Research Article
Assessments on Improved Beekeeping Technology in Selected Districts of Jimma and Ilu Abba Bora Zone, Southwestern Oromia
Hussein Abba Gissa,
Lemma Gutema*
,
Kumale Sadesso
Issue:
Volume 1, Issue 4, December 2026
Pages:
93-99
Received:
10 March 2026
Accepted:
8 August 2026
Published:
26 October 2026
Abstract: Beekeeping plays an important role in improving rural livelihoods through honey production, income generation, and employment creation. The use of improved beekeeping technologies can enhance honey productivity, improve product quality, reduce labor requirements, and increase the economic benefits obtained by beekeeping households. This study assessed the status and perceived benefits of improved beekeeping technologies in selected districts of Jimma and Ilu Abba Bora zones, Southwestern Oromia. A combination of household surveys, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and field observations was employed to generate both qualitative and quantitative data. Findings revealed that although improved beekeeping technologies, such as modern and transitional beehives, safety materials, and honey harvesting tools, were available, their utilization remains limited across the study districts. A considerable proportion of beekeepers still rely on traditional hives and locally made tools due to high initial costs, limited technical knowledge, inadequate extension support, and weak market linkages. Households that utilize improved technologies experienced higher honey yields, higher-quality honey, reduced labor requirements, and better income opportunities. However, challenges such as a lack of adequate training and limited access to improved technology continue to hinder wider uptake. The study concludes that improving the performance of the beekeeping sector requires coordinated interventions to strengthen agricultural extension services, expand access to affordable beekeeping equipment, provide practical and continuous training, and improve market linkages. These measures could promote the wider utilization of improved beekeeping technologies and contribute to increased honey productivity and improved livelihoods among beekeeping households in Southwestern Oromia.
Abstract: Beekeeping plays an important role in improving rural livelihoods through honey production, income generation, and employment creation. The use of improved beekeeping technologies can enhance honey productivity, improve product quality, reduce labor requirements, and increase the economic benefits obtained by beekeeping households. This study asses...
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Review Article
Hide and Skin Preservation in Ethiopia: Traditional Practices, Improved Techniques, Quality Challenges, and Future Prospects
Ediris Abdulkadir Meko*
Issue:
Volume 1, Issue 4, December 2026
Pages:
100-109
Received:
1 October 2026
Accepted:
12 October 2026
Published:
28 October 2026
Abstract: Hides and skins are important livestock by-products and the principal raw materials for Ethiopia’s leather and leather-products industries. Their value, however, depends not only on the number of animals slaughtered but also on how promptly and correctly the pelts are removed, preserved, stored and transported before tanning. Fresh hides and skins contain abundant water, nutrients and microorganisms; delays after slaughter can therefore lead to bacterial putrefaction, hair slip, grain damage, unpleasant odour and irreversible losses in leather strength and appearance. In Ethiopia, these risks are intensified by dispersed small-scale and household slaughter, limited access to suitable salt and drying facilities, long distances between rural producers and collection centres, variable technical knowledge, weak incentives for quality, and exposure to heat, dust, insects and rain. This review synthesizes preservation principles and techniques relevant to Ethiopian conditions, including immediate handling, wet salting, dry salting, air-drying, brine curing, chilling and freezing, and selected emerging approaches such as antimicrobial treatments and improved curing systems. It distinguishes preservation—which slows microbial and enzymatic deterioration—from defect prevention, grading and subsequent tannery processing. Evidence from Ethiopian studies indicates that post-slaughter putrefaction is one contributor to downgrading and rejection, although many defects originate before slaughter or during flaying and cannot be corrected by curing. The review proposes a context-sensitive preservation pathway: clean and rapid collection; species-appropriate curing; controlled drying or salting; raised, ventilated storage; pest exclusion; traceable grading; and prompt transport to processors. It also identifies research needs in locally feasible curing protocols, salt quality and reuse, low-cost drying structures, preservation costs, environmental impacts and incentives linked to raw-material quality. The central conclusion is that preservation should be treated as a coordinated value-chain service rather than an isolated task performed after slaughter.
Abstract: Hides and skins are important livestock by-products and the principal raw materials for Ethiopia’s leather and leather-products industries. Their value, however, depends not only on the number of animals slaughtered but also on how promptly and correctly the pelts are removed, preserved, stored and transported before tanning. Fresh hides and skins ...
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