Albania’s First Bee House to Keep Pollinators Buzz Alive

TIRANA, May 22

The first Bee House in Albania was inaugurated on Monday by the premises of InfoKulla Mirdita with the support of Marianne Graf on the occasion of the World Bee Day. Beekeepers from Albania and Kosovo and veterinary professors gathered at InfoKulla to raise awareness on the importance of bees and insects, and youth education on this issue of concern.

The Bee House aims at organizing training and curses on beekeeping, increase youth participation, and support local beekeepers in the area in the quality production of honey and bee products.

Further on, the Bee House goal is to support small farmers and promote economic growth and encourage them to stay in Albania.
Worldwide, human activity is posing a serious threat to bees and other pollinators such as butterflies, bats, and hummingbirds.

The United Nations (UN) designated 20 May as World Bee Day. It coincides with the birthday of Anton Jansa, who in the 18th century pioneered modern beekeeping techniques in his native Slovenia and praised the bees for their ability to work so hard while needing so little attention.

In the meantime, the World Agriculture Organization called on countries to do more to protect bees as allies in the fight against hunger and malnutrition.
“Bees are greatly threatened by the combined effects of climate change, intensive farming, the use of pesticides, loss of biodiversity and pollution,” M. Jose Graziano da Silva, the Director General of the FAO, said on Monday.

Common pesticides, along with the industrial change, parasites, climate change, and loss of biodiversity are causing the decline of the bee population.
Albania is among the first EU nonmember countries that adopted and signed the EU ban on some bee-harming pesticides in 2018. Thus, the use of fenazaquin, bifenthrin, clothianidin, thiamethoxam, and imidacloprid was banned.
Read more: Albania to Ban Bee-Harming Pesticides

News Source/Photo Credit: Infokulla Mirdita