The history of adult education and training in South Africa is a story of the simultaneous and sometimes conflicting activities of three major actors: organizations of civil society, the state, and capital. Organizations of civil society have led many activities in response to social class, race, and gender inequalities. Strongly motivated within particular ideological frameworks, these activities have been mainly of an informal or nonformal kind within different social movements. Since 1910, the various governments have invested minimally in adult education. Few sustained investments have followed the recognition adult education gained after World War II; in early 1980, in the aftermath of the school students' revolt which started in Soweto in 1976, and the transition to a democratic government in 1994. Within the economy, adult education and training have never been supported strongly; incentives to encourage spending on training the workforce have been few. A major strand of adult education throughout its history in South Africa relates to adult literacy and school equivalency for adults. Progression of this strand of activity is intertwined with economic, political, and social developments. A vibrant nongovernmental organizational literacy movement has struggled against enormous odds and has developed creative methodological and curricula innovations. A number of commercial literacy organizations have developed in the last two decades and are active in some major corporations. (Activities are listed by year. Contains 12 references. (YLB)