This monograph contains 14 papers on the role of higher education in the developing world stimulated by discussion of that issue in "Higher Education: The Lessons of Experience" (World Bank, 1994). The first two papers offer background on the World Bank paper: "World Bank Traditions of Support to Higher Education and Capacity-Building: Reflections on 'Higher Education: The Lessons of Expereince'" (Kenneth King) and "Shaping the World Bank's Higher Education Paper: Dialogue, Consultation and Conditionality" (Alison Girdwood). The next three papers explore related fundamental issues: "The Implications of Globalisation for Higher Education" (Noel F. McGinn); "Higher Education-Business Partnerships: The Dilemma of Competitiveness and Equity" (Wim E. Biervliet); and "The Challenge to the Liberal Vision of Universities in Africa" (David Court). The next four papers address World Bank reform areas: "Redefining the Role of Government in Higher Education: How Realistic is the World Bank's Prescription?" (Keith Watson); "Diversifying the Funding of Tertiary Institutions: Is the Bank's Agenda the Right One?" (Christopher Colclough); "Institutional Diversification of Higher Education" (Peter Williams); and "Responding to Ambiguity: A Critique of the World Bank's Analysis of Quality Assurance, Responsiveness and Equity" (H. R. Kells). The next three papers present empirical perspectives on the World Bank paper. They are: "Higher Education in India at a Cross-roads" (Jandhyala B. G. Tilak); "A Chinese Model of Higher Education? Lessons from Reality" (Kai-ming Cheng); and"Equity, Access and Excellence in South Africa Higher Education" (Pundy Pillay). The final two papers look at other policies and practices in aid to higher education and are "The Power of Knowledge: A Comparison of Two International Policy Papers on Higher Education" (Berit Olsson) and "French Aid and the Crisis of Higher Education in Francophone Africa" (Francois Orivel). (Many papers contain extensive references.) (JB)