This paper is based on research on the role of UK qualifications suppliers in providing qualifications and accreditation in Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in the context of rather different engagements with liberalisation, structural adjustment and globalisation. Sri Lanka's economic liberalisation and growth since the late 1970s has had a "de facto" decentralising effect on the supply of and demand for qualifications. In Zimbabwe, structural adjustment has been accompanied by a decline in economic growth and a localisation of school-level qualifications. These differences have led to different interactions between UK suppliers and domestic consumers, discussed in terms of supply and demand; localisation and globalisation; competition and educational mission. The paper concludes with the implications of these findings for future research studies on globalisation and qualifications.