UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA
College of Human Sciences
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DVA3701: Development Theory
Assignment 3 — Semester 1, 2026
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DVA3701
Module Code:
Development Theory
Module Name:
Neoliberalism, Globalisation, and
Essay Topic:
Global Institutions
Assignment 3
Assignment Number:
17 April 2026
Due Date:
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements
for Development Theory (DVA3701) — UNISA 2026
, UNISA | DVA3701 Neoliberalism – Assignment 3
Introduction
Few concepts have reshaped global political economy as thoroughly as neoliberalism. From
its theoretical origins in the Mont Pelerin Society of 1947, through its practical installation in
Chile under Pinochet, to its full institutionalisation in the structural adjustment programmes
of the 1980s and 1990s, neoliberalism has functioned simultaneously as an economic doc-
trine, a political project, and a governing framework for international institutions (Harvey,
2007). This essay critically examines neoliberalism in two related dimensions: first, its re-
lationship with and influence on globalisation; and second, its ideas and their influence on
global institutions. The argument developed here is that neoliberalism did not simply ac-
company globalisation but actively shaped its character, directing the integration of national
economies into a global market organised around principles that privileged capital mobility,
deregulation, and the retreat of the state; and that this project was institutionalised most ef-
fectively through the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the World Trade
Organization (WTO), with consequences that remain deeply contested.
Page 2 of 15
College of Human Sciences
⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄⋄
DVA3701: Development Theory
Assignment 3 — Semester 1, 2026
⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄ ⋄⋄
DVA3701
Module Code:
Development Theory
Module Name:
Neoliberalism, Globalisation, and
Essay Topic:
Global Institutions
Assignment 3
Assignment Number:
17 April 2026
Due Date:
Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements
for Development Theory (DVA3701) — UNISA 2026
, UNISA | DVA3701 Neoliberalism – Assignment 3
Introduction
Few concepts have reshaped global political economy as thoroughly as neoliberalism. From
its theoretical origins in the Mont Pelerin Society of 1947, through its practical installation in
Chile under Pinochet, to its full institutionalisation in the structural adjustment programmes
of the 1980s and 1990s, neoliberalism has functioned simultaneously as an economic doc-
trine, a political project, and a governing framework for international institutions (Harvey,
2007). This essay critically examines neoliberalism in two related dimensions: first, its re-
lationship with and influence on globalisation; and second, its ideas and their influence on
global institutions. The argument developed here is that neoliberalism did not simply ac-
company globalisation but actively shaped its character, directing the integration of national
economies into a global market organised around principles that privileged capital mobility,
deregulation, and the retreat of the state; and that this project was institutionalised most ef-
fectively through the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and the World Trade
Organization (WTO), with consequences that remain deeply contested.
Page 2 of 15
