Conrad Berube's video: 2010 bees for babar progress report part 1

Visit http://www3.telus.net/conrad/htmghana/bees_for_babar.htm to learn more about "bees for babar" or search youtube for my videos by my user name: "ebutoooy" BfB provides rotary credit to villagers to install hives around subsistence farms near the Mole wildlife reserve in Ghana. When elephants attempt to raid crops they will upset trip-wired hives. The bees will drive off the elephants preserving both the crops and the elephants (who might otherwise be poached by enraged farmers). Partial script of this video: Mr. Ben Anomah, is Program Director for the Food Security Program of Opportunities Industrialization Centres International OIC (which is a Bees for Babar partner) in the Northern Region (of Ghana). "I am the program manager for Opportunities Industrialization Centres International Food Security Program in the Northern Region (of Ghana). The program, the (Bees for) Babar program is one that Mr. Bérubé was involved in—got us in discussion based on the number of times that he had visited our program and worked with us. For this program at Damango-- Larabanga area in the game reserve-- one thing we noticed that the farmers there, every time that they farm a crop elephants come in and then they stomp on the crop and they destroy it and so farmers were complaining all the time. It's not easy to— there's no other way of driving this animal because it's even forbidden for you to disturb them. But we should find other environmentally acceptable methods that could let these animals, these elephants, to move away from the crop sites. The honey that will be harvested will be used as a source of income for women's groups and then also the farmers will be able to harvest their maize (corn) crop and then it will contribute to reducing food insecurity in households—which is the main focus of this program here—we want to reduce food insecurity in households and this program definitely is going to help in that direction. We very much appreciate it. We have actually given a focal person as Mr. Ibrahim Ali, he is working closely with Mr. Bérubé on that. And so I can say that he is the person directly working with the groups on that. So again I want to thank those who have thought well about us—I would say that their contribution is not in vain—it is going to help poor people, vulnerable people women and children and of course it will increase livelihood possibilities in the area. We will continue to give our support whenever we can—we appreciate everything you are doing." Mr. Mohammed Ali Ibrahim is the Beekeeping Specialist for OIC Ghana and a co-director of Bees for Babar in Ghana. "The idea is so brilliant to us because it is not only just giving money to people like development work, it is something that is targeted in moving the people, supporting them in business so as to help them develop their minds so that everything they do should be geared towards increasing money in their pockets, should gear towards increasing their annual income levels by which they can handle their basic needs as parents, their basic needs as social contributors in moving it forward. Bees for Babar has come to stay as the result of Conrad Bérubé in interaction with OIC International when he came as a Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer. We, however, worked with the Mole National Game Reserve whereby every particular year the increasing number of the elephants normally would cause crop raiding thereby making them (the villagers) more vulnerable and the state, or the government, is not compensating them in any way so when Conrad came in direct contact with this he felt, even though he was not a Ghanaian but he felt that there was that kind of a need for them to reach out and at OIC we also saw this as a way by which we can help the women growers there so that they can add value to the very little that is left from income levels to eat so that they can equally move Ghana forward in success and achievement so long as income generating is concerned. And in that, when we saw that now that Conrad is a very wonderful beekeeper who has gotten that kind of passion, love for the profession so he said 'No, there is a very possible way by which we can incorporate beekeeping along the farm boundaries, around the communities' farms'-- so that in an event that when the elephants will come-- so that they can trample over the apiaries-- and then the bees can really maybe react. Because when we conducted a survey in and around the Mole National Park we saw that every single known apiary in a tree there was that, kind of, less movement of elephants towards there. Somewhere not less than two kilometers to that— so we saw that, no, if that (beekeeping) is going to be in position we then combine beekeeping alongside preventing animal crop raiding from the elephants.