ABSTRACT
In the context of the knowledge economy, higher education has been positioned by influential international organisations and powerful governments as one of the most important powerhouses for development and as an essential prerequisite for developing countries to escape a peripheral status in the global economy. While policy pronouncements abound, there is relatively little recent theoretical or empirical work which can be drawn on to contribute to an adequate understanding of the relationship between higher education and development. In this chapter, I hope to contribute to the development of a research agenda by challenging some of the assumptions underlying global policy shifts pertaining to higher education in developing countries. I will begin by raising questions about the underlying assumptions and unintended consequences of the current focus on higher education as an engine of development. I will then illustrate how these difficulties may be compounded by the implementation of a neo-liberal paradigm which advocates the entry of foreign and private providers through the operation of a global higher education market. In the final section, key issues about the development of a research agenda relating to capacity building of higher education in developing countries will be presented.
