NEW FISHING BOATS. Marginalized fishers in Calumpit, Bulacan show the five fiberglass reinforced plastic boats from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources on Monday (Jan. 30, 2023). The grant is under the agency's F/B Pagbabago which aims to improve the fishers' livelihood through the provision of disaster-resilient boats. (Photo courtesy of BFAR-Central Luzon) CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga - The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-Central Luzon (BFAR-3) on Monday distributed five fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) boats to marginalized fisherfolk in Calumpit, Bulacan. BFAR regional head Wilfredo Cruz said on Tuesday the 25-footer FRB boats worth a total of PHP350,000 were funded under the bureau's F/B Pagbabago program. "The F/B Pagbabago is among the priority projects of BFAR which seeks to boost the livelihood of the fisherfolk through the provision of durable fishing boats and the promotion of sustainable and responsible ways of fishing," he said in Filipino in an interview. The boats are motorized, with a 10-horsepower marine engine as well as underwater fittings, he noted. He said the FRP boats were specifically designed for the needs of the marginalized fisherfolk along Manila Bay, Pampanga River and its tributaries. "This initiative is not just for the present but more so for the future generation," Cruz said, adding that each boat benefitted two fisherfolk families. Calumpit officials led by Mayor Glorime Faustino thanked the BFAR for its continuing support to the marginalized fishers. Aside from the distribution of FRB boats, the BFAR has also been handing out other provisions in the form of fishing gears, post-harvest equipment, technology demonstration and enhanced aquaculture projects, milkfish fry and tilapia fingerlings as input assistance and stock enhancement and fish production support. (PNA) }