WorldFish, together with the CGAIR Research Programme on Fish Agri-food Systems and its partners, is attempting to assess the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on fish and aquatic food systems in developing countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific.
Disruptions in the seafood supply chain, falling production and decreased consumer demand are already pushing up the price of fish and aquatic food meaning many people, particularly in developing countries, will lose their jobs. Those who can instead rely on subsistence fishing and fish-farming may have a chance of weathering this crisis.
WorldFish has a number of endeavours to help understand better the effects of the pandemic such as managing critical aquatic genetic resources in Malaysia, Egypt and Bangladesh; collaborating with CGIAR centres, the FAO and the World Food Programme to help inform government policy; working with the Odisha state government in India to advise fishers and fishfarmers, hatcheries and markets; using digital technologies in Timor-Leste to track and record changes in the patterns of small-scale fishing activities and launching a multi-country survey on fish supply chains.
WorldFish is also providing inputs to the ‘Interim Issues Paper on the Impact of COVID-19 on Food Security and Nutrition by the High-Level Panel of Experts to the Committee on World Food Security.
