Regionalism is a common development strategy in the Pacific region. Through it, numerous services are delivered to countries, communities and organisations. While some see regionalism as an effective and efficient strategy for the Pacific region, others point to its dismal performance. Using the experience of the Rethinking Pacific Education…

Current government discourses on partnerships tend to assume an uncritical belief in the existence of equal ownership and equal power relations between development partners and partner governments. The rhetoric of shared visions, common strategic directions or complementary approaches to development in the Pacific begs the question of how such…

Within the context of bilateral support to the education sector in Tonga and the Solomon Islands, this paper will explore how the discourse of "partnership" has been interpreted and activated within the Sector wide approach (SWAp). In concentrating particularly on the relationship between the respective Ministries of Education and New Zealand's…

Pacific Island countries are recipients of considerable education reform projects, many of which are sponsored by various global donor agencies. These agencies have become partners for development in the region. Research cautions that development projects may have detrimental influences as their designs and delivery often ignore the economic,…

A first glance at almost any policy document generated by a bilateral or multilateral donor agency reveals a familiar rhetoric of participation, partnership, community, good governance, growth and strong democracy as key ingredients for a successful development program. While some critics of this rhetoric argue that this is merely a recasting of…

With "basic education" now firmly a part of the current development discourse, this paper discusses how a selection of donors in Pacific education relate to this notion in terms of shifts in their development policy, their financial commitment and their underlying political agenda. With Levesque's (2001) notion of "perception gaps" in mind,…