International influences on the evolution of skills development in South Africa

This paper adds to debates about international influences on education policies in developing countries by shifting focus onto the particular experiences of South Africa. This provides a valuable new perspective in at least two ways. First, the study considers the typically neglected area of skills development policy (constructed in this case by a Department of Labour [DoL] rather than a Department of Education). Second, the study looks at a country where its middle income status ensures that the financial role of international assistance is small in comparison to domestic sources of funding. This has the effect of shifting the emphasis of analysis away from the usual dynamics of debates about aid dependence whilst focusing it more sharply on issues of country ownership, capacity development and knowledge sharing. Thus, by looking at a case that may seem to be rather atypical, we argue that certain key issues are brought into clearer focus.