In order to overcome the economic and social malaise experienced in some developing countries, many people are looking to the private sector and the growth of small-scale enterprises as a way to salvation.

Bees are familiar insects to most people and it is likely that people have hunted and robbed their wild nests since the beginning of his existence. Cave paintings, drawn around 8,000 years ago are early proof of this activity.

Honey bees are social insects and live in a colony consisting of one queen, a few hundred males (drones) and, in a strong, healthy colony, up to 80,000 workers.

Bees have produced honey long before humans appeared on the Earth and continue to do so with or without human help or interference. The wild bee colonies that are diseased or weak tend to die out and the strong healthy ones remain by a process of natural selection.

The top-bar hive is a relatively cheap and simple hive that allows beekeepers in the tropics to manage their bees in a more efficient way than with the traditional fixedcomb hives. As the name suggests, bees build their comb from the top bar not from the ceiling of the hive as in traditional fixed-comb hives or within wooden rectangles as in a frame hive.

Any prepared hive must be clean - no dirt, spiders, cobwebs or insects that might capture a scout bee and prevent it returning to fetch the swarm.

The purpose here is not to set out one hive as the single answer to all the aspirations of the potential beekeeper but rather to take an unbiased look at the different improvements that have been tried. Thus, enabling the individual to make a reasoned choice on the type that best suits his or her needs, skills, location and materials available.

The beekeeper should be protected from bee stings, although in a warm climate this can present problems and make work in the apiary very hot.

Probably the two most important factors in the production of honey are: The bees; The beekeeper.

New pure beeswax is white in colour but the presence of pollen, propolis and impurities cause it to become yellow and it darkens even more with age.

Honey and beeswax have been the main harvest from beekeeping and remain the mainstay of the activity. However, there are other hive products which can provide an income.