MOUNTAIN
RESEARCH
CENTER

Polytechnic Institute
of Bragança

image01

CIMO

CIMO - Mountain Research Center. See video HERE

FROM NATURE TO PRODUCTS, TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY.

VAPI - Valorização da Apicultura nas Regiões de Batatá e Gabu: Produção, Transformação e Comercialização

Project Type
Nacional / Público
Financial Program
EuropeAid - Programas de Cooperação Externa
Global Funding Value
620615.78 €
IPB Funding Value
17812.00 €
Type of project
Research Project
Principal Investigator
Albino António Bento
Start
2010-03-01
End
2013-02-28
Description
Beekeeping is an ancient activity in Guiné-Bissau, particularly in the eastern part of the country where Fula and Mandinga ethnic groups where known as “honey hunters”. Over generations, beekeeping practices are oriented for traditional hives made of local raw materials, as bamboo or straw, but destroying the hive every year to extract honey for own consumption. The forest potentialities of the country, combined with the ancient knowledge of local populations, and their availability for exploring this activity towards the market, are the right keys for using beekeeping as a tool for local development. In 2010 the European Community, the Portuguese Cooperation and the Guinea-Bissau Government agree to finance the current project, oriented for production of bee products using Kenyan top-bar hives, and involving the development of a sustainable network, supported through a beekeepers organization. This structure will wotk in the entire honey chain: from training of beekeepers, the construction of tools and support structures, until the organization of a market scheme able to distribute and sell the products. The project is coordinated by UCCLA in collaboration with CIMO, FNAP and APRODEL.


Project Team

Project Partners

  • APRODEL - Associação para a Promoção do Desenvolvimento Local
  • FNAP - Federação Nacional dos Apicultores de Portugal
  • União das Cidades Capitais Luso-Afro-Américo-Asiáticas