APALIT -- As part of the celebration of Fish Conservation Week, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in Central Luzon recently dispersed some 300,000 tilapia fingerlings along the Pampanga River.

BFAR-Central Luzon Director Wilfredo Cruz, together with provincial fisheries officers Nico Wamil and Ralph Atabay, and the local government led the activity held in Barangay Sulipan.

According to Cruz, the program was made possible through the agency's Balik Sigla sa Ilog at Lawa (Basil) program that seeks to rejuvenate the country's bodies of water, and is in line with the celebration's theme "Itaguyod and Malinis at Masaganang Katubigan Tungo sa Masaganang Ani at Mataas na Kita sa Industriya ng Pangisdaan."

"The program was under the Basil program, which aims to repopulate freshwater bodies with non-invasive and indigenous species to increase productivity and ultimately increase the income of fisherfolk in the province," Cruz said.

The dispersal, Cruz added, is also held as a form of assistance to small-time fishermen in the province who may harvest the fingerlings for their personal and livelihood purposes once fully-grown.

Aside from the fingerlings dispersal, the BFAR also hosted coastal clean-up drives, livelihood assistance awarding ceremonies, and technical trainings and law enforcement seminars during the week-long celebration.