The Independent Office of Evaluation (IOE) has prepared an evaluation synthesis report on IFAD’s support to livelihoods involving aquatic resources from small-scale fisheries, small-scale aquaculture and coastal zones. The report provides a review of the evaluations of all aquatic-resources-relevant projects supported by IFAD from 2009 to 2018. In addition, it provides an analysis of the evolution of the portfolio since 1979, when the first project that addressed aquaculture was approved.

IFAD achieved notable success in some countries where it engaged in aquaculture or fisheries over several years. In the aquaculture subsector in Bangladesh, it supported a number of projects introducing innovative approaches to aquatic resources management. In the marine fisheries subsector in Mozambique, IFAD’s interventions tended to be more effective partly because the focus was exclusively on fishing communities.

In-house expertise also increased the capacity of the Fund to collaborate effectively and build partnerships with organizations that have greater technical resources in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.

The report emphasizes the need for IFAD to enhance the quality of its interventions in these subsectors through more technical depth, improved analysis of countries' socio-economic context and better integration of environmental sustainability and climate change adaptation measures.