Strengthening women’s leadership and investment capacity in Mediterranean and Black Sea aquaculture
The 2026 edition of the Women in Aquaculture training series focused on investment readiness, targeting women already active across aquaculture value chains who are seeking to scale operations, improve financial viability and navigate increasingly complex production and regulatory environments. Participants included women aquaculture entrepreneurs, farm and hatchery managers, operations and production managers, processors, researchers and public sector professionals, reflecting the diversity of women-led roles across the region.
By the end of the programme, participants reported increased confidence in evaluating investment opportunities, a clearer understanding of how technical and operational choices affect financial viability, improved awareness of risk management and scaling strategies, and the identification of concrete next steps for business development and continued collaboration. Participants highlighted the value of hands-on site visits, which helped translate theory into practical experience and showcased the diversity of roles and career paths within the aquaculture sector. Participants also noted that experiencing products directly during the visits helped highlight the high quality, taste and presentation standards achieved by women-led processing companies, reinforcing the importance of value addition and market positioning.
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.
Sharing experiences and perspectives with other young women in the aquaculture sector created an empowering environment and strong collective energy.”
Beyond individual skills development, the programme strengthened peer exchange among women professionals from across the Mediterranean and Black Sea, supporting the development of networks for continued collaboration beyond the training itself.
Turning regional collaboration into practical training outcomes
This workshop, organized by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in partnership with the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP), with the support of the European Union, is part of an ongoing series of training initiatives, with previous editions held in Tunisia and Spain.
Designed as a long-term initiative, the series aims to strengthen technical skills, facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experience and build a professional network among women active in Mediterranean and Black Sea aquatic food systems. This network-building dynamic has contributed to the creation of the Network of Women in Aquaculture (NOWA).
The event was hosted in İzmir, Türkiye with the involvement of FEAP member Aegean Exporters’ Associations. Over four days (19–21 January), the programme combined technical site visits with peer exchange and expert input, enabling participants to analyze different operational and business models and to better understand how investment, innovation and sustainability interact in practice.
Why this matters for the region
Aquatic food systems in the Mediterranean and Black Sea produce more than 2 million tonnes of food annually, generating USD 21.5 billion and supporting 1.17 million jobs along the value chain. Aquaculture relies on over 35 000 enterprises, most of them small and medium-sized, and now accounts for more than 45 percent of total aquatic food production in the region.
Women represent 29 percent of jobs across fisheries and aquaculture value chains. At the same time, aquaculture is expected to play an increasingly central role in meeting future food demand, with regional production needing to grow by 14-29 percent by 2050 to keep pace with population growth.
In this context, strengthening women’s leadership and investment capacity is increasingly recognized as critical for improving sector resilience, supporting sustainable growth and ensuring that small and medium-sized enterprises can adapt to challenges linked to climate change, disease, evolving technologies and regulatory complexity.
Strengthening women’s leadership and investment capacity in Mediterranean and Black Sea aquaculture
