ABSTRACT Since 1950, Malaysia’s legislative body, in its various formations, has been a key arena for introducing and deciding national development policies, consistently through five-year Malaysia plans. This paper discusses the politics of poverty alleviation policy being brought to and debated in the Parliament of Malaysia. Employing a multi-method approach combining policy evaluation research and parliamentary ethnography, the study finds that legislative policy scrutiny had minimal impact on executive policy implementation. Largely due to limited avenues for parliamentary oversight, it also indicates that executive power dominance reduces legislative oversight effectiveness, potentially affecting the quality of poverty alleviation policies.

ABSTRACT Seventy years after St. Lucian Nobel laureate, Arthur Lewis, published his seminal paper, Economic Development with Unlimited Supplies of Labour, the question of how to achieve growth continues to dominate academic and policy debates. This has implications for Caribbean nations such as Jamaica that have long struggled with economic stagnation. However, does the premise of Lewis’ theory continue to hold? Using Jamaica as a case study, this essay reassesses the foundational assumptions that have informed the application of Lewis’ model since its first publication. Despite fundamental changes to Jamaica’s labour force, the quest for development continues. Therefore, this essay argues that Arthur Lewis’ analysis continues to provide valuable insight that can inform Jamaica’s strategies to realise its economic aspirations.

ABSTRACT This article is a case study that identifies the types of factors driving change in higher education globally with a focus on the Caribbean region. To a greater or lesser degree, these drivers of change are common to all Commonwealth countries but are particularly challenging in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) which are uniquely susceptible to external influences and global trends. The article uses a number of specific examples from the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands to illustrate the types of innovations and leadership that have been successfully implemented to address the changing environment of education using a strategic, evidence-based approach that is designed to achieve sustainable results.