Empowering Women in Aquaculture: Leadership and Investment Education in the Mediterranean and Black Sea
Strengthening Women’s Leadership and Investment Readiness
Women aquaculture professionals from eight Mediterranean and Black Sea countries have successfully completed an advanced training program designed to enhance their leadership capabilities and investment readiness in a dynamic aquatic food sector.
Event Overview
The 2026 edition of the Women in Aquaculture training series took place from January 19-21 in İzmir, Türkiye. The program combined technical site visits with peer exchanges and expert insights, allowing participants to analyze various operational and business models while exploring the practical interplay between investment, innovation, and sustainability.
Target Audience and Objectives
This initiative specifically targeted women active across aquaculture value chains who aim to scale operations, enhance financial viability, and navigate complex production and regulatory environments. Participants included aquaculture entrepreneurs, farm and hatchery managers, processors, researchers, and public sector professionals, showcasing the diversity of women’s roles in the sector.
Outcomes and Feedback
By the end of the program, participants reported heightened confidence in assessing investment opportunities and a clearer understanding of the impact of technical and operational choices on financial viability. They identified specific next steps for business development and collaboration. The hands-on site visits offered practical experiences, illustrating the variety of roles and career paths in aquaculture. Participants emphasized the importance of witnessing the high-quality standards achieved by women-led processing companies.
“Seeing different companies and women-led businesses first-hand made the training especially meaningful,” noted one participant.
“The training was a truly valuable and inspiring experience, both professionally and personally,” said another participant, emphasizing the empowering environment created through shared experiences.
Fostering Collaboration and Networking
Beyond individual skill development, the program fostered peer exchange among women professionals across the Mediterranean and Black Sea region, laying the groundwork for future collaboration.
Transforming Regional Collaboration into Practical Training Outcomes
This workshop was organized by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) under the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, in partnership with the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP). It was supported by the European Union and forms part of a broader training series with previous editions held in Tunisia, Greece, and Spain.
“This training transcends mere technical skills. It embodies the commitment of GFCM Members and partners—especially FEAP—to not only recognize women’s role in aquaculture but also to translate this commitment into actionable strategies that bolster their contributions to the blue economy,” stated Houssam Hamza, GFCM Aquaculture Officer.
Building a Professional Network
The series aims to bolster technical skills, facilitate knowledge exchange, and create a professional network among women involved in Mediterranean and Black Sea aquatic food systems. This network-building endeavor contributed to the establishment of the Network of Women in Aquaculture, dedicated to promoting gender equality and inclusivity across the global aquaculture sector.
Why This Matters for the Region
Aquatic food systems in the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions produce over 2 million tonnes of food annually, generating USD 21.5 billion and supporting 1.17 million jobs along the value chain. With over 35,000 enterprises involved—most of which are small- and medium-sized—aquaculture now accounts for more than 45 percent of total aquatic food production in the area.
Women currently represent 29 percent of jobs across fisheries and aquaculture value chains. However, with future food demands projected to increase, aquaculture must scale production by 14–29 percent by 2050 to accommodate population growth.
In light of these challenges, enhancing women’s leadership and investment readiness is increasingly crucial for improving sector resilience, supporting sustainable growth, and enabling small- and medium-sized enterprises to adapt to climate change, disease, evolving technologies, and regulatory complexities.
Image: ©FEAP
