Country Profile

Aquatic foods are central to the diet of the Bangladeshi people, with fish being the most consumed animal-source protein. Bangladesh's aquatic food production system plays a critical role in achieving food and nutrition security, improving economic, social, and environmental sustainability, and enhancing climate resilience. The country boasts rich aquatic resources, including 0.84 million ha of inland closed waters like ponds, seasonal waterbodies, and shrimp and prawn ghers (a modified rice field used for prawn farming, carp, and rice, that fill with rainwater during the monsoon, creating a pond-like environment), and 3.86 million ha of inland open waters. Bangladesh also has a 710 km coastal belt and a 70,000 km² Exclusive Economic Zone for sea fishing. In 2022–2023, total fish production was 4.9 million metric tons. Bangladesh aims to increase productivity to 8.5 million metric tons to transform from a lower- to an upper-middle-income country by 2031 and to a high-income country by 2041.

WorldFish’s Support

WorldFish has collaborated with partners in Bangladesh since 1987 to create a more productive fisheries and aquaculture sector, contributing to diversified and resilient rural livelihoods and promoting food and nutrition security through research-driven solutions. Current efforts focus on two major areas: developing a Bangladesh Strategy for 2025–2041, aligned with WorldFish Global Strategy and the Government of Bangladesh’s goals for sustainable small-scale fisheries and aquaculture, and providing policy support to revise the outdated 1998 National Fisheries Policy. The strategy integrates technology, climate resilience, nutrition, and gender equity to foster sustainable aquatic food production.

Key Initiatives

WorldFish promotes sustainable small-scale fisheries and aquaculture in Bangladesh through various initiatives:

• Small-Scale Fisheries: The Small Fish and Nutrition Project increased fish production in Sunamganj District, improving the nutrition of pregnant women, lactating mothers, and young children. The ECOFISH II project, using ecosystem-based fisheries management, boosts hilsa production and improves the resilience of coastal fishing communities. It has already benefited over 13,000 households and enhanced more than 300,000 hectares of fisheries.

• Sustainable Aquaculture: The Feed the Future Bangladesh Aquaculture and Nutrition Activity (BANA) enhanced aquaculture productivity, strengthened market systems, and promoted nutrition-related behaviors, reaching almost 385,000 people. The Suchana program addressed chronic malnutrition by helping communities grow fish and vegetables, reaching over 235,500 households. The Artemia4Bangladesh project introduced climate-resilient artemia farming, increasing salt farmers' incomes by up to 400%.

Fast Facts

• Per capita fish consumption : 24.75 kg.

• Fish accounts for 60% of animal protein intake.

• 18.2 million people in Bangladesh are employed in fisheries and aquaculture.

• 36 million people live less than 1 meter above high tide level.

Enabling Impact

WorldFish promotes small-scale fisheries through community-based management and sustainable aquaculture. The organization has led initiatives like the ECOFISH II project and the Small Fish and Nutrition Project, which have increased fish production, improved nutrition, and enhanced community resilience. WorldFish has also developed community-based fisheries and aquaculture approaches to improve productivity, biodiversity, income, and nutrition, benefiting countless households in Bangladesh.

Moving Forward

WorldFish, through the CGIAR Research Initiative on Asian Mega-Deltas, is addressing climate change challenges in Bangladesh by building nutrition-sensitive and climate-resilient agrifood systems. The Asia–Africa BlueTech Superhighway (AABS) project, launched in 2023, will harness South–South collaboration to improve the sustainability, adaptive capacities, and prosperity of vulnerable coastal communities, transforming the lives of people across aquatic food systems, particularly women and youth.

Partners

• Bangladesh Agricultural University
• Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation
• Bank Asia
• BRAC
• Can Tho University
• Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Science University
• Coast Trust
• FishTech Hatchery
• Friends in Village Development Bangladesh
• Noakhali Science and Technology University
• Patuakhali Science and Technology University
• Save the Children
• Shahjalal University of Science and Technology
• Shushilan
• The Center for Natural Resource Studies
• University of Hohenheim

Donors

• Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit
• European Union
• Mississippi State University
• Oak Foundation
• The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom
• United States Agency for International Development