The fish and fisheries are integral part of the culture and heritage of Bangladesh. The sector is quite significant in the country as it offers an important source of earning livelihood, foreign exchange and food supply.
Keeping in view the immense potentials of fisheries sector in providing better nutrition and job opportunities, particularly to the poorest of the poor, and the urgency for optimum scientific utilization of the aquatic heritage, the President of the People's Republic of Bangladesh was pleased to promulgate an Ordinance entitled “The Fisheries Research Institute Ordinance, 1984” on the 11 day of July 1984.
In pursuance of this Ordinance the Institute was established in July 1984. In 1997 the Institute was renamed as Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI).