Our Projects

Fish is the most important animal-source food in Bangladesh. Approximately 60 percent of the population eats fish at least every other day, with per capita daily consumption at 44 grams for the poorest households.  Fish is rich in micronutrients like vitamin A, iron, and zinc. Vitamin A is essential for childhood survival, zinc reduces stunting in children and iron is essential for brain development in children. Bangladesh has high incidence of micronutrient deficiency.

The Philippines has experienced a dramatic decline in fish stocks due to overfishing and habitat degradation while demand for fish and fish-based products has continued to rise. In partnership with the Philippines’ government, the Aquaculture Futures in the Philippines project explores the future of aquaculture development in the Philippines and finds ways to grow public and private investment in the sector while sustainably improving efficiency and productivity.

Zambia has a high rate of youth unemployment. There are also noticeable disparities between men and women in the labor force, especially a lack of women formally working in the fisheries sector who have received fisheries skills training. The current technical education, vocational and entrepreneurship training (TEVET) system faces several challenges, including developing skills that are relevant to the private sector.

Freshwater capture fisheries in the Lower Mekong Basin provide a majority of the animal-source protein in local diets, and support a large proportion of community livelihoods in the region. However, the contribution of fish to supporting community welfare and livelihoods has never been fully quantified. In the absence of a solid estimate of the total economic, nutritional and livelihood value of these fisheries, their importance has often been overlooked in development planning.

CREL aims to protect key ecosystems, wetlands and ecological critical areas in Bangladesh while improving their ability to withstand climate change shocks. The project is focused on improved management of natural resources and livelihoods diversification. In partnership with key government stakeholders, the project is finding solutions to environmental, socioeconomic, legal and policy issues that hamper the creation of a workable climate change mitigation strategy.

WorldFish and the Government of Bangladesh have come together to develop effective ‘bottom of the pyramid’ solutions for small-scale shrimp and prawn farmers to comply with the World Trade Organization’s agreement on the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures (WTO/SPS) and related Codex Alimentarius Commission and World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). The project aims to help small-scale shrimp and prawn farmers work collaboratively and scale up their collective participation in export market value chains.

The objective of this project is to design a cost-effective, scientifically researched and participatory “incentive-based” hilsa fishery management mechanism for Myanmar. The project will employ the ecosystem-based approach (EbA) in its information gathering, analysis, and decision-making and management objectives.

Outcomes:

Extreme poverty and food insecurity are stark facts in the lives for many people living in rural Timor–Leste. This project aims to improve nutrition security and increase incomes for approximately 1500 farming households in six rural districts of Timor-Leste by promoting freshwater aquaculture. Additionally, the project aims to increase awareness about good nutritional practices and the importance of fish and other nutritious foods such as orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, leafy greens and legumes.

The goal of this project is to develop and apply new applied aquaculture research technologies, in order to support bighead catfish (BC) culture in Cambodia.

More than half of the land base in many regions, including Southeast Asia, is constrained by poor soil quality, and 12 million additional hectares of land are degraded annually, where 20 million tons of grain could have been grown instead. The project promotes the use sustainable land management (SLM) practices that help close yield gaps and enhance the resilience of land resources and communities that depend on them while avoiding further degradation.

WorldFish, USAID and the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) have come together to support the country’s coastal fishing communities and improve food security through research-led fisheries management initiatives. The project seeks to strengthen the ability of local communities, especially women, to extract maximum benefit from coastal environments using sustainable best practices and to mitigate the adverse affects of climate change. It will work closely with small-scale artisanal catch fisheries that target hilsa shad, the national fish of Bangladesh.

Poverty, vulnerability and inequality persist in many sectors of Pacific Island society. Women, men and youth often have limited opportunities to improve wellbeing outside of natural resource exploitation and, in many cases, current livelihoods do not offer a pathway out of poverty and food insecurity. This project implements a participatory livelihoods enhancement approach with community groups in Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste, where visions and enhancement pathways are co-developed into action plans. These plans are then implemented and refined through cycles of action and reflection.

A new, improved strain of tilapia could have enormous benefits for India’s poor, boosting yields, increasing nutritional benefits and opening aquaculture to more people. Genetically Improved Farmed Tilapia (GIFT) could address the twin problems Indian producers face with current strains by improving the quality of the broodstock and increasing efficiencies. The project, in partnership with Rajiv Gandhi Center for Aquaculture, involves the establishment of a nucleus for the selective breeding and genetic improvement of the GIFT tilapia in India.

The Feed the Future Bangladesh Aquaculture and Nutrition Activity’s the goal is to achieve inclusive aquaculture sector growth through a market system approach in the Feed the Future Zone of Influence (ZOI)

The Scaling up Aquaculture Production (SAP) project supports the development of the aquaculture sector in Sierra Leone to increase fish production, consumption and the incomes of small-scale farmers. Led by WorldFish, the project focuses on Tonkolili district, one of the poorest and nutritionally-insecure regions in the country, with a 25 percent childhood stunting rate. A key project focus is on supporting smallholders to farm fish as part of profit-oriented agribusinesses, in parallel with improving input supply and market linkages.

Capture fisheries are declining in Myanmar, yet 60% of their animal sourced food is fish. To meet the growing demand for fish, aquaculture production is increasing. It is essential that Myanmar develops a sustainable aquaculture industry that minimizes potential environmental impacts and ensures aquaculture practices are socially acceptable and economically sound.

Timor-Leste ranks amongst the world’s poorest countries and faces multiple challenges in feeding its people and developing its economy. The fisheries and aquaculture sectors currently fall well short of their potential to contribute to improving livelihoods and food security. There is significant potential to improve food security through the promotion of sustainable marine resource use. This project aims to improve food and nutrition security, productivity and resilience of fisheries systems and community livelihoods in coastal areas of Timor-Leste.

The African Union Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa prioritizes fish trade and aims to promote responsible and equitable fish trade. In response, this European Union-funded project supports the development of intra-regional fish trade in Africa by conducting research and generating data that informs crucial policy decisions.

This project aims to improve food and nutrition security, incomes and health for the poorest households in Zambia’s Northern Province, with a particular focus on women. Through the generation of evidence, the project seeks to identify agricultural technologies and livelihood-enhancing solutions that can create economic growth and greater food productivity. It will also focus on utilizing newly developed biofortified food crops, fish and forest foods to improve nutrition.

Hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha) is an valuable resource for millions of people in the Bay of Bengal, but its breeding and migratory habits remain largely unknown. Identifying the breeding sites and main inland migration routes of hilsa is important for management and the sustainability of the resource. The project fills a knowledge gap about hilsa and undertakes the identification of the main spawning grounds in the Ayeyarwady Delta and determines the extent of its migration along the Ayeyarwady River.

Egypt has a well-established aquaculture industry that has the potential to have a greater impact on the country’s persistently high unemployment and endemic poverty rates through greater efficiencies and productivity. Aquaculture in Egypt now provides more than 100,000 full or part‐time jobs along the value chain and supports the livelihoods of up to one million people.

The Improving Food Security and Livelihoods of Poor Farming Households (IFSL) project aims to assist 180,000 smallholder farmers in Bangladesh by improving access to appropriate technical advice and affordable inputs as well as business and marketing support. The project builds on the proven concept of Local Service Providers (LSPs). LSPs are lead farmers who live in communities close to farmers and are selected by target communities and other stakeholders to become their advisors and provide marketing support.

This project aims to use selective breeding to make improved fish strains, which are faster growing and more productive than other local strains, more accessible to poor people. The project focuses on Bangladesh, Egypt, Kenya and Mozambique, where small-scale aquaculture is important for rural livelihoods and fish is an important source of protein and nutrition.

The goal of this project is to ensure the environmental sustainability of Indonesia’s aquaculture development while increasing production yet recognizing both socioeconomic and climate change factors.

Method

Malnutrition levels in Bangladesh are among the highest in the world. Dietary intake of both adults and children are severely deficient in key micronutrients. This project aims to increase household income in poor, rural households in Bangladesh, and improve nutrition, especially in women and children, through increased intake of nutrient-rich small fish. The project promotes innovative new technologies designed to increase the production of small nutrient-rich fish species in two separate and environmentally distinct agricultural areas.

The seas between Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands constitute some of the most biologically diverse waters in the world. However, the area’s ecosystems, especially the Sulu-Sulawesi Marine Ecoregion (SSME), are under intense pressure from overfishing, population pressure and pollution. The Coastal and Marine Resources Management in the Coral Triangle project seeks to develop a monitoring, control and surveillance system for coral reef fish to protect them from overfishing and illegal reef fishing.

Small-scale and commercial aquaculture is growing in Bangladesh and has tremendous potential to increase both food security and incomes. This project focuses on implementing market development interventions for the farmed fish sector in Bangladesh by targeting improvements in fish feed production. The project aims to build capacity in commercial feed companies, focusing on product quality, formulation and improvements to process management as well as machine operation, alternative energy sources, alternative raw materials, software operation, and improvements in the supply chain.

The Mobile Solutions Technical Assistance and Research (mSTAR) project, funded by USAID and implemented by FHI 360, aims to increase peoples’ knowledge on mobile technology among the poor, civil society, local government institutions and private-sector stakeholders. Through a grant provided by mSTAR, the USAID Aquaculture for Income and Nutrition (AIN) project is piloting the use of mobile financial services in southwest Bangladesh.

In the ‘low income, food deficit’ countries of India, Bangladesh and Malawi, aquaculture is a key source of food and income for resource-poor people in rural and urban areas. Yet growth of the small-scale aquaculture sector is limited by fish disease. This project brings together farmers, aquatic health professionals, researchers and national authorities to combat this problem, by developing and applying modern molecular methods for use as early warning tools.

There are more than four million small household ponds in Bangladesh that have the potential to be significant sources of food and income for local farmers, especially women. This ecologically-focused project aims to increase household access to fish for nutrition and income by diversifying ecosystems in shaded household ponds. It works with 60 women who act as researchers utilizing their household ponds.

In Timor-Leste, the government is committed to developing aquaculture to improve the country’s food and nutrition security while enhancing income opportunities for coastal and inland farming communities. This project aims to scale up production of genetically improved farmed tilapia (GIFT) to support progress toward the National Aquaculture Development Strategy (2012-2030). The strategy targets increased farmed fish production of 12,000 tons per year by 2030, leading to a rise in annual fish consumption to 15 kg per person.

Through this partnership with the Government of Odisha in India, WorldFish provides support to increase the productivity of aquaculture through improvements in seed, technology and farming systems. A long-term goal is to foster a sustainable aquaculture sector in which the private sector will be more willing to invest. The partnership will also focus on improving the value chain for aquaculture products to improve nutrition security in Odisha state, where over 25% of children under five in rural areas are malnourished.

The European Union is the world’s largest importer of seafood products, mainly from Asia. The growth of aquaculture in Asia has been remarkable, but it also raises environmental concerns and poses serious challenges in terms of sustainability, social equity and suitable technologies. To establish sustainable aquaculture practices that improve resource efficiency and reduce environmental impact, the project will establish standards for aquaculture site planning, animal health, food product safety and farm governance.

Food systems in Myanmar have the potential to be highly productive and support the demands of a growing population. This project aims to promote agricultural productivity and nutrition and to enhance livelihoods through an improved policy environment. New policies that enhance agricultural productivity and efficiency in Myanmar are hampered by a lack of research into the country’s food system.

Global fisheries are under stress from overfishing, pollution, poor resource mangement and the effects from climate change. Hundreds of millions of the world’s most vulnerable people rely on these dwindling resources for their food and nutrition security and livelihoods. Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (UK), the project aims to build a body of research that can capture the human dimensions of the global fisheries crisis. The project focuses on four highly fish-dependent countries: Fiji, Ghana, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.

The goal of the proposed project is to improve food and nutrition security in the Indian state of Odisha. The project will lead to the introduction of nutrition-sensitive production technologies for nutrient-rich fish and vegetables in select districts of Odisha as well as increased production of fresh, high quality small fish and dried fish to make fish-based products for consumption in the first 1000 days of life.

Objectives

Global demand for seafood continues to rise, driven by population growth, higher incomes, urbanization and increasing preference for seafood protein. As capture fisheries production has reached its limits, the growth of aquaculture is critical for meeting increasing demand for fish. One of the bottlenecks constraining sustainable aquaculture development is the lack of improved strains of fish.

Fish is the most important animal-source food in the diets of Sierra Leoneans, with fish providing about 80% of animal protein intake. Yet the country, which ranked 181 out of 188 countries in the 2014 Human Development Index, suffers from food insecurity and malnutrition, with 22% of the population undernourished. This project scales up appropriate intervention strategies—identified during the project’s initial 15-month pilot research—to boost aquaculture production in Tonkolili district, one of the poorest and nutrition-insecure regions in the country, with a 25% childhood stunting rate.

The Strengthening Aquatic Resource Governance (STARGO) project aims to build resilient livelihoods among poor rural producers who depend on the highly contested natural resources in Lake Victoria, Lake Kariba, and Tonle Sap/ Lower Mekong ecoregions. The intent is to improve nutrition, income, welfare and human security, while also reducing the likelihood of broader social conflict.

During the first 1,000 days of life, from pregnancy to a child’s second birthday, children are most vulnerable to the effects of undernutrition and disease. Suchana aims to reduce undernutrition and stunting in children in Bangladesh, by targeting children under two and women of reproductive age (15-45 years) from 250,000 poor households in Sylhet and Moulvibazar. The project has an integrated approach, adopting a range of market-based, gender-sensitive and nutrition-sensitive activities.

Approximately 26% of Egyptians are resource-poor and suffer from a series of nutritional challenges, including high rates of childhood stunting, and vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The Sustainable Transformation of Egypt’s Aquaculture Market System (STREAMS) project aims to increase production of inexpensive, nutritious and safe fish from sustainable aquaculture systems to help improve the health and nutrition of Egypt’s resource-poor while creating employment and increasing incomes along the aquaculture value chain.

The US-APEC Technical Assistance to Advance Regional Integration (US-ATAARI) project aims to help the APEC Secretariat and APEC member economies eligible for foreign assistance to advance economic integration and achieve the Bogor Goals of free and open trade and investment. The project will support APEC’s ongoing work in trade and investment liberalization, business facilitation, and economic and technical cooperation, as well as activities that accord with U.S. foreign policy priorities and will build APEC's institutional capacity for strategic planning and support its work program.