Dr. Faruk-Ul Islam made country representative of WorldFish Bangladesh

Dr. Faruk-Ul Islam has been recently appointed as the country representative for Bangladesh at WorldFish, a global leader in research and innovation in sustainable aquaculture and fisheries that works in 27 countries in Asia, Africa and the Pacific.

As a Bangladeshi, he is the first country representative to lead WorldFish Bangladesh, said a press release.

Having a PhD in Aquaculture & Livelihoods from the University of Stirling, UK, Dr. Faruk has been working for around 30 years in the development sector. 

He started his career in the ODA-DoF Bilateral Flagship Fisheries Program, then worked for long 22 years in Practical Action (UK based INGO), and later continued his multi-disciplinary development effort with ThinkAqua (UK), and iDE (USA based INGO) in senior management positions. 

Dr. Faruk forecasted the top ten small fish species important for rural fish security back in 2007 which are now popular species in the market. 

He challenges conventional aquaculture that underestimated the role of self-recruiting species in farmer managed systems. He worked for nature positive aquaculture, specialized agriculture and climate related projects, wrote more than 55 funding proposals in globally networked teams and secured substantial funding for the organization he worked for. 

Before joining WorldFish, he worked as Team Leader of iDE for a large agricultural mechanization program of USAID led by CIMMYT (prime) partnered with iDE and Georgia Tech University, USA. 

He was Head of Fundraising, Lead & Advisor to – Agriculture and Resilience Program of Practical Action; and also provided leadership as an Acting Country Director for Practical Action, Bangladesh Office. 

As a forward-thinking leader, he has been recognized for his innovative work in pond aeration technology. 

Faruk has represented Bangladesh in various global forums and has a strong background in development and research. Meanwhile, he has visited more than 12 countries in Asia, Europe, America and Africa for development and research interest. 

He wants to flag up research priority for - market competitiveness of smallholder nature positive aquaculture, aquaculture mechanization, climate smart food system, coastal and marine aquaculture & fisheries governance, policy & private sector engagement. 

He is a creative leader, passionate about aquaculture and development, with a cultural interest in poetry.