Harvesting honey for mangrove resilience in the Tsiribihina delta

Beekeeping adds a lot of money. It pays for the education of my five children.

At Antanandahy, a village in the heart of the Tsiribihina delta mangroves, on Madagascar’s west coast, fishermen are feeling the effects of climate change and adapting to take advantage of new income streams.

“Today, there are many more offshore winds and fewer fish,” said Razeny, president of the Matavy Entea (beautiful view) beekeepers’ group.

“The weather has changed. Fishing the open sea has become more difficult for small fishermen like me.”

So, he adapted by producing honey from mangroves.

The group now has 10 members and has been trained in beekeeping since 2012 by the NGO Saragna, which works in food security and the environment in Menabe. To date, training have been provided by the Federation of Farmer in the Menabe Region, FITAME (Firaisantsoan’ny Tantsaha Menabe), with the support of WWF.

Razeny and his group took part in the third “Reniala Menabe” fair that ran from August 31 to September 2, 2017. This fair promotes the economy and culture of Menabe for three years under the patronage of government and the Chief of the Region. Razeny and his colleagues sold their honey from the Tsiribihina delta during these three-day fair and sold their entire stock.

According to Razeny, “Beekeeping adds a lot of money. It pays for the education of my five children. I fish at sea in the morning and I take care of my eight hives in the afternoon. My hives produce between 15 and 20 liters each, at 10,000 Ar / liter.”