Women in the Ugandan Beekeeping Value Chain

Apiculture in Uganda contributes about 8% to the national GDP and is an important seasonal activity that has predominantly remained traditionally rural. Previously, behavioural taboos and cultural practices prevented women from partaking in the practice, but the introduction of modern beekeeping, including modernised hives and technological practices, has enabled women to more easily enter the practice. This has resulted in quite remarkable gains on one level, such as the ownership of large enterprises by some Ugandan women. However, despite this, the majority of rural women working within the apiculture value chain of production are concentrated in the stages that provide the least opportunity for economic gain, and particularly, limited direct access to regional and intercontinental markets that lead to commercial and retail sales. Most commonly found within the first stage of the chain (obtaining production inputs), they are constrained by limited access to resources such as land and credit. Other stages, such as apiary management and product processing, also continue to be constrained by limited levels of decision making power, limiting their ownership over the entire production process.

Source: “Gender-based Apiculture Development for Export (GADEX) Project” A Proposal Submitted to the Commonwealth Secretariat by the Uganda Export Promotion Board, August 2006