2025 Passports to Fishing Recap
Teaching the next generation of ethical, conservation-minded anglers worldwide is no small task. Through the IGFA’s Passports to Fishing program and our global network of dedicated supporters, we are making a meaningful impact by successfully introducing kids around the world to recreational fishing in a way that is responsible, ethical, and fun.
In the last seven years, the IGFA has shipped more than 200 “fishing clinics in a box” around the world to members of our international network of representatives, captains, clubs, as well as like-minded educators helping us surpass teaching more than 65,000 youth to fish, a major contribution helping the IGFA surpass the milestone of teaching 250,000 youth to fish last June. The program has now traveled to its 50th country and will be translated into its 18th language in 2026, helping the IGFA reach more communities around the world. The Passports to Fishing program has become IGFA’s signature global education program with more on the horizon, but first, let’s take a trip around the world to see what events occurred in 2025, reaching more than 13,600 kids.
Africa Region
In May 2025, IGFA Fishing Club Federation Mauritanienne de Peche Sportive welcomed nearly 20 young anglers at the Sea Breeze Festival, which reflects the history of the original city of Nouadhibou, especially in the field of sport fishing. The course was important for young people to cultivate sea culture and protect marine life, in which the Passports to Fishing stations fit well with the festival goals, as they taught young anglers the basics of recreational fishing and the importance of conservation and environmental stewardship before spending some time fishing themselves.
Asia Region
In Asia, newly appointed IGFA Representatives Ahmed Afzal Rasheed and Muhammad Ibraahim continue to host major Passports to Fishing events in the Maldives, reaching another 95 youth in 2025! This was one of the inaugural kits sent back in 2019 and is still in action today thanks to like-minded anglers and educators who are now part of the IGFA network. Another kit sent back in 2020 was able to host its first Passports to Fishing Conservation and Education event in 2025 because of complications still stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Captain Kameron Burell in Okinawa, Japan, put on a fantastic event for more than 30 Scouts, and we’re glad to see the persistence of angling educators and members of our network in the mission to educate youth about the sport. Lastly, IGFA Representative Shamin Shaimah and the team at The Milkfish Lady continued family and youth angling education events throughout 2025, including an event with the International School for 10 anglers. 
Central America and Caribbean Region
Major events came out of the Central American and Caribbean Region all year long, reaching hundreds of youth in 2025, starting with Passports to Fishing events in Nicaragua by IGFA Captain Julio Castañeda and the Comisión de Pesca Deportiva de Nicaragua, in Guatemala at the Marina del Sur with IGFA Clubs: Club Nautico de Guatemala and Asociación Nacional de Pesca Deportiva de Guatemala, and in Panama at the Club de Yates y Pesca with IGFA Representatives Edwin Fabrega and Alfredo Lopez. But in addition to hosting annual Passports to Fishing events, many members of IGFA’s international network have expanded these educational toolkits into major programs for their community. In Puerto Rico, IGFA Representative Luis Burgos, alongside IGFA Representative Ricardo Lefranc and the Club Nautico de San Juan, hosted a multi-week summer camp using the Passports to Fishing program. Several Clinicas de Pesca Deportiva Infantil hosted by FONMAR through IGFA Representative Gary Graham in Baja California Sur, Mexico, expanded their reach with the inaugural IGFA Cabo Kids Fishing Camp, an Inclusive Coexistence for People with Disabilities event, and the first Girls Promise Training, an event dedicated to young females who wanted to learn to fish. In Barbados, our angling education partners, Ebony Anglers, traveled to the country to host a Junior Anglers Camp with the Passports to Fishing station materials in tow. Lastly, the Martinique Billfish Association, an IGFA Club, continues to provide the Passports to Fishing program as an introductory training program for young anglers.
Europe and the Mediterranean Region
As we travel to Europe and the Mediterranean, we first experienced the Passports to Fishing kits being used by IGFA Representative Joan Rayo at a fishing course for local youth in Spain and during a Cub Scout Day Camp in the United Kingdom with IGFA angling education partner, Scouting America, and the Transatlantic Scouts. They received their kit a few weeks prior and became the 49th country for the Passports to Fishing kit distribution since its launch in 2019. Kits that were distributed in 2019 are still in use today, especially in Egypt. IGFA Trustee Mohammad Kaddah and IGFA Representative Omar Khalifa hosted the Passports to Fishing program at a Fishing Festival in the Suez Governorate, while IGFA Representative Karim Sherif hosted an after-school club with Bluefin Academy at the German School in Cairo last year. Club Nautico Rimini in Italy hosted another successful summer session of “The Sea School” with kids going fishing every week on Friday, reaching hundreds of kids all summer. They, too, were one of the original recipients of a Passports to Fishing kit in 2019 and have taught thousands of kids since receiving it, with no signs of slowing down!
North America Region
The North American Region is where Passports to Fishing originated at the IGFA Headquarters in Dania Beach, Florida, U.S., and it remains the location where all kits are developed and distributed to other locations worldwide. IGFA education staff host a plethora of events throughout the year, but it is great to see the expansion across the United States with other angling educators working alongside the IGFA’s network. The majority of events occurred through partnerships with the National Park Service, Scouting America, fishing academies, environmental centers, local parks, and nonprofit organizations, whereas members of our international network, like IGFA Representative Sally Kurz in California, continue to lead angling education efforts in their respective states. Outside of the United States, Bermuda, also within the North America region, began a Life Skill Fishing Club with the Passports to Fishing kit alongside the Harrington Sound Primary School for teaching kids valuable life skills like patience, teamwork, and environmental respect through fishing, fostering a positive outlet beyond school.
Oceania Region
Youth angling education efforts continue to expand in Oceania, but for members of IGFA’s international network, such as the IGFA Fishing Club Port Moresby Game Fishing Club, teaching kids to fish is nothing new. They have always hosted a monthly Pee Wee fishing event for up to 50 kids, which is great to see this continued interest in youth in Papua New Guinea, but now with a Passports to Fishing kit, they have taken these events to the next level. In Australia, youth fishing clinics occurred in both Queensland and Tasmania with angling education partners TARFish, Cungulla and Alligator Creek Fishing Clubs. IGFA Fishing Clubs in Samoa and American Samoa both finished the year strong by hosting events in December, a Junior's Fish to the Max event and a Marine Science Fishing Day with the Samoa International Game Fishing Association and the Pago Pago Game Fishing Association, respectively. The Pago Pago Game Fishing Association reported that they had one student who was resistant to fishing because it required patience and waiting. But she caught her first fish ever during the event and has been hooked ever since. She received a rod and reel over the Holidays and has been catching fish with it already!
South America Region
In South America, the IATE Club of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil continues hosting youth angling events throughout the year, reaching hundreds of kids in the community through the Pesca de Cais fishing competition series, and we are looking forward to major developments in Guyana, as that became the 50th country in which the Passports to Fishing program has been distributed.
A Look Ahead
Events are already occurring, or plans are already in the works for 2026, and we cannot wait to see where the Passports to Fishing kits take us this year. When you hear all the stories from Passports to Fishing recipients, such as how many first-time anglers they had, or the number of kids who were surprised by new species, or how healthy the local environment is, it makes it all worthwhile.
The IGFA will continue expanding youth angling education opportunities to kids around the world through the IGFA’s Passports to Fishing program as we work toward our next milestone of teaching 500,000 youth around the world to fish. We truly are creating the next generation of ethical and conservation-minded anglers, but it’s taking the hard work and dedication of our network of supporters to bring this mission to their local community, where kids are eager to explore the sport we all know and love.