Searching for Bees: An Apiculture Assignment in Haiti

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Back in February 2017, longtime Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteer Robert Sterk returned to Haiti to lead various beekeeping seminars in and around Port-au-Prince.  During this apiculture-oriented assignment, Mr. Sterk also worked alongside SAKALA, an F2F host, to establish community apiaries where local farmers and youth groups could be trained on various beehive management methods and techniques. Given the impact of the first assignment had on these communities, he decided to return to once more to Haiti in July 2017 in order to build on the progress that had been made.  

Upon arriving in Port-au-Prince, Mr. Sterk prepared and led a series of beekeeping workshops with SAKALA associated farmers. These included a series of hands-on trainings related to 1) bee biology, 2) colony health inspections, 2) varroa mite testing with sugar roll, as well as 3) treatment strategies. He also had the opportunity to travel to several communities outside the capital. In the community of Kenscoff, for instance, Mr. Sterk conducted some hive evaluations (e.g. TBHs, & Langstroth hives) at the local Wyann farm. He also had the chance to go to Mirogoáne, in the NIppes Department,  and visit one of the largest beekeeping farmsin Haiti.


During all these field visits, Mr. Sterk was able to distribute countless copies of the Simple Guide to Caribbean Beekeeping which was recently translated into Haitian Creole. For many Haitian farmers, this guidebook has become a valuable resource for establishing and managing small-scale apiaries. At the end of his assignment, Mr. Sterk presented SAKALA with a diverse array of recommendations to improve the apiculture systems of the organizations and its associated farmers. These suggestions included, 1) changing the lids and removing frames on the top bar hives, 2) performing bi-monthly sugar roll test for varroa mites, as well as 3) setting up swarm traps (with swarm lures) to find wild, endemic bees.


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