Johnson Ogunjobi:
Improving Livelihood Opportunities of Protected Area Support Zone Communities in Nigeria: Lesson Learnt through Beekeeping Training

JOHNSON OGUNJOBI
Federal College of Wildlife Management, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria, Fed Min of Environment, Nigeria

Biodiversity most especially in the third world countries are of enormous socioeconomic benefit to man irrespective of their geographical locations. However, anthropogenic actions of man have continued to erode tropical genetic diversity. To tackle this menace, diverse programmes at different level in the third world countries aimed at improving the qualities of life of the rural poor living close to natural resources and which safeguard the ecosystem have also continued to evolve. Majority of these programmes were aimed towards switching the attention of rural people off haphazard environmental resources usage. One of such ecological investments fast growing among the rural poor in some parts of Africa contributing immensely to food security, livelihood improvement, and development of small and medium scale industries of concern is beekeeping. This study reports the intervention of Global Environment Facility (GEF) through Nigerian National Park Service in support zone communities of Kainji Lake National Park, Nigeria to reduce impact of human attention and activities on the park biodiversity and natural heritage. Training of identified traditional honeybee harvesting group was initiated and financed by GEF operating in the study area while technical support of subject matter on modern beekeeping techniques was provided by specialists from the Federal College of Wildlife Management, Niger State, Nigeria. The learning process formulated for the implementation of this project was in two stages; building the capacity and confidents of the beneficiaries on sustainable means of farming, managing, harvesting and the processing of honey and its by-products rather than traditional method of no"=ecological benefit. During monitoring and evaluation stage to assess performance, it was revealed that eagerness of the beneficiaries to improve and sustain the initiative was paramount. However, they are still facing some limitations.

Keywords: Agribusiness, beekeeping, biodiversity, ecological friendly, technical-known-how

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Contact Address: Johnson Ogunjobi, Federal College of Wildlife Management, Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria, Fed Min of EnvironmentAwuru Rd, 234 New Bussa, Nigeria, e-mail: ogunjonson02gmail.com