Yogyakarta Mayor Appreciates Muhammadiyah's Urban Beekeeping Initiative

Yogyakarta Mayor Hasto Wardoyo has praised a honey bee cultivation project developed by the Putra Muhammadiyah Orphanage on Thursday (30/7). According to him, beekeeping in urban areas is one way to preserve the ecosystem whilst also supporting community economic activity.

During a visit to the site on Thursday, 30 July, Hasto assessed that honey bee cultivation is one effort to maintain the environmental ecosystem amid rapid urban development. He noted that the activity also carries economic value.

“Development must be pro-environment, so an effort to compensate for the pollution present in the city is to create an environment where an ecosystem can still be cultivated. Here it is bee cultivation, which is far from easy compared to creating other ecosystems,” said Hasto Wardoyo, Mayor of Yogyakarta.

The head of the Putra Muhammadiyah Orphanage stated that honey bee cultivation was developed as part of efforts to build the institution’s self-reliance. The programme also serves as an entrepreneurship learning platform for the students.

“We do not rely on or depend on donations from donors. That is why we want to be self-reliant, and this is our first Muhammadiyah-owned business venture: Madu Surya Asyifa,” said Tri Haryanto, head of the Putra Muhammadiyah Orphanage in Yogyakarta.

The orphanage’s management plans to develop honey bee cultivation through cooperation with beekeepers in Pati Regency. The programme will involve the students in the production process through to honey management.