To date commercial strains of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus, L.) are not available to culture in brackish water systems. Our attempts were to develop a genetic line of Nile tilapia that can perform well not only under moderate salinity water environment but also having desired eating and marketing characteristics. The genetic line developed from our study showed a significant improvement in growth performance, with an average genetic gain for body weight of about 8% per generation (one year per generation). Selection for high growth did not have any adverse effect on survival or deformity. Under on-farm testing conditions, our selected line outperformed other strains in both fresh and saline water environments. The overall eating acceptability of the improved genetic line is superior to other freshwater tilapia counterparts. It is concluded that the moderate salinity tolerance tilapia line developed from our selective breeding program can be cultured effectively under a diverse array of farming systems.