Everyday speculation in the remaking of peri-urban livelihoods and landscapes

Peri-urbanization is transforming the urban-rural interface of metropolitan areas across the global south. Large-scale planned developments and infrastructure projects result in the widespread displacement of residents and the disappearance of agricultural fields, vegetable plots, and small enterprises. Through multi-year fieldwork in eastern peri-urban Jakarta, we shift the optic from the large players driving these transformations—developers, land brokers, and investors—to examine how residents of peri-urban settlements (kampungs) respond to unexpected developments and manage the uncertainties associated with market-induced displacement. We conceptualize their practices as everyday speculation, extending speculation beyond its financial meaning to include social and cultural aspects. Both displacees in relocation kampungs and holdouts in kampungs subject to displacement make the most of emergent spatiotemporal rent gaps to devise ways to improve their livelihoods and accumulate wealth, but they also attempt to realize their social and cultural aspirations of reproducing kampung ways of life characterized by dense social networks and commoning practices such as mutual aid. Speculation reinforces pre-existing economic inequalities among kampung residents but is not obliterating social and cultural values that contest the norms of neoliberal global urbanism. Scaling up from everyday speculation by individual households, we identify three paths of kampung transformation that are concatenating across a shape-shifting speculative kampung landscape that coexists in a complex and synergistic relationship with the planned developments. Understanding residents’ everyday actions is thus important to grasping the full scope of peri-urbanization.

Multiplier elements of innovation: towards an innovation model in the Mexican micro and small business

Innovation is a fundamental strategy to generate and maintain a competitive position in the market, however, the companies’ ability to generate innovations is not an easy task, as there are different factors that influence it. Although several innovation models have been developed, no ad hoc models have been proposed to the conditions of micro and small enterprise, nor the structural conditions in developing countries. Therefore, the objective of this research is to identify and analyze the most relevant management factors that drive innovation in Mexican micro and small business. To this end, 594 micro and small businesses from the Laja-Bajío region belonging to the commercial sector, service and manufacture, were surveyed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to identify their needs on innovation generation. The results show that technology management, marketing strategies and human resources management are the key elements to drive innovation in the MSEs (Micro and Small enterprises).

The Benefits of e-Commerce before and during the Covid-19 Pandemic for Small Enterprises in Indonesia

This study aims to analyze the benefits of e-commerce for small enterprises and its consequences before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, it examines the effects on the decrease in income of small enterprises and their response to a regulation restricting community activities. It also provides an outline of the support needed by small businesses. Meanwhile, a descriptive analysis and a paired t-test were used to analyze data (525 small enterprises in Indonesia) from an online questionnaire survey between May and June 2021. The results showed several significant discoveries, including the following: first, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a decline in revenue. Second, limits on community activities exacerbate the plight of small enterprises. Third, small enterprises sought several forms of assistance, with working capital accounting for the lion`s share of requests. Finally, substantial variations exist in respondents` perceptions of the benefits of e-commerce before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, these results contribute to the small medium enterprises literature and have significant policy implications for developing countries.

Can government financial support enhance job creations: insights from Oman

Purpose Promoting and supporting entrepreneurship is a critical pillar of Oman’s vision 2040. The need to understand to what extent the effectiveness of public funds given to micro and small enterprises in Oman as well as to understand the characteristics of the funds that can drive the impact of such government financial support programs on those enterprises motivated us to conduct this study. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of the government loan support programs on job creation in micro and small enterprises in Oman. Design/methodology/approach Hypotheses were tested using data collected from 1,127 micro and small enterprises that received loan supports from the Government of Oman. The authors explored the impact of a set of predictors on a dependent variable (job creation) to understand to what extent do the supported micro and small enterprise characteristics significantly influence job creations in the enterprises. Multiple regression and General Linear Model Multivariate Analysis statistical techniques were used to test the hypotheses. Findings There is a positive relationship between government supported firms’ characteristics and job creation for both nationals and expatriates’ employment. The empirical results suggest that, when compared with the micro enterprises, the small enterprises were able to create more jobs for nationals than for expatriates, although the effect of the support program on job creation was significant for both groups. Originality/value This paper contributes to the literature debate on the effectiveness of Oman’s entrepreneurship policy. Using multivariate analysis, the study analyzes the public support program for enterprises in Oman and how it can be improved to support the Oman 2040 Vision.

Developing Capabilities for Sustainability in Family Small Enterprises

Though literature in family perpetuity and sustainability is well documented from the advanced economies, there is scarcity of insights from emerging markets where this research relates. The study, therefore, sought to investigate, understand, and interpret the underlying drivers of sustainability in small family businesses using the stewardship theory paradigm in the Nigerian family business environment. A qualitative method with 41 in-depth interviews involving owners and managers of family-owned small and medium businesses was conducted. The study empirically shows that there is an interrelationship between family structure and business sustainability; hence, the practice of polygamy was found to be inimical to family business success and sustainability. Building on the stewardship theory, the paper develops a model of sustainability for small and medium family businesses. The study contributes to the theoretical literature on stewardship and family business sustainability.

Adoption of Libra as a Digital Currency in Thailand

Libra, Facebook's cryptocurrency, is expected to have an impact on the global monetary system; therefore, it is interesting to investigate Libra's adoption in Thailand. The objectives of this research are to examine the key factors in the acceptance of Libra and to gain an understanding of Libra. Logistic regression analysis was used for data analysis. The results indicate that Libra coins have not been accepted among Thais yet. Factors in influencing the acceptance of Libra are age, career, saving, social media, and knowledge scores. To encourage the adoption of Libra, the chapter suggests that gaining knowledge about cryptocurrency nationwide should be prioritised. Moreover, financial institutions should encourage the usage of cryptocurrency among low-saving clients and small enterprises as these groups tend to accept Libra rather than those with a large amount of savings. If cryptocurrencies are accepted nationwide, it might attract investors and boost Thai economic growth.