Failure in the past to ascertain responsible fishing practices and equitable distribution of benefits under traditional leasing systems has motivated the Bangladesh government to work in partnership with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and fishing communities in recent times. This paper discusses the operational approaches that were used to identify fishing people and create institutions for their increasing participation in local fisheries, and in making and enforcing resource use rules under various partnership arrangements. The group-based empowerment strategies of NGOs; their role in securing for the beneficiaries the access rights to water bodies; the provision of credits and inputs for employment and income generation activities showed some practical evidence of the concept of the poor as managers of the fisheries resources. The policy issues involved in the rights of local community members to catch fish for subsistence are also discussed, as well as the challenges associated with the difficulties of reconciling differing government (GO) and nongovernment (NGO) organization priorities and points of view with regard to target group identification and levels of responsibilities.