Safeguard Bees and Beekeepers in Madagascar

As we move further into 2025, Project Renitantely continues to empower beekeepers in the face of growing environmental challenges. While the January wildfires and a high varroa mite season are expected to affect the upcoming honey harvest, the response from the beekeeping community has been nothing short of resilient.

In March, Cyclone Jude swept through southeast Madagascar, bringing strong winds that knocked down trees and crushed multiple hives across project sites. Despite this, beekeepers acted quickly, many supported by training and resources previously distributed by the project to maintain hive health and adapt to shocks.

Following both the fires and the cyclone, SEED delivered emergency distributions of bee forage and pest management resources, including 530 fruit tree seedlings, 40 natural pest control plants, 17kg of Moringa seeds, and 53 packets of Apistan. Training accompanied these distributions to ensure effective use and fast recovery.

Progress hasn’t stopped. In April, after a successful needs assessment, six new savings groups were launched across all project sites. 53 beekeepers began contributing, building financial resilience alongside their hives. This followed the completion of our financial literacy training programme, which wrapped up in March and April with an endline assessment, marking a key milestone in promoting sustainable household-level financial planning.

Even in the face of setbacks, beekeepers continue to push forward with determination, adaptability, and support from their communities and this project. Every new seedling planted, savings group formed, and hive repaired is part of a wider effort to ensure beekeeping remains a stable and rewarding livelihood.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Together, we are helping Madagascar’s beekeepers build strength not just for today, but for the future.