Margaret Wanjiku has spent years in community development, engaging farmers to improve their practices and equipping them with the knowledge and tools needed to increase harvests and enhance sustainability.
During Wanjiku’s visits, she was shocked to learn that many bee-keepers lacked the technology to monitor and protect their colonies.
Poor hive management meant inadequate pollination, leading to low yields. Determined to end this, Wanjiku founded Pollen Patrollers, an all-women-led start-up that supports smallholder farmers and bee-keepers.
Using cutting-edge technology, they improve bee-keeping practices by using IoT-powered devices to monitor important hive conditions like temperature, humidity, sound, foraging and queen health.
Through AI and machine learning, data is analysed to provide insights that help bee-keepers maintain healthy colonies and make farmers optimise crop pollination.
“Our patented technology addresses bee colony collapse by offering real-time hive data that helps reduce losses and improves bee health,” she says.
Colony collapse disorder is alarming. According to the United Nations, around 40 per cent of bee colonies collapse every year, with rates on the continent hitting 60 per cent.
Colony collapse is an environmental concern, as bees are crucial pollinators for a large portion of the world’s crops.
“Technology to maintain healthy colonies is limited. This deprives small-scale farmers of vital pollinators, exacerbating food and nutrition insecurity,” Wanjiku says.
Pollen Patrollers’ smart hives integrate IoT, sensors and big data, equipping farmers with the tools needed to keep their colonies safe and productive.
A smart hive, integrated with IoT technology, sensors and big data.
Photo credit: Pool
“Data is transmitted to our developers at the Kenyatta University Innovation Centre, where it is processed and analysed before being relayed back to the bee-keeper,” she says.
For small-scale farmers, the organisation also provides bees for pollination.
Pollen Patrollers supplies bees to farmers and leverages AI-driven precision pollination at Sh1,290 per acre. The technology maps farmlands, ensuring comprehensive pollination coverage to maximise harvests.
With cutting-edge dashboards and low-cost sensors, the system offers an easy set-up and seamless operation, benefiting bee-keepers and farmers by enhancing pollinator health.
“We train women from non-technical backgrounds on the installation and set-up of the devices. These women are then integrated as field agents, earning commissions based on successful installations,” she says.
The IoT devices are leased at Sh258 per month. Wanjiku says this approach has enhanced accessibility of the smart hive and precision pollination devices to farmers.
Pollen Patrollers works with more than 5,000 farmers in Kitui, Kajiado, Machakos, Makueni and Kiambu counties.
Precision pollination improves crop yields and quality. Proper pollination enhances the size, shape, colour and nutritional value of fruits and vegetables while promoting more uniform and simultaneous ripening, which is essential for commercial agriculture.
“Bee-keepers using our smart hive devices have experienced a 33 per cent increase in revenue, attributed to higher honey production and renting out their bees to small-scale farmers during pollination periods,” she says.
Pollen Patrollers is also in partnership with associations like Yatta Bee-keepers, Savannah Honey and Lenana Bee-keepers, as well as farmer co-op societies, agricultural organisations and government agencies.
Starting Pollen Patrollers came with challenges. Wanjiku says building IoT-enabled hives required specialised expertise and components. Bee-keepers and farmers were not familiar with tech-driven solutions.
“These digital tools have the potential to transform bee-keeping into a more profitable, sustainable and climate-resilient industry,” she says.
