– Wude Ayimro, Smallholder beekeeper
Wude Ayimro was born and brought up in rural Ethiopia, particularly at Awabel district, East Gojjam Zone of Amhara state. During her childhood, she was spending her time at home herding as well as preparing animal dungs that could be used as firewood. When she grew up, she went to a close by school to get registered.
Busy engaged in miscellaneous rural domestic chores, she managed attending schools till 10th grade and joined an enterprise working on honey and wax production. After passing through several challenges, now she could manage to be one of the leading and successful business women in an area she lives in. The Ethiopian Herald has just interviewed her. Excerpts:
Herald: How do you briefly explain your life?
Wude: I find things very maddening when I revert back to the past. Many of my friends and I were not qualified to pursue higher education during those days. We had diametrically opposite views in leading our lives and sharing burdens of our families; some nourished a dream to go abroad, while others displayed inclination to work together and establish cooperative businesses like many youths did in the district.
My intention was to go to Arab countries or the Middle East (Beirut, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, etc.) But, my family members were urging me to get married. Willy-nilly, I accepted my family’s proposal. I got married at 18 and had a baby. Now, I am very happy; and life is treating me very well.
Herald: How did you start the honey production business?
Wude: Being jobless is a very difficult thing for youths. You know what it means being jobless. Life proves very disgusting and painful. I stayed put home for about 2 years without any source of revenue. When things were going from bad to worse, I tried my hands on different business activities such as washing and ironing clothes so as to generate some income at least to cover household expenses. It was also facing difficulities to access loan and financial support that will help to open small business firms.
Although I asked my relatives and friends to lend me some money, they were not capable enough to provide the required amount. One day, I heard about YESH project which provides support for young entrepreneurs engaged in silk and honey production.
I believe this project creates a golden opportunity to our village. It is a life-changing opportunity it offers for many youths. First, my father strongly opposed the idea, claiming that beekeeping is male’s activity because it requires courage and time, as the activity is usually guided after sundown.
In fact, most of my family members had been engaged in beekeeping for several years. So, I had the opportunity to take lessons how they managed to handle such tiresome works. Of course, the exposure helped me to develop confidence and get involved in beekeeping business activities. Finally, convincing my father, I managed to join the beekeeping enterprise supported by the YESH project. I worked with sound commitment and relentless effort.
Herald: Is there any challenge that holds you back?
Wude: At the beginning, our enterprise had eleven members (two females and nine males), but later on, my co-worker quitted apiary because she could not withstand the entrenched denigratory attitude of the community. But, such wrong-headed outlooks could not daunt me from engaging in beekeeping activities. I convinced myself that nothing could derail me from surging ahead in the avenue of success. I owe gratitude to my husband, who always encourages me to emerge ever with success stories.
Herald: How do you explain your all-over engagement in honey productivity?
Wude: My engagement in the project began with developing business plan, exercising entrepreneurial saving culture, taking basic and technical trainings in colony transfer and splitting, queen rearing, pre and post harvesting, processing, packing, wax making, among others.
Herald: What are the major activities in beekeeping?
Wude: We establish apiary site in the farmland, set aside by local administration office; and we plant bee forages and some trees, vegetables and fruit in the village to maintain healthy environment. Everyone can observe how our life has been turning around since we joined the YESH project. We could produce honey and wax for the local consumption and sell them to domestic markets with reasonable prices.
Herald: What are the opportunities created for you and your friends?
Wude: The YESH project has created market opportunities and access to loan for startup capital. When we are getting ready, the Dynamic Micro Finance is on our gate to provide loans to expand our business or to engage in other side businesses. Very recently, we supplied over 50 kg processed and packed honey for market.
We had participated in international and national honey symposiums and festivals, displayed quality honey, established networking with business people and beekeepers working across the country and elsewhere. The project is also considered as an eye-opener business field that helps many youths and various segments of the society, principally for women’s involvement in beekeeping.
Of course, we (women) are equally engaged in business as men. The YESH project has actualized significant changes in my life. As you can see, I am building a new house with the revenue obtained from a honey producing venture.
Herald: How do you explain the progress since its establishment?
Wude: We began with 22 modern (frame) hives-traditional and transitional hives. Today, we are producing 40 to 45 kg honey from framed hives. Thanks to the project we learned a lot on how to make money from beeswax. Through improved beekeeping, we generate a net income of over 200,000 Birr from honey and beeswax. More importantly, we are also consuming honey which increases our nutrition security. Currently, the project has been realized in 20 villages in Awabel district supporting 860 unemployed (30% female) youths.
Herald: As role model do you have any message to convey?
Wude: The YESH project has provided financial and material supports for many unemployed youths. Of these, I appreciates the provision of theoretical and practical training in beekeeping, entrepreneurship, financial and marketing management, inputs like modern beehives, protective clothes and other beekeeping materials. In general, the project afforded us unlimited supports, which transformed our life from a gloomy to a brighter one.
We appreciate the perks of working in an organized manner. Personally, nothing will hold me back; rather cropping up challenges will propel me to work day and night so as to change the lives of my family and mine sustainably.
The Ethiopian Herald Sunday Edition 27 October 2019
BY ZELALEM GIRMA
