A combination of academic research, action-research, programme-specific studies, consultancy reports amd more reflective policy discussions that have been carried out with local NGOs and with donor agencies. This book addresses fundamental processes of agrarian structural change and their gender implications; opportunities for wider participation by landless men and women in agricultural growth; the social implications of rural works and fish culture programmes; rural institutions and poverty alleviation; and broad institutional questions arising from interaction between the state, market and community (including NGOs) concerning good governance and the franchise state. to patterns of land use and shifting sets of opportunities for poor actors. It concludes by offering 11 working principles as a guide through the development maze of poverty alleviation in Bangladesh. The principles focus on the agenda of rights, governance, democracy, organizational culture, realistic expectations about NGO performance, and the portfolio character of people's lives.