Los retos de política pública ante la expansión de la meliponicultura como actividad promisoria en Colombia

  Meliponiculture, defined as the rearing of stingless bees (tribe Meliponini) for productive, recreational, and ecosystem service purposes, has a long cultural tradition in Colombia. Evidence of its historical importance dates back to pre-Columbian times, when the wax of these bees was used in the lost-wax casting technique. However, after the introduction of Apis mellifera during the colonial period, this practice was progressively displaced and survived mainly as a small-scale activity maintained through traditional knowledge in rural communities until the late twentieth century. In recent decades, the recognition of the role of bees in pollination, the renewed value of traditional products, and the growth of nature-based tourism have driven a rapid expansion of meliponiculture in Latin America. Colombia, with nearly 130 recorded species of Meliponini, has a significant biological advantage for the development of this activity. An exploratory study conducted by the Alexander von Humboldt Institute in 2020 reported at least 4,823 colonies managed by meliponiculturists, almost half of which were established between 2015 and 2020, reflecting the rapid growth of the sector. Despite this expansion, meliponiculture operates within an incipient and fragmented public policy framework. Because stingless bees are native fauna, the activity is regulated by the environmental sector through zooculture licensing requirements, while it is simultaneously included in the productive chain of beekeeping under the agricultural sector. Limited institutional coordination and complex regulatory requirements have resulted in much of the activity being carried out outside the legal framework, encouraging risky practices such as the translocation of colonies beyond their natural distribution or the extraction of wild colonies. This situation highlights the need for coherent public policies capable of consolidating a sector that integrates biodiversity conservation with sustainable rural development.