Power, Politics, and Higher Education in Southern Africa: International Regimes, Local Governments, and Educational Autonomy
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Power, Politics, and Higher Education in Southern Africa: Interna ...

Chapter 1:  Introduction
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Given the LGs’ consensual adherence to GATS and the GATS provision of rights and encouragement that developing nations exercise such rights, I question whether the GATS has any bearing on the autonomy of LGs. Nonetheless, I recognize that unearthing of power dynamics is crucial when complex relationships are established between two or more entities, among which there are those that possess sources of power such as money, experience, expertise, knowledge, and insight beyond the literary meanings of texts.

The GATS states that since the early parts of this decade it has mandated negotiations to ensure trade liberalization, and at times the introduction of trade barriers, in services. The terms of this mandate were agreed upon by members who set the guidelines and procedures for the negotiations in a clear and balanced manner.2 According to the GATS, members unequivocally endorsed some of its fundamental principles, such as:

Members’ right to regulate and to introduce new regulations on the supply of services in pursuit of national policy objectives; their right to specify which services they wish to open to foreign suppliers and under which conditions; and the overarching principle of flexibility for developing and least developed countries. The guidelines are therefore sensitive to public policy concerns in important sectors such as health care, public education and cultural industries, while stressing the importance of liberalization in general, and ensuring foreign service providers have effective access to domestic markets.

From the WTO/GATS perspective, the process of members’ agreement to terms and their participation in setting guidelines engenders principles of participatory democracy; the process addresses with fairness what members consider to be of concern. This perspective suggests that any contrary interpretation of the process reflects a lack of understanding of its nature.