Meet the Beekeepers

Martha is a mother of five from a small village in Northern Zambia. Like most parents in the area, she worked in the charcoal industry to earn money for her family. She couldn’t afford to provide her children with the education she wanted for them.

That all changed when she was invited by her village chief to work with Mama Buci. Since training as a beekeeper, Martha now manages 10 hives which produce over 180kg of delicious honey a year. Martha’s income has increased enough to enable her to send her children to school.

In 2015, Pearson was proudly elected by his neighbours to be a Mama Buci mentor, looking after all of the beekeeping families in his area. Pearson has five children and, like his neighbours, has lived well below the poverty line his entire life.

Through Pearson’s perseverance and admirable work ethic, his area has now grown to be the largest producing region, encompassing 300 beekeeping families and 15,000 beehives. The income has allowed this community to build new homes for their families, starting them on a path towards a better life.