Fisheries experts now recognize that resource conflicts can be diminished and resources better managed when fishers and other resource stakeholders are more involved in management, and access rights are distributed more effectively and equitably. There is an increasing commitment by governments in Southeast Asia to policies and programs of decentralization and community-based management and co-management. The planning and implementation of these management systems will require the development of new legal, administrative and institutional arrangements at both national and community levels to complement contemporary political, economic, social and cultural structures.