This book addresses, in the Bangladesh context, the 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 the interaction between state, market and community (including NGOs) concerning corruption, good governance and the franchise state. Throughout the volume there is long-range, but grounded speculation which connects processes of 'urbanisation' to patterns of land use and shifting sets of opportunities for poor actors. The author concludes by offering eleven working principles as a guide through the development maze of poverty alleviation in Bangladesh.