Recent studies conducted in developing nations throughout the world have made it possible to formulate a political theory of literacy for development that clarifies relationships between development ideologies and literacy policies and thus provides a greater understanding of the choices and decisions made by policymakers and planners. Depending on whether its development ideology is gradualist, reformist, or revolutionary, a nation's literacy policy will tend to follow either (1) the motivational-developmental model, (2) the planned development model, or (3) the structural-developmental model. An examination of the literacy policies of the nine countries of the Southern African Development Cooperation Conference (SADCC) reveals that a definite relationship exists between the development ideologies of the regimes of the individual nations in the conference and their national literacy policies. Thus, although literacy promotion is not a part of the formal SADCC strategy for development, individual member-nations of the conference such as Tanzania and Zimbabwe are pursuing aggressive literacy policies. Some of their more moderate fellow members in the SADCC such as Zambia and Botswana, on the other hand, are pursuing literacy policies that could more aptly be termed as following the planned development model. The proposed connection between a nation's development ideology and literacy policies would also explain why Malawi, Lesotho, and Swaziland do not at present have active plans for universal literacy. (MN)