2 Commissioning partner, aim and approach of the study
2.3 Study approach
The approach contains the three central topics: 1) agriculture, 2) apiculture and 3) income generation and employment opportunities. Each aspect was assessed according to the current situation and the limitations. In agriculture, this referred to production systems and inputs. In beekeeping, the focus was on the value chain of honey and knowledge and practices of local beekeepers. For employment op-portunities and income generation, the socio-economic context of women and youths was the focus.
The following questions guided the research. They are considered in the fol-lowing chapters.
I) If honey is a highly valued commodity in Ethiopia, what is preventing bee-keepers in Arsi-Zone from realising its full potential?
II) If bee forage is a major constraint to beekeeping in Arsi-Zone, how can the planting of bee forage be promoted?
III) If bee populations are in decline, how is this related to the agricultural sys-tem in Arsi-Zone? And if the agriculture is causing environmental damage, how can sustainability be improved?
IV) If beekeeping could be better integrated into the crop farming system, what effects would this have on the sustainability of the agricultural system?
V) If beekeeping is a lucrative side-activity, how can women and youths get involved to generate income?
System approach
To assess agriculture, apiculture and additional income-generation inde-pendently but at the same time relate the three aspects and find comprehensive solutions, the study team developed a system approach: Good agricultural prac-tices, beekeeping and honey production as well as income generation and em-ployment opportunities were analysed in a wider context. Three key dimensions were considered (environmental, economic and socio-cultural). In accordance with the system approach, a special emphasis was put on the relationships be-tween the different aspects (e.g. see Box 1). Ideally a systemic analysis will help find opportunities that can be mutually beneficial and improve the dimensions’
various components. These opportunities identified as synergies are elaborated on in Chapter 8. If various system components were to be considered inde-pendently, realities might not only be ignored but interventions in one part of the system could be detrimental to others.
6
Commissioning partner, aim and approach of the studyFor example, from an economic point of view a high demand for honey could be an opportunity to generate income for women and youths who are not yet in-volved in beekeeping. But it is also necessary to assess social or cultural aspects, such as inhibitions preventing women or youths from partaking in beekeeping.
The potential would also need to be viewed in the environmental dimension, con-sidering whether the conditions are favourable to increase the number of bee col-onies or improve honey harvest, or how these conditions would need to change.
Any changes or adaptations should be as broadly beneficial as possible. Most im-portantly, changes in one part should not have negative impacts elsewhere. For example, agricultural practices that are more appropriate and less harmful to pol-linators are only viable if they do not threaten farmers’ livelihoods and are feasible under the given circumstances.
Box 1: Honey bees as pollinators – economic and ecologic importance
Flowering plants and pollinators are closely linked through co-evolution. Polli-nation as an ecosystem service contributes to ecosystem sustainability, plant reproduction, crop productivity, pest management and many more aspects, both in the wilderness and in agriculture (Buchmann and Nabhan, 1996; Kevan and Wojcik, 2007). The most important economic contribution of the honey bee is neither honey nor an associated hive product but global pollination services.
They contribute 10–15 times more to the global economy than honey products (D.I.B. e.V., 2017). In 2015 this contribution to crop production constituted of an estimated US$ 235 to 577 billion of market value (IPBES, 2016). The absolute value of pollination services is not easily determined since the dependency of crops on animal pollination varies and markets are versatile. However, 35% of global crop production depends on animal pollination either for fruit or seed production or for substantial yield increases (Hein, 2009; IPBES, 2016). For ex-ample, yield of oilseed rape and sunflower increases by 20% through animal pol-lination and doubles in fruit trees (Oliva, 2016). Polpol-lination has been found to be the agricultural input that contributes the greatest to yields, beyond other man-agement practices (Manriquez, 2016). If animal pollination collapsed, up to 8%
of global crop production volume would be lost entirely, in 40% of crops it would lead to yield reductions. Which is why Kevan and Wojcik (2007) stated: “Conser-vation of honeybees, other domesticated bees, wild bees, and other pollinators is an important issue in the global context of agricultural and natural sustainable productivity”.
Commissioning partner, aim and approach of the study
7
Taking the system approach into consideration, the study does not aim to change the agricultural system to accommodate beekeeping, but rather to take measures to enable a step by step integration of beekeeping into the farming sys-tem, while highlighting shortcomings and urgent measures. This results in the de-velopment of strategies to improve beekeeping and their integration in the farm-ing system, as well as the assessment of necessary steps to enhance income and employment opportunities along the value chain of honey. Possibilities were iden-tified and recommendations for future interventions are formulated.
Framework conditions in Ethiopia