Kinshasa recently buzzed as the centre of a growing conversation on how honey production can power climate resilience, youth enterprise and green growth.
The shift commenced when the Democratic Republic of Congo hosted its inaugural National Beekeeping Forum to coincide with World Bee Day 2026.
At Cercle Elaïs, a conference venue in Kinshasa, the National Export Promotion Agency, ANAPEX, in partnership with Green Community Mind (GRECOM), hosted the first National Beekeeping Forum under the theme: "Beekeeping: an opportunity for commercial diversification and a lever for socio-economic and ecological development in the DRC." The forum convened public institutions, entrepreneurs, cooperatives, producers, technical partners and private sector actors. They explored how to transform the country's honey industry from fragmented production into an organised, competitive and export-ready value chain.
For GRECOM, a youth-led enterprise based in Kinshasa and supported by the African Development Bank Group through the YouthADAPT programme, the event demonstrated the impact of investing in young climate innovators.
Through its beekeeping initiatives, GRECOM empowers producers to optimise honey yields, expand access markets and adopt climate-resilient technologies.
GRECOM's Nyuki Tech, a digital AI-driven beekeeping platform, enabling beekeepers to optimise production, monitor apiary performance, and access market opportunities. The enterprise has reported a 10 percent increase in production through the platform. Simultaneously, its Apicard initiative, which is a product identification and visibility tool improves traceability, product recognition, and market access. Furthermore, the adoption of solar energy reduced power costs by 60% across processing, transformation, and packaging of beekeeping products, including modern manufacture of beehives.
By working directly with frontline beekeeping communities from the bottom up, GRECOM transforms a largely informal livelihood into a more structured and formalised economic opportunity. Its model supports job creation by strengthening the role of youth and local producers in the honey value chain. It also advances export potential by improving product visibility, quality, and market readiness. Finally, the enterprise builds community resilience by diversifying incomes, promoting biodiversity-friendly livelihoods, and supporting climate adaptation.
"This forum is a call to action," said Mike Tambwe Lubemba, Director General of ANAPEX. "Congolese honey is rich, diverse and full of promise. Our task now is to organise the sector, improve quality, and ensure that our products can reach markets beyond our borders."
For Deborah Nzarubara, Director General of GRECOM, the forum affirmed the immense potential of youth-led enterprise to transform local value chains. "Beekeeping is not only about honey," she said. "It is about jobs for young people, income for communities, biodiversity protection and a new way of building resilience from the ground up."
The event also showcased products from beekeepers across Kivu, Equateur, Kongo Central and the Bateke Plateau, highlighting organic honey, honey wine and other value-added products.
Charlotte Eyong, Regional Principal Climate Change and Green Growth Officer for Central Africa at the African Development Bank Group, underscored the importance of investing in youth-led adaptation businesses. "GRECOM shows that climate adaptation can be practical, investable and rooted in local enterprise," she said. "Through YouthADAPT, the Bank is supporting young entrepreneurs who are creating jobs, strengthening value chains and helping communities build resilience."
YouthADAPT, implemented under the Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program, has invested USD 5.4 million in 41 youth-owned enterprises across 20 African countries, creating nearly 10,700 jobs. GRECOM was supported under the program's third cycle, which was funded by the Bank's Africa Climate Change Fund. This partnership demonstrates how targeted climate finance empowers youth-owned enterprises scale locally driven adaptation solutions.
In Kinshasa, GRECOM's message resonated clearly. With targeted investments, bees do far more than produce honey. They anchor livelihoods, restore ecosystems and unlock sustainable markets for a greener future.
