A special programme has been developed to support beekeepers affected by the phenomenon of disappearing bee colonies, recently observed in some regions, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests announced Sunday.
Thus, the government is allocating an amount of 130 million dirhams (MDH) to take immediate measures through, in particular, the support of beekeepers for the reconstruction of infected hives by the distribution of new colonies of bees and the implementation of a national campaign to treat hives against the varroasis disease as well as awareness campaigns for the benefit of beekeepers, particularly with regard to good practices in beekeeping, the ministry said in a statement.
Indeed, a working session was held on Saturday in videoconference mode by the Head of Government and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests, accompanied by the Director General of the National Office of Food Safety (ONSSA) and the Central Director of production sectors to examine the causes of this phenomenon and the means to mitigate its effects on the beekeeping sector.
During this meeting, the Director General of ONSSA made a presentation on the urgent measures taken as well as the preliminary results of the research and analyses carried out by its regional veterinary services, in collaboration with the representatives of the Moroccan Interprofessional Federation of Beekeeping, which showed that this phenomenon is new and concerns certain beekeepers to varying degrees in certain regions of Morocco.
Also, laboratory investigations exclude the hypothesis that a bee disease is at the origin of this phenomenon, the press release notes.
The ONSSA has formed a multidisciplinary committee of experts to continue research and studies on this phenomenon, the statement said, noting that the Office is also deepening field investigations in collaboration with professionals in the sector in order to identify factors contributing to the development of this phenomenon.
The phenomenon known as “bee colony collapse disorder” has also been observed in countries in Europe, America and Africa.
The research attributes this to several factors, including low rainfall, reduced quantity and quality of food available to the bees, and the health of the apiaries and the prevention methods used, the statement concludes.
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