The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Fish, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), aims to reduce poverty and improve nutrition, food security, and livelihoods in partner countries by supporting research on sustainable aquatic food systems. The Fish Innovation Lab is managed by the Mississippi State University Global Center for Aquatic Health and Food Security. It is one of 21 Feed the Future Innovation Labs, which are leveraging the expertise of U.S. universities and partner country research institutions to tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges in agriculture and food security.
From 2018-2023, the Fish Innovation Lab supported 24 activities focused on applied research and sustainability of aquaculture and fisheries, 15 of which were in African countries: Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia . The lab also had eight activities in Bangladesh and Cambodia, as well as one activity that focused on Peru, the Philippines, Madagascar, and the Pacific Islands region. The Fish Innovation Lab’s program areas included improving productivity, mitigating risk, and improving human outcomes. Additionally, the Fish Innovation Lab ha d four cross-cutting themes, which were incorporated into each funded activity and guided the lab’s work overall: mainstreaming gender equity and youth inclusion, advancing human and institutional capacity development, strengthening resilience, and advancing nutrition.
The Mississippi State University Global Center for Aquatic Health and Food Security was awarded a five-year extension in fall of 2023 to continue management of the Fish Innovation Lab to address global food security challenges through aquatic food systems. Target countries for the Fish Innovation Lab in 2023-2028 will be Bangladesh, Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia, with the potential for work in other Feed the Future countries . T he Fish Innovation Lab has revised its program areas to focus on 1) climate-smart aquatic system innovations, 2) nutrition and food systems, and 3) inclusive access to improved inputs . The cross-cutting themes for all activities will be capacity development, gender equity and social inclusion, and resilience. Linking together U.S. universities and institutions with in-country partner universities and institutions is pivotal in fostering innovative solutions to the critical issue of food insecurity. The Fish Innovation Lab anticipates releasing a Request for Proposals in 2024.
To learn more about the activities of the Fish Innovation Lab and for information on funding opportunities , visit our website at https://rb.gy/j17i6.