NMB Bank has embarked on a special program aimed at advancing sustainable commercial beekeeping by distributing modern beehive equipment, with the goal of elevating this trade to a strategic growth sub-sector.
This initiative, according to NMB, is being financed as part of the bank's corporate social investment and sustainability agenda budget for the year, totaling TZS 6.2 billion.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, Dr. Hassan Abbas, emphasized that this undertaking aligns with the government's efforts to integrate apiculture into the Big Results Now (BRN) initiative. Speaking in Gairo District, Morogoro, where he handed over 200 beekeeping sheds designated for beekeepers in the region, Dr. Abbas stated, "Apart from the biodiversity benefits of bee pollination, beekeeping and forests play a significant but often overlooked role in the national economy."
The distribution of the beehives will be equally divided between Gairo and Kilombero districts. Dr. Abbas officially launched the eco-friendly honey production drive in Morogoro, which, along with Tabora and Njombe regions, will be the initial beneficiaries of the first 500 beehives distributed under the program.
In total, the NMB program, aimed at improving livelihoods and stimulating the economy, will benefit more than 300 members of 17 targeted beekeeper' groups across the three regions - Tabora, Njombe, and Morogoro.
Dr. Abbas revealed, "Because of their enormous commercial, fiscal, and economic potential, the government is preparing a strategic action plan to incorporate them into BRN." The government has already taken several measures to boost the growth of the beekeeping sub-sector, including investing over TZS 2.0 billion in the construction of seven honey packaging facilities and establishing a special fund that has disbursed TZS 2.9 billion to support beekeepers over the past five years. Both the beekeeping and forestry sub-sectors employ more than two million people nationwide and contribute 3.5 percent to the national output (GDP) and 5.9 percent of foreign exchange earnings.
Speaking at the event held at Msingisi Forest, Mr. Alfred Shao, NMB's Chief of Wholesale Banking, highlighted the program's objectives, which include nature protection and climate change risk mitigation. He noted that this initiative is part of NMB's sustainability agenda, which began in March with the launch of a campaign to plant one million trees across the country this year.
Mr. Shao pointed out that smart beekeeping practices not only provide alternative income sources for communities near forests but also discourage them from depleting forest resources. The program also encompasses providing entrepreneurship and financial education to beekeepers through the NMB Foundation in collaboration with the Tanzania Forest Services Agency (TFS). Beekeepers will also receive training on how to sustainably preserve nature and produce high-quality honey for local and international markets.