Honeybees play an essential economic role in the pollination of crops. Farmers were buying, storing, and use pesticides on cultivated plants with no or little consideration of the effect on honeybees. In Ethiopia, pesticide poisoning of honeybees has increased from time to time, and beekeepers also lose their colonies due to unwise use and improper practice of pesticides. Ethiopia has developed a legal framework on pesticide registration, distribution, and use. But regulations are not strictly implemented by the farmers, and it needs enforcement. Farmers use pesticides on crops with no or little consideration of their effect on honeybees, also the use of pesticides is harmful to pollination service, behavior, communication, forage resource, poisoning, and contaminated hive products. The Effective communication between beekeepers and crop growers is important because spraying pesticides is required to minimize the impact of pesticides on honeybees. The present review should focus on the effects of pesticide use and the means of reducing its impact on honeybee colonies.

This paper reviews the role and economic importance of the pollination service by honey bees (Apis mellifera) to agricultural crops and food security in the Ethiopian context. Honey bees provide pollination services that are crucial for sexual reproduction and improving the quality and quantity of many agricultural crops. From the significant 53 crops cultivated in Ethiopia, 33 (62.2%) of them are dependent on biological pollinators. Besides this, honey bees play a vital economic role, and their contribution to pollination service in agriculture crops is around 0.815 billion dollars in Ethiopia. Nevertheless, this contribution is unnoticed by Ethiopian farmers. Pollination by honey bee plays an essential role in human nutrition and supplies food security, income in households, and ecosystem services. Declines in insect pollinators, including honey bees across the world, have raised concerns about the supply of pollination services to agriculture, and it is because one-third of agriculture productions depend upon pollination, mainly by honey bees. Among the several factors responsible for the decline of honey bee colonies, improper pesticide application, and climate change are the elements and make them at risk. The potential adverse effects of pollinator declines include direct economic losses incurred by reduced crop yields as well as broader impacts on the agricultural activity because of lower productivity in the ecosystems. Through promoting and the use of honey bee pollination service as agricultural development packages, it is possible to improve honey bee production and crop yield in Ethiopia.

Honeybees play an essential economic role in the pollination of crops. Farmers were buying, storing, and use pesticides on cultivated plants with no or little consideration of the effect on honeybees. In Ethiopia, pesticide poisoning of honeybees has increased from time to time, and beekeepers also lose their colonies due to unwise use and improper practice of pesticides. Ethiopia has developed a legal framework on pesticide registration, distribution, and use. But regulations are not strictly implemented by the farmers, and it needs enforcement. Farmers use pesticides on crops with no or little consideration on the effect of honeybees, and the use of pesticides harmful to pollination service, behavior, communication, forage resource, poisoning, and contaminated hive products. Effective communication between beekeepers and crop growers while spraying is required to minimize the impact of pesticides on honeybees. Research should focus on the effects of pesticide use on honeybees and the means of reducing its impact.