping is make small-scale beekeepers

- Bloom occurs during dry season from Dec to April

- Origin of honey different plants = poli-floral honey



Honey situation

- C. R. high consumer of honey= per capita 300 g / year

- Before 1984 C.R. exported honey mainly to Germany

- After the arrival Africanized bees: 50% of the

beekeepers give up the activity

- At this time C.R. imports honey from different

countries



CINAT

- Tropical Beekeeping Research Institute

- Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica

- CINAT was created 1990 financial support of BID /

academic support of Utrecht University - Netherlands

- Staff = 7 specialists in different bee research areas



- Main objective: contribute development beekeeping and meliponiculture activities in Costa Rica and Central America

CINAT : 7 - Programs

- Meliponiculture = stingless bees (meliponas-trigonas)

- Ecology - Pollination = bee-plant relationship

- Beekeeping = Africanized honey bees management

- Queen rearing = queen production

- Chemistry = honey quality control

- Pathology = analysis of bee diseases

- Master program= academic training of students



CINAT services to beekeepers - Bee Pathology Lab = disease analysis brood /adult bees

- Chemistry Lab = Honey analysis

- Palynology = pollen analysis identify floral sources of honey

- Queen rearing = production of selected queens

- Organization = meetings, congress, workshops, seminars

- CINAT cooperate different Institutions: Agricultural Ministry, Beekeepers associations

- Institutions of C. A.: Zamorano, Universidad de El Salvador



Bee Pathology Laboratory = facilities



Veterinary students visit to CINAT

- We receive groups of students



Beekeeping project for women with africanized honey bees in two rural areas of Costa Rica

Project



Bee and plants = benefit association

- Logo that we used to identify the project



• Meeting with a indigenous association: Zapatón - Puriscal



Situation of women in rural areas of Costa Rica

- Women in rural areas are often limited to work in the house

- There are few alternatives for women in rural areas

- This project = stimulate the independence of women

- In addition, contribute to the family income



Main objetive of the project:

- Contribute development of sustainable beekeeping:

– Education activities: workshops, tranining with the bees

– Varroa mites control: using alternative products

– Queen rearing: improve honey production

– Reforestation= using meliferous plants

- Organization of the group= as a enterprise



In oder to

- Increase the honey production

- Improve the commercialization of bee products

- Improve the conditions of women and their families

- To develop the gender equality and sustainable production



This project has conducted beekeeping training activities specifically for women

with Africanized bees

- We involved 11 groups (small associations)

- Most of them conformed by women

- 6 groups conformed only for women

- 5 mixed groups



Association name Women Men

Asentamiento Vista de Mar 5 0 Los Ángeles (AMIPRO) 8 0

San Gabriel (ASOMUPROSGA) 10 0 Zapatón (PARIZ) 12 8

Vista de Mar (AMOVIMAR) 5 0 Lanas (APILAP) 4 1

La Potenciana (APAPOT) 7 7 San Luis (APRASAL) 4 8

Api-San Pablo 4 6 Cerbatana (MUCADE) 10 0

Asentamiento San Gabriel 12 0 = 111 participants



Project location-two rural areas of Costa Rica: Puriscal and Turrubares



Beekeeping group: Asentamiento Vista de Mar



Beekeeping group: San Luis (APRASAL)



Period= 3 years

Budget = $150,000 U.S. Dollars - FUNDECOOPERACION

- Total of participants: 111

- Women = 81

- Men = 30



Main activities of the bee Project



I. Workshops

- Workshops were an important meeting activity

- Presentation and discussion of beekeeping topics

- Also to analyze the problems of the groups

- Inform about the advance of the project

- Organize new activities



Topics presented in the workshops

- Gender equality - Integrated pest management of Varroa destructor - Management of africanized colonies - Queen rearing - Bee plants - Diversification of bee products: creams, pollen - Administration - Commercialization of bee products



Workshop in La Gloria - Puriscal

- We made more than 20 workshops



Workshop in San Pablo - Turrubares



Meeting in los Ángeles - Puriscal



2. Training manuals (booklets)

- Reading document with technical topics

- Check the topics presented in the workshops



• Training manual: Gender equality

- We made six manuals



3. Technical training at the colonies - Teaching of women on how to manage their colonies

- Prevent and control of bee diseases

- Multiply the colonies= making nucleus

- Queen rearing process

- Collect bee samples for disease diagnosis

- Honey harvest procedures



Work meeting: La Potenciana - Turrubares



Technical visit making nucleus:

La Potenciana - Turrubares



4. Bee colonies deliver

- It was made at the beginning of the project

- Most of the groups received colonies to start with the

activity



• Deliver of bee colonies: Zapatón - Puriscal



• Preparation of the place for the apiary installation : Zapatón - Puriscal



5- Beekeeping suplies and equipment

- All groups received the basic equipment

- Good quality standard material





• Hive materials with the ID = “ F ”



• Overall, helmet, hive tool, smoker, etc.



• Norma Pérez - member of the group San Gabriel, preparing the smoker to visit the apiary



Summary: Beekeeping project for women

- We delivered the bee colonies, material and equipment to the groups

- But we also trained the women

- Make the technical visits

- To support the field work with the colonies



• We recieve a positive answer of the groups : Los Ángeles-Puriscal

At this time: most of groups produce honey and products - Received an important income to their families



The financial support to take part in APIMONDIA 2013 was provided by:

– Scholarship Department, Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica.

– Tropical Beekeeping Research Center (CINAT).

VII. Acknowledgements

Documents

Beekeeping project for women with africanized … / Costa Rica - R.A. Calderon APIMONDIA 2013, Kyiv -Ukraine 1 Beekeeping project for women with africanized honey bees in two rural