May 20, 2022
The humble Bumblebee and all its cousins - some 20,000 different bee species - are in dire need of protection. The plight of the bee and other wild pollinators has been recognized by the United Nations as an area on which to focus the eyes of the world. The Climate Investment Funds has been taking action…
Why we need bees
Habitat loss, increased urbanization and wide-spread pesticide use all contribute to the dramatic declines of global bee populations. As just one example from Greenpeace, among crops that require bee pollination, the number of bee colonies per hectare has declined by 90% in the USA since 1962.
Another, an arguably more troubling cause is due to climate change and its associated effects, particularly increased temperatures.
70% of all crops and 90% of all flowering plants are estimated to be pollinated by wild pollinators. Moreover, bees are not called busy for nothing. The US Dept of Agriculture values the American Honeybee alone to be worth $14 billion annually to its economy. The significant contribution of all bees to worldwide health and wealth cannot be underestimated.
May 20th is World Bee Day
In 2017, the United Nations designated this date to celebrate bees and other wild pollinators. Now in its fifth year, World Bee Day’s purpose is to acknowledge the importance of bees within the ecosystem – to recognise that our survival and that of bees are intrinsically linked.
This year’s theme, “Bee Engaged: Celebrating the diversity of bees and beekeeping systems” focusses attention on the threats to bee species as well as the importance of bee-derived products. This is an area that the Climate Investment Funds has been exploring…
The Bees of Burkina Faso
In Burkina Faso where 48% of the country is under forest cover, beekeeping is a traditional livelihood. However, the practice of lighting fires to smoke bee colonies out of trees has caused widespread forest fires and land degradation. Forest protection and management are a focus of the Climate Investment Funds’ Forest Investment Program in the country’s Oualou forest. Here, investments to upgrade beekeeping equipment and practices has led to improved honey yields, with reports of a 533% increase by some beekeepers, and a dramatic fall in forest fires – by as much as 100% in some areas.
Human activities present a considerable threat to bees; science is under pressure to find ways to mitigate their negative effects. Undoubtedly, it’s urgent interventions like those in Burkina Faso that could help to build a better future for bees – which means a better future for us too.
