Patchwork of COVID-19 certificates to impede travel

Significance Despite this, there are no common standards for validating vaccination and COVID test results. This is hampering national-level disease containment efforts and also regional and international travel. Impacts Lack of state capacity to produce reliable health records is a major constraint for developing countries. The black market in fraudulent vaccination and test results will proliferate. Political divisions over vaccine mandates will intensify if digital certificates become mandatory in a wider variety of contexts.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunzhu Ji ◽  
Zhenhong Gu ◽  
Ronald Wennersten ◽  
Tong Zhang ◽  
Yixing Duan

PurposeThe purpose of this paper we present a case study where the Swedish planning support system Citylab is applied to a Chinese case in Changzhou's Tianning District.Design/methodology/approachChina's planning system is a vertical system based on policy development on the national level, policies which are to be implemented on local level. There is a gap between the ambitious central policies and the implementations on local levels. China is now exporting its planning model to other developing countries which makes it urgent to show examples of other strategies including more horizontal planning involving the public. The planning system in Sweden is based on a much more horizontal process. Therefore, the authors try to learn from Sweden's vertical planning system in the urban development environment of China.FindingsA key message for policy makers in China is that systems like Citylab can play an important role in developing practical and scalable examples of more sustainable city districts. The paper concludes that a barrier for local sustainability planning in China is still lack of effective communication between local actors including the public.Originality/valueThe authors exemplified Changzhou Tianning District's practical exploration, thus proving the adapted Citylab method's practical operability. Based on the common problems faced by eco-city development in developing countries, the method framework of Citylab is applicable to other developing countries, with strong room for deduction and development.


2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 398-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin C Williams ◽  
Alvaro Martinez-Perez ◽  
Abbi Kedir

Purpose – Reflecting the moral theorisation of bribery as a negative phenomenon, bribery has been widely shown to have a deleterious impact at the national level on economic development and growth. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate whether it is also the case at the firm level that bribery has negative impacts on firm performance. Until now, the few studies conducted in individual nations and regions have produced mixed results. Here, therefore, a more comprehensive evaluation of the relationship between bribery and firm performance is undertaken across the developing world. Design/methodology/approach – To do so, World Bank Enterprise Survey data on 106,805 enterprises across 132 developing countries is used to provide a firm-level analysis of the relationship between bribery and firm performance. Findings – The finding is that bribery enhances firm performance. Firms asserting that it is necessary for enterprises like theirs to give gifts or payments to public officials in order to get things done have 13.9 per cent higher average annual sales growth rates and 48 per cent higher annual productivity growth rates, after controlling for other determinants of firm performance. Practical implications – Given that engaging in bribery at the firm level results in higher firm performance, despite bribery having an overall detrimental negative impact at the country level, public authorities will need to develop measures to alter not only the cost-benefit ratio confronting individual enterprises but also the institutional deficiencies that result in the prevalence of bribery. Originality/value – This is the first firm-level evaluation of the relationship between bribery and firm performance across the developing world.


Mousaion ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 25-54
Author(s):  
Wanyenda Leonard Chilimo

 There is scant research-based evidence on the development and adoption of open access (OA) and institutional repositories (IRs) in Africa, and in Kenya in particular. This article reports on a study that attempted to fill that gap and provide feedback on the various OA projects and advocacy work currently underway in universities and research institutions in Kenya and in other developing countries. The article presents the findings of a descriptive study that set out to evaluate the current state of IRs in Kenya. Webometric approaches and interviews with IR managers were used to collect the data for the study. The findings showed that Kenya has made some progress in adopting OA with a total of 12 IRs currently listed in the Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR) and five mandatory self-archiving policies listed in the Registry of Open Access Repositories Mandatory Archiving Policies (ROARMAP). Most of the IRs are owned by universities where theses and dissertations constitute the majority of the content type followed by journal articles. The results on the usage and impact of materials deposited in Kenyan IRs indicated that the most viewed publications in the repositories also received citations in Google Scholar, thereby signifying their impact and importance. The results also showed that there was a considerable interest in Swahili language publications among users of the repositories in Kenya.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. e005223
Author(s):  
Michael Touchton ◽  
Felicia Marie Knaul ◽  
Héctor Arreola-Ornelas ◽  
Thalia Porteny ◽  
Mariano Sánchez ◽  
...  

IntroductionTo present an analysis of the Brazilian health system and subnational (state) variation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, based on 10 non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs).Materials and methodsWe collected daily information on implementation of 10 NPI designed to inform the public of health risks and promote distancing and mask use at the national level for eight countries across the Americas. We then analyse the adoption of the 10 policies across Brazil’s 27 states over time, individually and using a composite index. We draw on this index to assess the timeliness and rigour of NPI implementation across the country, from the date of the first case, 26 February 2020. We also compile Google data on population mobility by state to describe changes in mobility throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.ResultsBrazil’s national NPI response was the least stringent among countries analysed. In the absence of a unified federal response to the pandemic, Brazilian state policy implementation was neither homogenous nor synchronised. The median NPI was no stay-at-home order, a recommendation to wear masks in public space but not a requirement, a full school closure and partial restrictions on businesses, public transportation, intrastate travel, interstate travel and international travel. These restrictions were implemented 45 days after the first case in each state, on average. Rondônia implemented the earliest and most rigorous policies, with school closures, business closures, information campaigns and restrictions on movement 24 days after the first case; Mato Grosso do Sul had the fewest, least stringent restrictions on movement, business operations and no mask recommendation.ConclusionsThe study identifies wide variation in national-level NPI responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our focus on Brazil identifies subsequent variability in how and when states implemented NPI to contain COVID-19. States’ NPIs and their scores on the composite policy index both align with the governors’ political affiliations: opposition governors implemented earlier, more stringent sanitary measures than those supporting the Bolsonaro administration. A strong, unified national response to a pandemic is essential for keeping the population safe and disease-free, both at the outset of an outbreak and as communities begin to reopen. This national response should be aligned with state and municipal implementation of NPI, which we show is not the case in Brazil.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 669-687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celia Álvarez-Botas ◽  
Víctor M. González-Méndez

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effect of economic development on the influence of country-level determinants on corporate debt maturity, bearing in mind firm size and the period of financial crisis. Design/methodology/approach The authors employ panel data estimation with fixed effects to examine the role of economic development in influencing the relationship between country-level determinants on corporate debt maturity. The paper uses a sample of 30,727 listed firms, belonging to 39 countries, over the period 2005–2012. Findings Corporate debt maturity increases with the efficiency of the legal system and bank concentration and decreases with the weight of banks in the economy. However, the importance of these country determinants is greater in developing than in developed countries. The authors also show that firm size in developed and developing countries influences country determinants of corporate debt maturity. Finally, the results reveal that the financial crisis has affected the debt maturity of firms differently in developed and developing countries, with the effect of bank concentration lengthening debt maturity, this effect being more pronounced in developing countries. Practical implications The findings provide useful insights to guide policy decisions providing access to long-term financing, as corporate debt maturity depends on economic development, institutional environment, banking structure and firm size. Originality/value This study incorporates economic development in explaining the relationship between country-level determinants and corporate debt maturity.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Chen

PurposeBoth foreign and local companies frequently name their brands in foreign language on the market of developing countries, and some of them choose to disclose the brands' country of origin to consumers. The purpose of this research is to investigate the joint effects between the practices of disclosing the actual country of origin of the brands and the language of the brand names on consumers' purchase intention for foreign brands and local brands in developing countries.Design/methodology/approachThe proposed hypotheses were tested in two studies, namely an experiment and a field experimental survey, with stimuli from two product categories.FindingsThe results of the two empirical studies with Chinese participants consistently demonstrate that revealing the actual country of origin of the brands undermines consumers' purchase intention for local brands that use foreign brand names, but does not impact consumers' purchase intention for foreign brands that use local brand names.Originality/valueThis research first investigates the effects of adapting the brand names into local language of developing countries for brands from developed countries on consumers' purchase intention, which provides new insight into the literature on foreign branding and country of origin effects as well as practical implications for brand managers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 245-264
Author(s):  
Victoria Hogan ◽  
Margaret Hodgins ◽  
Duncan Lewis ◽  
Sarah Maccurtain ◽  
Patricia Mannix-McNamara ◽  
...  

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of ill-treatment and bullying experienced by Irish workers and to explore individual and organisational predictors. The most recent national figures available are specific to bullying and predate the economic recession; therefore, this study is timely and investigates a broader range of negative behaviours.Design/methodology/approachA questionnaire survey study on a national probability sample of Irish employees was conducted (N = 1,764). The study design replicated the methodology employed in the British workplace behaviour study.FindingsThe results showed that 43% of Irish workers had experienced ill-treatment at work over the past two years, with 9% meeting the criteria for experiencing workplace bullying. A number of individual and organisational factors were found to be significantly associated with the experience of ill-treatment at work.Research limitations/implicationsThis study provides national-level data on workplace ill-treatment and bullying that are directly comparable to British study findings.Practical implicationsThe findings indicate that a significant number of Irish workers experience ill-treatment at work, and that workplace bullying does not appear to have decreased since the last national study was conducted in Ireland.Social implicationsThis study is of use to the Irish regulator and persons responsible for managing workplace bullying cases, as it identifies high-risk work situations and contributing individual factors.Originality/valueThis study provides national Irish data on workplace behaviour and ill-treatment following a severe economic recession.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 910-920 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sani Abubakar Saddiq ◽  
Abu Sufian Abu Bakar

Purpose The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of economic and financial crimes on the economies of emerging and developing countries. Design/methodology/approach Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines and meta-analysis of economics research reporting guidelines were used to conduct a quantitative synthesis of empirical evidence on the impact of economic and financial crimes in developing and emerging countries. Findings A total of 103 studies were searched, out of which 6 met the selection/eligibility criteria of this systematic review. The six selected studies indicated that economic and financial crimes have a negative impact in emerging and developing countries. Originality/value To the best knowledge of the authors, no published systematic review of the impact of economic and financial crimes in developing countries has been conducted to date.


2014 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 453-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sepehr Ghazinoory ◽  
Ali Bitaab ◽  
Ardeshir Lohrasbi

Purpose – In the last two decades, researchers have paid much attention to the role of cultural values on economic and social development. In particular, the crucial role of different aspects of culture on the development of innovation has been stressed in the literature. Consequently, it is vital to understand how social capital, as a core cultural value, affects the innovation process and the innovative performance at the national level. However, to date, the impact of different dimensions of social capital and innovation has not been properly portrayed or explained. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of four different dimensions of social capital (institutional and interpersonal, associational life and norms) on two of the main functions of national innovation system (NIS) (entrepreneurship and knowledge creation) based on over 50,000 observations in 34 countries. Design/methodology/approach – In this regard, national-level data from the World Values Survey database was employed to quantify social capital. Entrepreneurship is, in turn, assumed to consist of three sub-indexes and 14 indicators based on the Global Entrepreneurship Index. Knowledge creation is also measured through US Patent Office applications. Also, exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling approach were used to build the measurement model and investigate the impact that each factor of social capital had on entrepreneurship and knowledge application, respectively. Measurement and structural models were built and their reliability and validity were tested using various fit indices. Research findings suggest the strong positive effect of institutional trust and networking on entrepreneurship. Also, interpersonal trust and networks were shown to have high influence on knowledge development at the national level. Norms appear to have naïve to medium negative effects on both functions. Findings – Research findings suggest the strong positive effect of institutional trust and networking on entrepreneurship. Also, interpersonal trust and networks were shown to have high influence on knowledge development at the national level. Norms appear to have naïve to medium negative effects on both functions. Originality/value – However, to date, the impact of different dimensions of social capital and innovation has not been properly portrayed or explained.


Author(s):  
Seun Oladele ◽  
Femi Oladele

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of new product on growth of emerging businesses (EBs) through sales volume and market share. Design/methodology/approach – The study surveyed 137 EBs in Kwara State. Two hypotheses were formulated and tested using correlation and regression analyses. Findings – Results show that service industry is dominant among EBs while the manufacturing industry trails. Many EBs are aware of the complexities of new product, its development and contribution to increasing sales volume, market share and ensuring competitive advantage with apparent infrastructural deficiencies. Test results show that there is a significant positive relationship and effect on sales volume and market share. Originality/value – Encouraging EBs to step up and focus on improving product/service portfolio to transform their fortune is explored giving focus to the benefits of increasing sales volume and market share.


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