In a bold step toward achieving food security and sustainable fish production, Nigerian scholars are collaborating with world-renowned expert in Ocean and Fisheries Economics, Professor Rashid Sumaila, to address challenges affecting the Gulf of Guinea’s marine ecosystem.
Professor Sumaila, who is based at the University of British Columbia’s Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries (IOF), was in Lagos for the Nigeria Team Progress Meeting, an initiative aimed at finding lasting solutions to issues confronting food supply and fish sufficiency in Nigeria and the broader Gulf region.
The meeting brought together researchers, postgraduate students, and experts from Lagos State University (LASU) and the University of Lagos (UNILAG), as part of the Solving Sustainability Challenges of the Food, Climate and Biodiversity Nexus (Solving-FCB) project.
The six-year global research project, funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada, seeks to promote sustainable management of aquatic food systems across developing nations.
Speaking at the meeting, Professor Shehu Latunji, a fisheries expert from LASU and one of the Nigerian Co-Investigators on the Solving-FCB project, explained that Prof. Sumaila’s visit was to evaluate the performance of Nigerian participants and assess their ongoing research efforts.
“Prof. Sumaila’s visit is a major milestone in our journey toward tackling food and climate-related challenges affecting the fisheries sector in Nigeria. His insights are helping to shape practical, data-driven solutions,” Latunji said.
After a series of student presentations and technical discussions, Prof. Sumaila commended the Nigerian researchers for their innovative work and commitment to sustainable fisheries. He emphasized that the project’s central goal is to ensure that Nigeria can feed millions of citizens through sustainable fishing practices.
“The goal is to understand, through research, how we can feed millions of Nigerians with fish without emptying the ocean in the face of climate change,” Sumaila said. “By sharing knowledge across communities, journalists, scientists, governments, and NGOs, we can empower Nigerians to manage our fisheries sustainably for the benefit of all, now and in the future.”
Among the postgraduate students who presented their research were Ojo Akinwunmi Sunday (LASU), who explored transhipment and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing; and Olusola Ojo Ogunfeitimi and Akilo Esther Oluwabunmi (UNILAG), who jointly examined the impacts of climate change, microplastic pollution, and IUU fishing on Nigeria’s marine ecosystems. Other contributors included Bolanle Moriam Seriki and Olabamiji Ismot Olajumoke, both from LASU.
The event also featured the participation of Dr. Charles Iyangbe, Country Representative of WorldFish Nigeria, alongside representatives from the World Aquaculture Society, the Nigerian Institute of Oceanography, and several other research and development partners.
In recognition of Prof. Sumaila’s global impact and long-standing support for Nigerian research, participants led by Prof. Latunji recommended him for a Nobel Prize nomination.