Impact of IPARD Support on Beekeeping Performance: The Case of Van of Province, Türkiye

Abstract

This article examines the structural, productive, and managerial changes in beekeeping enterprises that have benefited by the European Union's Instrument for Pre- Accession Assistance in Rural Development. The research was conducted using data obtained from 72 beekeeping businesses operating in Van province and receiving Instrument for Pre- Accession Assistance in Rural Development support, and the production capacity, productivity and management indicators of the businesses were compared in the pre-support and post-support periods. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the McNemar test were performed using SPSS 25.0 software in the analysis of the data. Analysis results showed that the number of hives, honey yield per hive, and total honey production increased statistically significantly in the post-support period compared to the pre-support period (P < 0.001). The effect size coefficients calculated for these statistically significant variables revealed that the observed differences are also practically important. While the increase in the number of employees was statistically significant, it remained at a lower level compared to other indicators (P < 0.01). Furthermore, the production of secondary bee products, the adoption of quality control practices, and the rate of hive insurance increased significantly in the post-support period (P < 0.001). Although the impact on marketing activities was limited, Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance in Rural Development support substantially enhanced production performance and technical capacity. In conclusion, the study findings demonstrate that Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance in Rural Development is an effective tool for promoting sustainable development and provides valuable information for the formulation of future rural support policies.