Annual Review 2025

Message from the CEO

In 2025, ACIAR advanced Australia’s development priorities by delivering practical, research driven solutions to improve food security, nutrition, livelihoods and environmental sustainability across the Indo-Pacific and Africa.

Working with governments, research institutions and communities to address climate change, resource degradation and poverty, we invested in 179 bilateral and regional research projects in 36 countries. Key outcomes included improved soil health and productivity, climate-resilient farming systems, sustainable fisheries management, nutrition-sensitive agriculture, and stronger, more inclusive value chains.

Partnerships emphasised locally led research, south–south learning and long-term capacity development. During 2025, more than 50,000 smallholder farmers became more climate resilient and food secure, and 255 partner country researchers strengthened their skills through training and leadership programs, including initiatives supporting women in agricultural research.

Through trusted partnerships and sustained investment, ACIAR continues to contribute to regional stability, economic growth and resilient agrifood systems that benefit both partner countries and Australia.

Dr Nick Austin
Acting Chief Executive Officer, ACIAR

Practical solutions for better nutrition

The strong partnerships forged between fisheries managers, nutrition experts and government agencies will drive the ongoing impact of an ACIAR-supported project in Timor-Leste and Indonesia. Through the project, coastal fishing communities have explored practical solutions to improve livelihoods and nutrition, as well as sustainable management of fish stocks and economic output.

In its final year, the project organised a knowledge-sharing trip for fishers from Timor-Leste to travel to Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara Province to learn more about sustainable harvesting and fish processing methods.

Improving livelihoods and nutrition

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Working towards our objectives

Two people in lab coats and gloves examine trays of soil samples laid out on a large white laboratory bench.

Managing natural resources sustainably

A soil testing facility opened in June 2025 in the Philippines after ACIAR-supported research showed that targeted soil assessment provides valuable evidence to match cropping practices to land suitability. The soil lab will also give farmers and governments data to help address longstanding declines in productivity and soil health.

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A group of people standing together in a wheat field under a blue sky, some wearing wide‑brimmed hats and lanyards.

Building climate change resilience

Project partners from the ‘Rapantur’ project in Bangladesh, India and Nepal visited Australia to study ‘climate-smart, resilient food production'. ACIAR spoke with the visitors several months later about their insights and learnings, and how climate resilient technologies could be applied to farming in the Eastern Gangetic Plains.

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Hands holding fresh red tomatoes submerged in a large basin of water, with many other tomatoes floating around.

Enhancing human nutrition and health

Incorporating local agricultural produce into school food programs can help improve nutrition and play an important role in student health and educational outcomes. An ACIAR-supported project, one of several human nutrition initiatives supported by ACIAR in the Pacific region, gathered information to assist with planning future school food programs.

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Person sitting on a rocky shore beside small boats in a mangrove-lined waterway.

Improving food security and reducing poverty

Securing a sustainable supply of fish is a priority response to maintain food security and livelihoods for coastal communities. Governments and communities throughout the Pacific region are looking to community-based fisheries management to address overfishing and the impacts of climate change. ACIAR is supporting partners in Solomon Islands to test this model.

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Investing in our region and our neighbours

ACIAR investment in agricultural research for development is guided by Australia's International Development Policy and supports the promotion of peace and economic growth in our region. ACIAR-supported research helps develop the capacity of partner-country scientists and the outcomes of research very often benefit agriculture, food production systems and natural resource management in Australia as well as in partner countries.

Infographic showing ACIAR project distribution and research investment by region.

A snapshot of events in 2025

The business of ACIAR, in supporting multilateral research programs and international agricultural research organisations and investing in 179 bilateral research projects in 36 countries, brings partners and stakeholders together in many and varied forums. Browse through this gallery of ACIAR events throughout 2025.

Delegates at the 2nd Lower Mekong Fish Passage Conference in Siem Reap

HE Derek Yip, Australian Ambassador to Cambodia, and HE Khun Savoeun, Secretary of State for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Cambodia, attended the 2nd Lower Mekong Fish Passage Conference in Siem Reap in February 2025. As part of the FishTech Project, co-funded by the Mekong Australia Partnership and ACIAR, and led by Dr Lee Baumgartner of Charles Sturt University, the conference captured more than a decade of learning from research collaboration between Australia and Lower Mekong countries.

Workshop participants talking at an ACIAR-supported project launch

A project to strengthen smallholder agricultural sectors in Pacific island countries through innovative agribusiness was launched in March 2025. Led by Dr Cooper Schouten, Southern Cross University and Salote Waqairatu, Talanoa Consulting, the research aims to redesign value chains for the beekeeping and tilapia sectors to encourage sustainable and profitable enterprises. The project also aims to develop industry associations to drive inclusive and long-term growth and distil lessons to apply to other Pacific smallholder sectors.

ACIAR staff at the 2025 Pacific Week of Agriculture and Forestry, held in Nuku'alofa, Tonga.

As a longstanding partner in strengthening Pacific agriculture and forestry systems, ACIAR attended the 2025 Pacific Week of Agriculture and Forestry, held in May in Nuku'alofa, Tonga. ACIAR contributed to regional planning forums and technical side events with ministers, senior officials and R&D partners. At the event, ACIAR staff, Pacific Regional Manager, Mai Alagcan, and research directors, Dr Ingrid van Putten and Dr Steven Crimp, met HRH Crown Princess Sinaitakala Tuku’aho of Tonga.

Australia’s Commission for International Agricultural Research in Papua New Guinea

Australia’s Commission for International Agricultural Research visited Papua New Guinea in May 2025 and met with high-level officials and stakeholders to discuss agricultural development partnerships. The Commission also met with farmers, who have benefitted from ACIAR-supported programs on black soldier fly and galip nut, and the family farm team initiatives. The visit was an opportunity to celebrate PNG’s 50 years of independence and more than 40 years of partnership with Australia in international agricultural research for development.

ACIAR staff gathered in front of new ACIAR building in Forrest, ACT.

After nearly 30 years of being located at Bruce in the north of Canberra, ACIAR moved its headquarters to Sydney Avenue, Forrest, in August 2025. The move brings us close to Australia’s Parliamentary Triangle and to the big sibling within the Foreign Affairs and Trade portfolio, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which is located just across the road.

Delegate group photo at the final workshop of ACIAR project LWR/2014/073

The achievements of an ACIAR-supported project on cropping system intensification in the salt-affected coastal zones of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India, were celebrated at a final project workshop in September 2025. Deputy High Commissioner of Australia to Bangladesh, Mr Clinton Pobke and key partners discussed the need for integrated action across agrifood systems, data and innovation sharing, policy development and stakeholder engagement, to maximise economic and environmental sustainability in climate vulnerable coastal Bangladesh.

ACIAR Researchers gathered together at the 2025 ACIAR Research Leaders Meeting

More than 150 researchers and ACIAR staff gathered in Brisbane for the annual ACIAR Research Leaders Meeting in November 2025. The meeting included a session where ACIAR Regional and Country Managers shared insights on locally led partnerships, country priorities and emerging challenges across the Indo-Pacific region and Africa. Another session featured researchers who shared own experiences incorporating issues such as gender equality and climate resilience into their research programs.

A pre-launch ceremony for the Pakistan cohort of the Meryl Williams Fellowship was held in Islamabad, November 2025. Twenty women, from Punjab and Sindh provinces, and from federal institutions, have been selected from key research organisations, agriculture and livestock departments, and leading universities. The fellowship strengthens leadership and management skills among women agricultural researchers. Part of the ACIAR Capacity Development Program, the Meryl Williams Fellowship is delivered by Tetra Tech International Development and the University of New England.

Australia’s Policy Advisory Council member meeting with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Penny Wong at Parliament House

The Policy Advisory Council, established by the ACIAR Act, advises our Minister on challenges facing the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors in developing countries. The Council – a group of international experts and officials – met with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong, in November 2025, and shared insights on the growing pressures on the global food system. The discussion reaffirmed their mutual agreement of the importance of agricultural development as key to food security.

Working towards our objectives

A group of women wearing conical hats stand in a rice field, holding bundles of plants under a bright blue sky.

Sharing decision making and success

The livelihoods of Mekong Delta farmers are being transformed by an ACIAR–SunRice research partnership connecting rice growers to premium markets, through new production methods and business management. Women farmers are integral to this success, and have received training in production planning, finance management and health awareness.

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Hands holding several dark, oval-shaped nuts against a background of green foliage.

Building a new industry

Two decades of ACIAR research investment has taken the galip nut, part of Papua New Guinea’s traditional food culture, to an item available on supermarket shelves and an ingredient sought by restaurants. Local partners believe that the research done in partnership with ACIAR provides lessons to apply to other indigenous crops.

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A person wearing a cap and T‑shirt holds a bundle of wooden slats or insect‑rearing materials while standing in a workspace lined with netted enclosures.

Capacity to be climate responsive

The Africa–Australia Partnership for Climate Responsive Agriculture aims to empower farming communities to be climate responsive. During 2025, the partnership conducted research design missions and workshops to develop projects to build the capacity of researchers and smallholder farmers to strengthen the resilience of African farming systems, to support food security and economic growth.

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A group of people stand inside a woodworking workshop as one person demonstrates a curved wooden piece, with tools and timber visible in the background.

Building scientific and policy capability

The 35-year anniversary of partnership between ACIAR and Laos was celebrated in June 2025. Agricultural research-for-development partnerships have strengthened the skill base of researchers in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors across the country. Alumni of ACIAR capacity development programs gathered to reflect on the journey of cooperation since 1990 and to discuss future agricultural research priorities for Laos.

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ACIAR by numbers in 2025

ACIAR is a specialist agency of the Australian Government that invests a small portion of Australia’s official development assistance funds in agricultural research for development. Our CEO reports directly to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and we have staff in Canberra and 10 international locations. We work with research agencies and universities who are commissioned to lead projects and teams of researchers from collaborating research organisations in Australia and partner countries.

Infographic highlighting key ACIAR activity and impact metrics

Shared commitment to making a difference

The sustained success of ACIAR since 1982 comes down to the people of ACIAR. All share a strong commitment to improving livelihoods, communities, production systems and the environments supporting smallholder agriculture, fishery and forestry systems. The following stories share the spirit and commitment of ACIAR people.

Innovative solutions for a global challenge

Scientists and partners from the ACIAR-supported project, ‘Farmer options for crops under saline conditions in the Mekong River Delta’, were featured in an episode of the ABC series, Beyond Awesome. The project is helping smallholder farmers adapt to the impacts of climate change, which include rising sea levels and changing rainfall patterns, including more drought.

Among several approaches, the researchers from Vietnam and Australia are evaluating options for crop diversification and new soil management techniques. The project has also adopted the Chameleon developed by another ACIAR-funded project, to help decision-making for water management.

Adapting to climate challenges

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Video source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Communicating the results of scientific research

New knowledge, insight and techniques arising from ACIAR-supported research were captured in a range of new publications in 2025. Visit the ACIAR website to explore the new titles, as well as lots of other information on our projects and programs.

Illustrated book cover showing a girl standing by a coastal village, holding galip nuts.

Maria's family grows galip

This bi-lingual book shares best practice knowledge about collecting and selling galip in Papua New Guinea, in a format for both parents and their children.

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Barriers to tilapia aquaculture

ACIAR commissioned a review of the major challenges to tilapia aquaculture to provide insight into areas of future research and capacity development.

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Annual Operational Plan

This plan presents our operating context and objectives, and how we will work with partner countries to achieve more productive and sustainable agricultural systems in 2025-26.

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