Innovations in Uzbek Beekeeping: The Digital Beekeeping Encyclopedia

The advent of digital technologies has ushered in a new era for apiculture, offering beekeepers a wealth of benefits and opportunities. While digital tools are still in the process of refinement and adaptation to various geographical contexts, they hold enormous promise. However, in Central Asia, despite increased mobile and internet coverage, the full potential of these digital tools remains largely untapped due to a lack of awareness among beekeepers, agronomists, foresters, and other stakeholders.

FAO is at the forefront of advancing innovative solutions in apiculture. A prime illustration of this commitment is the "Apicultural Geospatial Information Exchange System" developed in Uzbekistan and the planned expansion of similar tools in other countries.

The "Beekeeping Encyclopedia" is a testament to this innovation, emerging from the FAO project "Support to Sustainable Apiculture Development" in Uzbekistan (2019–2021). 

This mobile app delivers vital educational and statistical resources for apiculture in real-time. For instance, it offers guidance for optimal bee farm arrangement by displaying the locations of other bee colonies on a dedicated map. Additionally, the app issues early pesticide warnings, safeguarding honey bee populations.

This Beekeeping Encyclopedia in Uzbek language, coupled with its mobile app, addresses critical challenges:

• Scarcity of beekeeping information in Uzbek.
• Uneven distribution of apiaries across Uzbekistan.
• Honey bee losses attributed to unregulated pesticide use.
• Absence of beekeeping literature in Uzbek.
• Knowledge gaps among beekeepers, particularly in disease management.

Access this invaluable resource online via our website at www.arizor.uz or through the Android Play Store at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arizoruz.beekeeping_system.

• Beekeepers Associations.
• Individual Beekeepers.
• Government.

• Digitalization of Handwritten Data: Transformation of hand-written data by beekeeping associations.
• Comprehensive Data: Provides clear insights into the beekeeping industry, including the number of beekeepers, honey production, and more.
• Real-time Pesticide Alerts: Offers timely alerts to beekeepers about pesticide usage.
• Offline Access: Accessible even without an internet connection, ensuring beekeepers can find solutions to their challenges at any time.