Beekeeping with the Batwa Community in Uganda

Among the Batwa community, an indigenous tribe who once lived in the Bwindi and Mgahinga forests- a quiet transformation is taking place through beekeeping.

The Batwa of southwestern Uganda were evicted from their ancestral forest land in the early 1990s following the gazetting of Bwindi Impenetrable and Mgahinga Gorilla National parks. Since then, many have lived landless, economically vulnerable, and socially excluded.

But a growing number of Batwa households in villages like Rukeri and Nyakacence (Kisoro) and Murubindi and Karengyere (Rubanda) are finding a new purpose through the Bees for Batwa project.

Batwa beekeeper Nairobi Judith with her hives.

With support from Bees for Development (BfD), and The Uganda National Apiculture Development Organization (TUNADO), in collaboration with local partners like Bwindi Mgahinga Conservation Trust (BMCT) and local leaders, beekeeping is emerging as a pathway to self-reliance. Through hands-on trainings, Batwa youth and elders alike are learning how to weave and manage bamboo hives, harvest honey hygienically, and care for their bees sustainably.

Batwa hive making workshop

Forest apiary in Uganda

More Than Honey

Beekeeping offers more than just a source of income. It promotes environmental stewardship and builds practical skills that can be passed on for generations. For the Batwa, whose deep connection to nature is part of their heritage, this work resonates.

“We lived with bees and used to collect honey from tree trunks and anthills in the forest,” says Selutosi Stephen, a beekeeper in Rukeri village. “Now we have made our own hives, and we earn from them. This is new, but it feels like what we have always done.”

The women have embraced the opportunity, working alongside the men, there is a beehive of activities in the groups- beekeeping is reconnecting them with their roots. Kisoro Beekeepers Cooperative offers ready market for the hive products, the harvests keep getting better by the seasons thus rejuvenating the efforts of the members, their biggest target is tourism markets.

Facing the Stings

Despite the progress, challenges remain. The Batwa community own no land, they live in settlements; in exchange for farmland, they offer labour to the landlords, the level of exploitation is unimaginable. Signing of land use agreements and involvement of landlords in the beekeeping project is providing a levelled ground for all and earning the Batwa respect as trainers in hive weaving and beekeeping practices. Limited access to hive weaving materials; the forests in the vicinity have abundance of bamboo, reeds and sticks, there is however restricted access by the forest authorities, it is forbidden to be found anywhere close to the forest most especially in Kisoro district. In Rubanda, the batwa community has been fully integrated to the neighboring community, they are more accepted and can site their beehives in the forest. Protective gear, hive tools, and harvesting equipment are quite expensive for the batwa to afford, all these factors hold back production. And like all smallholder farmers, Batwa beekeepers are not immune to climate stressors that affect flowering cycles.

Yet, the determination is unwavering. Women like Nyirangano Jane, a leader in a small Batwa beekeeping group in Nyakacence, are now training others, advocating for recognition, and dreaming of expanding into value-addition to honey products like wine.

Forward Looking

The beekeepers believe in the potential in beekeeping, we do too. With continued investment in training, mindset change, skill development, and access to markets, Batwa honey can become more than a community product—it can be a symbol of inclusion, cultural resilience, and environmental harmony.

Visitors trekking through Mgahinga and Bwindi are already enjoying a taste of “Honey from the Heart of the Batwa Highlands” — soon we will have specialty honey with a limited edition, branded, not only sweet in flavor, but in the story it tells.

“These bees are part of our family,” says Kaara Wilber, a beekeeper in Murubindi. “They are small, but they are helping us build something big.”

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Participants in the Bees for Batwa project with their trainers.