U.S. Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney,Tawi-Tawi Governor Sadikul Sahali, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Director Malcolm Sarmiento, and USAID/Philippines Director Jon Lindborg lead the stocking of Tiger Grouper breeding stock at the newly launched Tawi-Tawi High-Value Multi-species Mariculture Hatchery in Barangay Latuh-Latuh, in Bongao, Tawi-tawi. The construction of the P21 million (approximately $450,000) hatchery project - one of the first of its kind in the country - was the result of a partnership between the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR); the U.S. Government, through USAID's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program; the Provincial Government of Tawi-Tawi; the Municipal Government of Bongao, and the Tawi-tawi campus of Mindanao State University. When fully operational, the commercial facility is expected to annually produce 400,000 humpback grouper fingerlings, 2-4 million abalone spats, and other high-value species such as sea cucumber.