Researches show that the population of bee colonies are declining enormously. The price of a bee colony overpassed ETB2000 (USD38). So far, the programme secured 80,224 bee colonies, but continues to address the challenges by establishing bee colony multiplication centers. This happened on 8 December 2022, when the programme inaugurated well established Colony Multiplication Center in Wenago district and handed it over to the youth beekeepers’ enterprise.

The center inauguration was convened ahead of the regional learning summit held in Dilla town, SNNP region in the presence of representatives of key stakeholders in the regional government, private sector and financial institutions.

The center is serving as a technology dissemination point and an alternative source of income for beekeepers and contributes to the entire sector’s development. Youth beekeepers who owned the center are committed to multiplying a significant number of colonies within a few months. This will help them to maintain their stocks and boost production. In addition, they also planned to sell colonies and generate income.