Funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish (Fish Innovation Lab) aims to reduce poverty and improve nutrition, food security, and livelihoods in developing countries by supporting the sustainable development of aquaculture and fisheries.
To achieve these goals, the Fish Innovation Lab supports research and capacity-building activities targeting three program areas:
- Improve productivity of aquaculture and fisheries
- Reduce and mitigate risks to aquaculture and fisheries
- Improve human outcomes from the aquaculture and fisheries sector
To enhance the development impact of Fish Innovation Lab research in our three program areas, we also expect incorporation of essential cross-cutting themes into each funded project.
The Fish Innovation Lab was created in September 2018 and is a five-year grant to support USAID’s agricultural research and capacity building work under Feed the Future, the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food security initiative. Mississippi State University (MSU) is the program’s management entity. The University of Rhode Island, Texas State University, Washington University in St. Louis, and RTI International serve as management partners. Activities target Feed the Future countries, with current research activities being implemented in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Malawi, and Zambia.
How We Work
Rich in both macro- and micronutrients, fish are among the most traded agricultural commodities in the world. In developing countries, more than 2.6 billion people depend on some form of fish for more than 20% of their total animal protein.
How fish are produced, caught, processed, distributed, and sold therefore affects the nutrition and livelihoods of small-scale producers and vulnerable households, making equitable access to fish a vital part of the U.S. commitment to end global hunger and poverty.
Overall Approach
The Fish Innovation Lab supports and links research partners around the globe to identify, develop, and scale up promising methodologies and technologies for local fish farming, and to intensify and diversify major production systems where the poor and undernourished are concentrated.
Through competitive research subawards, the Fish Innovation Lab funds country-focused research and capacity building projects. You can learn more about our funding cycle and current opportunities. These subawards constitute an integrated, cooperative, multi-institutional research program that aims to produce applicable research results, increase the capacity of local partners, and support the adoption of new innovations.
