Skip to main content
Knowledge4Policy
Knowledge for policy

Supporting policy with scientific evidence

We mobilise people and resources to create, curate, make sense of and use knowledge to inform policymaking across Europe.

  • Publication | 2025

GHANA CASE STUDY—FISH-FRIENDLY: Policy Innovations for Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa

Global Food and Nutrition Security

Fish significantly contributes to Ghana's food security and the nutrition of its citizens. It accounts for 60 percent of animal protein consumed by Ghanaians. Annual per capita consumption of fish is estimated to be 24.6 kg. Ghana's fisheries and aquaculture sector also sustains 10 percent of the population's livelihoods through direct or indirect employment in the industry.

The sector also helps stabilize the country's socio-economic fabric by absorbing surplus workers that could otherwise not be easily employable in other economic sectors. Forty-two percent of fishers have never attended school, and the highest educational attainment for about half of them is basic education.

Since the enactment of the Fisheries Act in 2002, the government of Ghana has made efforts and committed itself to improving fisheries and aquaculture management to advance fish production through several policies and strategies innovations.

This case study highlights the current state of Ghana's fisheries and aquaculture sector, describes the institutional and policy innovations Ghana has taken to advance the sector, and showcases some of the programmatic interventions that sustainably enhance fisheries and aquaculture management. The report documents the enormous potential for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture development in Ghana.