scholarly journals Global e-government development: besides the relative wealth of countries, do policies matter?

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 381-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gonçalo Paiva Dias
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Political Commitment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Relative Wealth ◽  
Innovative Thinking ◽  
High Level ◽  
Government Development

Purpose This study aims to investigate whether, discounting the effect of the relative wealth of countries, it is possible to observe the relevance of policies for e-government development. Design/methodology/approach The deviations of countries' results from what could be expected, considering their relative wealth is calculated by using the residuals of a linear regression using the Gross Domestic Product per capita as the independent variable and the UN E-Government Development Index as the dependent variable. The countries that achieve better and worse results than expected are then identified and their cases are analyzed by resorting to secondary sources, namely, published research referring to their cases. Those research documents were identified by successively searching the Scopus database, the Google Scholar database and the Web of Science. Findings The existence of formal e-government strategies and plans and the capacity to implement them can make a difference, allowing countries to achieve better results than expected or, in their absence, to perform worse than expected. Research limitations/implications The proposed methodology can be useful to e-government researchers, particularly as a basis for deeper and more detailed studies. Practical implications Countries should invest in well-developed and focused strategies and continuity of public policies and their capacity to deliver results. For that purpose, political commitment and high-level coordination are key factors. For low-income countries, long-lasting cooperation with external experienced partners is crucial. For high-income countries, innovative thinking is a key enabler. Originality/value This study uses an innovative method to look beyond the effect of the relative wealth of countries and investigate the relevance of public policies for e-government development.

Foreign capital inflows and economic growth: the experience of low-income countries in Sub Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Atif Awad
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Foreign Capital ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Capital Inflows ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Foreign Capital Inflows ◽  
The Impact

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the long-run impact of selected foreign capital inflows, including aid, remittances, foreign direct investment (FDI), trade and debt, on the economic growth of 21 low-income countries in the Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) region, during the period 1990–2018. Design/methodology/approach To obtain this objective and for robust analysis, a parametric approach, which was dynamic ordinary least squares, and a non-parametric technique, which was fully modified ordinary least squares, were used. Findings The results of both models confirmed that, in the long run, trade and aid affected the growth rate of the per capita income in these countries in a positive way. However, external debt seemed to have an adverse influence on such growth. Originality/value First, this is the initial study that has addressed this matter across a homogenous group of countries in the SSA region. Second, while most of the previous studies regarding capital inflows into the SSA region have focused on the impact of only one or two aspects of such foreign capital inflows on growth, the present study, instead, examined the impact of five types of foreign capital inflows (aid, remittances, FDI, trade and debt).

Private school vouchers for expanding secondary school access? The case of Tanzania

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (7) ◽  
pp. 1307-1318
Author(s):  
Donald R. Baum ◽  
Jacobus Cilliers
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Education ◽  
Secondary School ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Private School ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Financial Burden ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Urban District ◽  
Content Type ◽  
School Voucher

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into the current contributions of private schools to education provision in Tanzania, and to consider the feasibility of a school voucher program to contribute to the expansion of the secondary school system, compared to the alternative expansion of public secondary education. Design/methodology/approach The study offers an analysis of current educational circumstances and educational goals in Tanzania, and projects differential costs and outcomes associated with various options for expanding secondary education. Data come from two sources: a census of the private schooling market in the Morogoro Urban district, conducted as part of the World Bank’s Systems Approach for Better Education Results initiative; and Tanzania’s National Panel Survey 2010–2011. Findings For those students unable to cover the full cost of secondary education, findings suggest that a targeted private school voucher would be an efficient and equitable policy mechanism for secondary school expansion. Such an approach would ease the financial burden on government for constructing all new schools, yet assure access for the most vulnerable. Originality/value The implementation of school voucher programs is increasing in low-income countries. It is important for policy makers to carefully consider the appropriateness of this type of policy intervention for their particular educational contexts. This paper models an approach by which researchers and policymakers can assess the educational circumstances of a particular location, and determine the potential effectiveness of a private school voucher policy.

scholarly journals The 2013-2016 West African Ebola virus outbreak: Local contexts and future issues

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Cecon ◽  
Peter F McGrath
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Emerging Diseases ◽  
West African ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
News Reports ◽  
Literature Searches ◽  
The Many ◽  
High Level ◽  
International Experts

Ebola is just one example of the many emerging and re-emerging diseases that continue to affect mainly the developing world. We argue that the unprecedented high level of infections and deaths in the 2013-2016 West African Ebola epidemic, together with the more general impact of Ebola and other emerging diseases on societies, is reflective of the unpreparedness of affected countries prior to an outbreak. Typically, the healthcare systems of most low-income countries are inadequately prepared to be able to deal with such large and unexpected outbreaks. In this paper, we attempt to analyse the emergence and spread of the West African Ebola epidemic, reviewing the situation in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone prior to the 2013-2016 outbreak. We also highlight some of the additional societal burdens that the outbreak has placed on these countries. By drawing lessons from this epidemic, as well as case studies of other (re-)emerging epidemic infections through a combination of literature searches and news reports, combined with the views of 10 international experts, we develop eight actions that might help potentially susceptible countries and the international community to prevent, contain or better respond to possible future outbreaks.

E-government and transformation of service delivery in developing countries

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 368-390 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noore Alam Siddiquee
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Intimate Knowledge ◽  
Secondary Information ◽  
High Level

Purpose Since 2009, e-government has been high on governmental agenda in Bangladesh. Seen as a vehicle for improving governance and service delivery, it is also presented as a key to fighting poverty and achieving the millennium development goals. Thus, the goals of e-government remain broad and ambitious. Can a developing country such as Bangladesh realize its e-government vision? The purpose of this paper is to explore this and other related questions seeking to draw lessons that the Bangladesh experience may offer. Design/methodology/approach The paper draws primarily on secondary information, complemented by primary data gathered from various sources. In addition to an extensive review of secondary sources, necessary information was derived from websites of relevant government departments/agencies and through interviews and conversations with selected government officials having intimate knowledge on e-government projects at the field and local levels. Findings The paper demonstrates the ways in which various e-initiatives have transformed traditional administrative systems and practices, notwithstanding the nation’s limited overall e-development. It also shows how e-innovations have helped tackle some complex challenges, thereby adding to convenience and benefits to service users. A major conclusion of the paper is that although e-government is yet to make a breakthrough in governance and service delivery, it has set the wheels of change in motion. Practical implications E-government must be seen as a long term project, it must attract high-level political support and it requires fruitful collaboration between the public, private and non-governmental actors. Originality/value This paper adds to the limited knowledge in the field. Lessons learned from the Bangladesh experience have much relevance to other developing countries with similar socioeconomic circumstances. The policymakers and practitioners are expected to benefit from the insights of the paper.

Cross-cultural metacognition as a prior for humanitarian knowledge: when cultures collide in global health emergencies

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tachia Chin ◽  
Jianwei Meng ◽  
Shouyang Wang ◽  
Yi Shi ◽  
Jianxin Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Normative Theory ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Warning Signs ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Global Public Health ◽  
Business World ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cultural Conflicts

Purpose A serious global public health emergency (GPHE) like the COVID-19 aggravates the inequilibrium of medical care and other critical resources between wealthy and poor nations, which, coupled with the collision of cultures, indicates the vital need for developing humanitarian knowledge transcending cultures. Given the scarcity of literature addressing such unprecedent issues, this paper thus proposes new, unconventional viewpoints and future themes at the intersection of knowledge management (KM) and humanitarian inquiry. Design/methodology/approach This paper is conceptual in nature. The data of the World Bank and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs are analysed to introduce some emerging real impact topics regarding cross-cultural conflicts and humanitarian knowledge in the post-COVID business world. The theoretical foundation was built upon a critical literature review. Findings This paper synthesizes the perspectives of culture, KM and the humanistic philosophy to distil the core component of cultural intelligence and comparatively and thereby illuminating why cross-cultural metacognition acts as a priori for achieving cosmopolitan humanitarian knowledge. Research limitations/implications This paper provides profound implications to academics by highlighting the importance to formulating new, inter-disciplinary themes or unorthodox, phenomenon-driven assumptions beyond the traditional KM domain. This paper also offers practitioners and policymakers valuable insights into coping with the growing disparity between high- and low-income countries by showing warning signs of a looming humanitarian crisis associated with a GPHE context. Originality/value This paper does not aim to claim the birth of a new domain but call for more research on developing a normative theory of humanitarian knowledge as transcendence of cultures. It implies uncharted territories of great interest and potential for the real impact KM community.

State fragility and human development: a study with special emphasis on social cohesion

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-61
Author(s):  
Belay Seyoum
Keyword(s):  
Human Development ◽  
Social Cohesion ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Least Squares Regression ◽  
Content Type ◽  
State Fragility ◽  
State Legitimacy ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of state fragility on select indicators of human development and identify aspects of state fragility that have the greatest impact on poverty reduction and sustainable development. The paper also explores the impact of social cohesion on human development as well as the mediating role of state legitimacy in mediating the relationship between social cohesion and human development.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on data from 180 countries and uses ordinary least squares regression and mediation analysis to explore the effects of social cohesion on human development.FindingsThe findings show a significant relationship between state fragility and human development. It suggests that policies and efforts aimed at enhancing social cohesion would have the most significant impact on human development. The findings also show that social cohesion not only has a direct effect on human development but it also has an indirect effect on human development through state legitimacy (mediator).Practical implicationsEven though state fragility has been largely associated with low income countries, different facets of fragility are manifested in various countries regardless of levels of economic development.Originality/valueThe study is timely in view of the evidence of increasing state fragility in many countries. Furthermore, this is the first scholarly work linking lack of social cohesion, state fragility and human development.

Amateurism, scientific control, and crime: historical fluctuations in anti-doping discourses in sport

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-29
Author(s):  
Ian Ritchie ◽  
Kathryn Henne
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Historical Approach ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
The World ◽  
World Anti Doping Agency ◽  
Time Periods ◽  
The Creation ◽  
High Level

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the institutional mechanisms for combating doping in high-level sport, including the trend toward using legalistic frameworks, and how they contribute to notions of deviance. Design/methodology/approach A historical approach informed by recent criminological adaptations of genealogy was utilized, using primary and secondary sources. Findings Three time periods involving distinct frameworks for combating doping were identified, each with their own advantages and limitations: pre-1967, post-1967 up until the creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency in 1999, and post-1999. Originality/value This study contextualizes the recent legalistic turn toward combating doping in sport, bringing greater understanding to the limitations of present anti-doping practices.

scholarly journals Solidarity and social behaviour: how did this help communities to manage COVID-19 pandemic?

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 1183-1200
Author(s):  
Paul Agu Igwe ◽  
Chinedu Ochinanwata ◽  
Nonso Ochinanwata ◽  
Jonathan Olufemi Adeyeye ◽  
Isaac Monday Ikpor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Informal Economy ◽  
Sampling Procedure ◽  
Social Solidarity ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Job Seekers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Resource Pooling ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Poor Households

PurposeDuring the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic lockdowns, stay at home or work from home, many have argued that the westernised non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPI) do not provide remedial in low-income countries like Nigeria, where informal job seekers, street traders, informal labourers and artisans depend mainly on the informal economy. By applying social solidarity (SS) and community-based approach (CBA), the authors evaluate individual acts (trust, altruism and reciprocity) during the lockdown and how these practices evolve from individual approaches to collective actions.Design/methodology/approachThis study reflects on pragmatism research paradigm that enables researchers to maintain both subjectivity in their reflections and objectivity in data collection and analysis. The authors adopt a qualitative method through purposeful and convenience sampling procedure. Data were analysed thematically to identify elements of SS, individual acts, collective or community actions and perceptions.FindingsThe findings reveal that COVID-19 had a disproportionate impact (lack of food and a fall in daily income) on workers, informal job seekers, informal businesses operators and the poor households. As such, the study developed a reflective model of solidarity exhibited by individual acts and collective acts (practices of resource pooling, information sharing, women empowerment, distribution of palliatives and donations) within trusted circles that helped people cope with the lockdown experiences.Practical implicationsSolidarity represents beliefs, practices of values and norms. The SS exhibited by people through NPI would have implications on planning and monitoring the effectiveness of public health programmes during a pandemic in the future.Social implicationsThe findings of citizens and community actions have implications related to the process of building communities – coming together – and solidarity that enhances social development with implications on community health policy agenda during disasters, emergencies and health pandemic.Originality/valueThis is one of the first studies to analyse the relationship between trust, altruism, reciprocity, SS and CBA during the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, it seems reasonable to clarify the concept of SS given the lack of clarity about the definitions from previous studies.

Africa's cancer burden to rise without funding shift

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Health Priorities ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cancer Burden ◽  
Market Expansion

Subject Cancer burden in Africa. Significance Cancer is a growing public health threat in low-income countries, including African states. With the increase in urbanisation, population growth and improving mortality rates, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that by 2020, 16 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed each year, with 70% of those in low-income countries. However, the rise in cancer rates has not been met with changes to aid funding. Global health priorities continue to emphasise infectious diseases, and African countries remain ill-equipped to prevent, diagnose or treat cancer. Impacts Rising consumption of processed foods in urban areas will contribute to an overall rise in non-communicable diseases. African countries are some of the fastest growing markets for tobacco companies as health awareness rises in traditional markets. Global brewers will enjoy significant market expansion in Africa, contributing to increased alcohol consumption. Despite the economic benefits, delayed childbearing and lower fertility in women is set to increase the incidence of breast cancer.

Multilateral governance will advance despite obstacles

2018 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Public Investment ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
System Reform ◽  
Government Ownership ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The World ◽  
Host Government ◽  
Risk Insurance

Subject Reforming the multilateral development banks. Significance The multilateral development bank (MDB) system has resisted pressure on the international order from US nationalism, but the multiplication of MDBs has considerably reduced their collective effectiveness. This fragmentation is preventing them from adapting to global challenges and harnessing private capital for development. The World Bank spring meeting will consider the proposals that the G20 is exploring. Most do not entail institutional change, but others could pave the way for significant reforms. Impacts The ongoing debate about the World Bank’s need for a capital increase will be peripheral to the larger discussion on MDB system reform. If implemented, a cross-MDB risk insurance platform would create a one-stop shop for investors and opportunities for private reinsurers. System-wide securitisation would create new asset classes and expand opportunities for institutional investors. In-country MDB coordination platforms would boost host government ownership of projects in middle-income and stable low-income countries. Estimates suggest that one dollar of capital paid into MDBs can translate into 50 dollars of public investment if allocated effectively.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document