There is increasing interest in the intersection of education and training through societal development in the developing world, a concept linked to national human resource development (NHRD). In addition, education and training is known to correlate strongly with employment outcomes that are connected to economic success, health and family stability and social connections (Hout, 2012). The purpose of this paper is to explore the influence of World Bank education policies on national human resource development in sub-Saharan Africa. It is important for policy makers to consider how World Bank education policy and funding shapes national human resource development policy in the region of sub-Saharan Africa. This review of literature focuses on NHRD literature identifies World Bank education policy and NHRD policy to provide a framework for understanding the link between policies developed at the World Bank and national policy initiatives in sub-Saharan African nations. The implications for human resource development (HRD) and importance to NHRD research and practice are discussed.