The Department of Fisheries (DOF) of the Government of Bangladesh, The Ford Foundation, Dhaka, and the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (ICLARM) jointly organized a national workshop, 9-10 January 1989, on Experiments in New Approaches to the Improved Management of Open-water Fisheries in Bangladesh. The workshop was an outcome of the Project being implemented by DOF with funding provided by The Ford Foundation and technical assistance of ICLARM under the New Fisheries Management Policy of the Government of Bangladesh adopted in 1986. To this effect, a management team at the DOF and a monitoring team consisting of selected members of the Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies (BCAS) have been working in close coordination and with the technical assistance of ICLARM for the last two years. The objective of the workshop was to discuss preliminary results and experiences gained during the last two years (1987-88) in the process of introducing and experimenting with new and improved methods of management in the open-water inland fisheries of Bangladesh. This volume contains the proceedings of the workshop, includes the keynote and insp. itional addresses made during the inaugural session of the workshop, two background papers and eight subject matter papers presented during the working sessions, and the panel discussions and recommendations of the workshop.