Turkish agency trains women beekeepers in Pakistan

By Zuhal Demirci

ANKARA

A total of 142 women from flood-hit Pakistan’s northwestern region have been provided with equipment and training on beekeeping, Turkey’s state development aid agency TIKA said Wednesday.

In a statement, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) said two of its experts gave a five-day theoretical and practical training to the beekeepers in the remote northwestern district of Chitral.

The agency also gave them 426 beehives, bee colonies, and equipment.

In addition, experienced beekeepers were assigned in the region for closely monitoring the activities of the beekeepers during the project, the statement said.

Pakistani women beekeepers thanked Turkey and TIKA for their support at the end of the project.

TIKA has also helped beekeepers in other countries including Kenya, Palestine and Bosnia.

Turkey has a rich history of bee farming and is one of the biggest honey and beeswax producers.

Beekeeping is carried out in almost every region of the country and in 2014 there were 57,000 registered beekeepers and 6.6 million registered hives, according to the Turkish Association of Beekeepers.

Reporting by Zuhal Demirci; Writing by Handan Kazanci