{"title":"Lighting the path to sustainable development: The impact of sustainability disclosure, corporate tax, and economic growth","authors":"Alhassan Haladu , Saeed Awadh Bin-Nashwan , Abdulmalik Yusuf , Nura Alhaji Yaro","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100655","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100655","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Global development has taken a new dimension with emphasis on addressing sustainable development in conjunction with economic growth and development. The prime consideration of this research work is geared towards exploring how well the current level of sustainability disclosure, corporate responsibility (tax), and economic growth in an emerging economy is positioned to help accomplish the UN’s 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) based on the latest version of the globally accepted GRI-2022 environmental disclosure standard. The model of this research work was constructed on the moderated association of economic growth amongst sustainability reporting, corporate tax, and sustainable development, taking cognizance of voluntary disclosure, contingency, and institutional theoretical frameworks. Based on a 15-year period of data spanning 2009–2023, the economy’s formal and informal sectors formed the dataset of this study with a total of 115,258,984 businesses. In our model, corporate responsibility (tax) and humanity (control variable) have also been introduced to know the extent of corporate and human influence on sustainable development. The study revealed a weak economic growth moderated effect for both sustainability disclosure and corporate tax on sustainable development. More so, that a vital, meaningful, and inconsequential connection subsists on sustainable development for corporate tax and sustainability reporting. Due to these weak affiliations, the study endorses sustainability education and mandatory environmental disclosure together with the reduction in corporate tax as a means of strengthening their influences on sustainable development.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100655"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143161801","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sustaining rural water infrastructure in Mbala, Zambia: A modelling approach for community-based management","authors":"Babra Namwiinga Nkolola, Adrian Phiri","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100652","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100652","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Enhancing the sustainability of rural water supply infrastructure is essential for improving socioeconomic conditions and fostering sustainable development in sub-Saharan Africa. This study employs a modelling approach to address critical gaps in the current understanding of the sustainability of rural water systems by investigating how community engagement, financial mechanisms, and technical interventions interact within Mbala, Zambia. Results demonstrate that community participation and not perception, significantly influences the functionality of water access points (WAPs), with community contributions predicting a sustainability probability of 0.63 (<em>p</em> = 0.0102), indicating a significantly positive effect on sustainability. Interestingly, contrary to conventional expectations that government involvement would play a significant role in sustaining WAPs, the modelling results reveal that it has no significant impact. In fact, government involvement is associated with the lowest predicted probability of sustainability (0.23, <em>p-value</em> > 0.5), a striking contrast to the strong positive effect of community contributions. These findings challenge the efficacy of top-down approaches, emphasizing the need for community-centered solutions. By bridging the gap between perception and actual contribution, this study offers novel insights that can inform sustainable rural water supply infrastructure management in Sub-Saharan Africa.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100652"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143161800","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Organisational-economic mechanism for increasing the innovative activity of carpet industry enterprises in the digitalisation of technological processes","authors":"Daulet Kanashayev , Altyn Yessirkepova , Parida Baineyeva , Aigul Alzhanova , Asylkhan Tursyn","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100654","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100654","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>At the moment, to ensure a sufficient level of competition in the carpet market, an important component is the introduction of the latest technologies, which means that finding approaches for this remains relevant. The purpose of the study was to describe possible approaches to improving the management mechanisms of such enterprises using innovative technologies in Kazakhstan. The main research methods were forecasting and modelling. The study period spans from 1990 to 2023. 2008–2009 was identified as the most challenging interval. A significant decrease in production occurred. Followed by a swift rise in productivity after 2009, culminating in peak levels in 2022, but has recently reduced the level of growth. When assessing the trends of foreign trade, it was concluded that the potential of opportunities in the country was not fully used, given the rather large volumes of imports and relatively small exports of products. The study also proposed approaches regarding introducing innovative technologies into the industry both within the framework of production processes and for e-commerce. A management model was proposed, which suggests a course of action in the context of improving certain components of the production of the functioning of the enterprise through the introduction of innovative products to ensure higher results of the introduction of innovative products. The study, among other things, provides recommendations for government authorities on which policy components should be implemented to increase the industry’s efficiency. The results obtained can be used by enterprises to develop their long-term development strategies and government representatives to develop policies in this area.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100654"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143161802","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Access or exclusion to land: An overview of evolving trends in cocoa landscapes in Ghana","authors":"Doreen Asumang-Yeboah, Joana Akua Serwa Ameyaw, Emmanuel Acheampong, Winston Adams Asante","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100651","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100651","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper employs historical trends and perspectives of key cocoa sector actors to understand the evolving patterns of land access within Ghana’s cocoa landscapes. Primary data was collected through focus group discussions, questionnaires administered to cocoa farmers, and key informant interviews with farmers, cocoa extension agents and landowners on how access to land is evolving, and the responses of these actors to the dynamics around land access. We found that there is a shift from perceived long-term right-based access mechanisms such as customary law freehold (which includes gift and purchase) and usufructuary (use right for indigenes) to short-term structural and relational access mechanisms such as share contract arrangements (including sharecropping and land rental). Currently, both indigenes and migrants compete for these relational access mechanisms which were once predominantly associated with only migrant farmers. These shifting access dynamics have also led to modification of existing land access strategies, with landowners pursuing re-negotiation arrangements after a fixed term for farmers to retain access to their lands. The evolving access dynamics have triggered a range of responses, including existing migrant farmers’ resistance to renegotiated fixed terms to maintain land access, farmers refusal to rehabilitate old and moribund cocoa farms (as a means to secure their land under cocoa farming), and the emergence of unconventional practices such as sub-letting farms to other farmers and encroachment into forest reserves. Based on the findings of this study, we argue that current land access trends benefit landowners and new migrants over existing migrants, due to difficulties in complying with renegotiated terms, with a further risk of excluding vulnerable groups, such as relatively poor farmers, women and youth.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100651"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143161803","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Modern strategies for conceptualising and implementing state youth policy","authors":"Arailym Junussova , Aliya Ayapbekova , Bibigul Byulegenova , Karakat Nagymzhanova , Ryskeldy Aykenova","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100653","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100653","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The purpose of this study was to identify ways to improve the effectiveness of state youth policy in the context of global challenges. The study showed a significant evolution in approaches to youth policy making between 2020 and 2024, characterised by a shift from a paternalistic model to one of active participation and partnership. An analysis of international practices revealed a trend toward more integrated, participatory, and technologically advanced strategies for working with young people. Successful practices are characterised by effective cross-sector collaboration, active involvement of young people in decision-making processes and extensive use of digital platforms. Using Kazakhstan as an example, the study identified the key problems in the implementation of youth policy, including insufficient engagement of young people in decision-making processes, mismatch between educational programmes and labour market requirements, and social inequality. The study used comparative analysis, legislative evaluation, and institutional review. Surveys and statistics assessed youth policy effectiveness in Kazakhstan, focusing on digitalisation and methodological development. The findings of the study showed the need for a comprehensive approach to improving the effectiveness of youth policy, including strengthening interagency collaboration, enhancing opportunities for active youth participation, developing digital platforms, and improving mechanisms to support youth entrepreneurship. A key element in improving effectiveness should be the development and implementation of a comprehensive system for assessing the effectiveness of youth policy, based on clear indicators and regular monitoring.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100653"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143162843","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Domestic violence (DV) and intimate partner violence (IPV): The institutional and NGOs intervention in Fiji","authors":"Mumtaz Alam","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100649","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100649","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Fiji has much higher rates of domestic violence and intimate partner violence (IPV) than the rest of the world. This article focuses on Fiji interventions by formal institutions and non-profits working to end these types of violence. It delves into patriarchal views and conventional reconciliation procedures as cultural, societal, and economic elements that contribute to the high incidence of domestic violence. The study examines national action plans and legislative reforms put forth by the government, along with the vital role played by NGOs in offering advocacy and support services. Notable groups that take a holistic approach to ending gender-based violence include the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre. There has been improvement in policymaking and support services, but there is still a long way to go before long-established cultural norms can be changed and laws can be effectively enforced. In order to combat domestic violence and intimate partner violence (IPV) in Fiji, the paper recommends a multi-sectoral strategy that includes the government, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and community members. The report calls for more stringent enforcement of current laws, more funding for education and preventative initiatives, and action to address the social and economic elements that contribute to the problem of violence against women and girls.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100649"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143162845","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"When does new information encourage adoption, and where can we observe it: A synthesis of 3ie’s thematic window on agricultural innovation","authors":"Andrew Reid Bell , Mark Engelbert","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100647","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100647","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We present a synthesis of 3ie’s Thematic Window on Agricultural Innovations − 13 evaluations of interventions to improve smallholder innovation and technology adoption, largely through improved access to and information about inputs, techniques, and markets. We ask 1) under what conditions does information about a technology improve understanding, adoption, and further downstream impacts; and 2) how do conditions of the evaluation (as a project) constrain our ability to observe impacts? Most of the 13 interventions involved information treatments (SMS text messaging, demonstration plots, farmer field days, and farmer field schools). While most information interventions lead to greater reported awareness of the focal technique or input, we observe fewer impacts further down the impact pathways – on adoption, yield gains, or improvements to wellbeing, with several possible explanations. First, more complicated techniques like integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) require deeper engagement, so that (for example) farmer field schools have greater effect than farmer field days. This highlights the tension between scalability and effective learning in improving extension. Second, many of the interventions were short (1–2 years), whereas diffusion of knowledge around the intervention (as well as benefits from adoption) can take longer to be realized. Third, all agricultural interventions are at the whims of a variable climate, where improved weather conditions from baseline to endline can mask possible benefits of an encouraged practice. We consider these three findings jointly to discuss how to better fold climate variation and information diffusion into consideration of validity and appropriate time scales for evaluation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100647"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143162844","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluation of gender-based challenges during natural disasters in the central region of Afghanistan; A case study of Parwan Province","authors":"Hayatullah Mushwani , Abidullah Arabzai , Lutfullah Safi , Chitralada Chaiya , Kawoon Sahak","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100646","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100646","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Gender-based challenges faced during natural disasters in Parwan Province, Central Afghanistan, are a critical issue that requires urgent attention in disaster management. This study aims to assess these challenges by utilizing a mixed-method approach with focus on social, and economic difficulties during natural disasters in Parwan Province. A total of 384 respondents were selected from a population of 751,040 using Morgan formula (95% confidence interval and a 5% margin of error). Data collection included a validated questionnaire administrated through random sampling, and interviews with 20 respondents from the community members, local experts and academics using purposive sampling. The analysis revealed interesting associations between respondents’ demographic information and social and economic challenges related to gender during disasters. These findings emphasize the significance of inclusive planning, gender-sensitive risk assessment, and women’s active involvement in decision-making processes to address the challenges faced during disasters. This article advocates gender-specific regulations and its empowerment in disaster management and decision making. Ultimately, the insights presented serve as a strong call to action for the implementation of gender-responsive strategies aimed at reducing the challenges encountered by women and promoting the development of inclusive and resilient communities in the face of disasters.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100646"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143162846","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Francesca Viberti , Silvio Daidone , Noemi Pace , Nicholas Sitko
{"title":"Cash transfers and women’s economic inclusion in rural Zambia","authors":"Francesca Viberti , Silvio Daidone , Noemi Pace , Nicholas Sitko","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100644","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100644","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper investigates whether an increase in exogenous income through the Child Grants model of the Social Cash Transfer programme in Zambia fosters economic inclusion among rural women. We conceptualize economic inclusion as a transformative process comprised of four pillars: productive capacity, saving capacity, women’s empowerment, and time preferences and expectations. Using experimental data, we find strong evidence of direct impacts of the Child Grant on productive and saving capacity, and time preferences and expectations of rural women. In addition to these direct impacts, we implement a mediation analysis to explore the potential mediating role of time preferences and expectations in affecting the other pillars of economic inclusion. Through this approach, we find indicative evidence of indirect and mutually reinforcing relationships between changes in time preferences and expectations brought about through the Child Grant and improvements in the productive and saving capacity of beneficiaries. These results suggest that cash transfers might be effective in promoting women’s economic inclusion, both through the direct monetary effect and through the mediated effect of time preferences and expectations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"37 ","pages":"Article 100644"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143162847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Preferences for sustainable intensification: Do agricultural interventions matter? Plot-level evidence from Senegal","authors":"Arouna Kouandou","doi":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100645","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.wdp.2024.100645","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To what extent do agricultural support programs that promote modern intensification shape farmers’ incentives to adopt sustainable agricultural management practices? We answer this question by examining the effects of receiving input subsidies and agricultural extension services on Senegalese smallholder farmers’ preferences for crop diversification, crop rotation, rotational grazing, fallowing, and mulching crop residues. The empirical investigation is based on the 2020/2021 Annual Agricultural Survey (AAS) and uses two identification strategies: selection on observables and the Abadie-Imbens matching approach to account for differences in farmers’ socio-economic backgrounds and biophysical characteristics of plots and the likelihood of benefiting from input subsidies and agricultural extension services. We find heterogeneous responses to extension services and input subsidies. In particular, we find that receiving agricultural extension services is associated with a higher likelihood of adopting crop rotation, rotational grazing and fallow. On the other hand, the effect of receiving fertiliser subsidies is significantly negative for these three practices. The results also indicate that receiving extension services is associated with a lower likelihood of adopting crop diversification, and receiving seed subsidies is associated with a higher likelihood of mulching crop residues. As international research and development organizations consider sustainable intensification as a means to effectively address soil degradation and achieve greater agricultural productivity in sub-Saharan Africa, our findings call for the design of agricultural policies to support smallholder agriculture that take into account unintended consequences in terms of disincentives for the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":37831,"journal":{"name":"World Development Perspectives","volume":"36 ","pages":"Article 100645"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142746658","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}