International Journal of Business and Economic Development

COVID-19 impacts both direct and indirect and at various levels, are currently ominous, and significantly challenge systems in society, economy and environment, influencing governance (GVRN), development (DVMT) and related poverty (PVTY) elements.  This research explores relationships between GVRN and DVMT effects in developing countries (DCs), proposing that transport, supply chain and logistics management (TSCLM) incorporating agility, can enable GVRN more supportive and responsive.  In so doing, efforts for DVMT and PVTY eradication can improve, alleviating problems for individuals and systems left unprepared, bereft and vulnerable.  It is vital to pursue this area of research for theoretical and managerial features in the underexplored contexts are generally still novel. 

To heighten research and practical consciousness of interactions between GVRN, TSCLM and DVMT, especially PVTY effects, this paper engages literature review and associated conceptual model with propositions.  The conceptual model focuses on relationships and interactions, combining institutional theory and organisational learning theory incorporating networking or collaboration, presenting four propositions to sustain further exploration, management and practice. 

In concluding, this researcher presents implications, and suggests future research avenues with respect to interrelationships of GVRN, TSCLM and DVMT.  The incorporation of elements to better enable GVRN relationship with DVMT beneficial to PVTY eradication in business context with COVID-19 hindrances, can assist individuals and firms to be more agile and effective in planning, implementation and output systems and to sustain advantageous outcomes. This research contributes to augmenting theory and practice in supply-chain management, GVRN and DVMT, so researchers, managers and others can benefit from value added in improving processes and practices including success with eradicating COVID-19 hindrances to significant attainments.

Individuals everywhere and every day take decisions and make choices that affect the environment either positively or negatively. By understanding and analysing the determinants and incentives of humans' decision-making process, behavioural economics helps change behaviours toward more sustainable practices using efficient and well- designed policies. Using a survey targeting 4000 households' participants from 11 Egyptian governorates in 2019, the paper explores attitudes' determinants and behaviour's motivations concerning environmental concerns, which- in turn- help policymakers to design effective policies considering households' attitudes. Using a structural equation model, the paper examines the critical links among attitudes, values, and behaviours related to sustainability. It provides empirical evidence from a data set collected from the surveyed sample. The paper also indicates how insights and tools from behavioural economics could help understand attitudes, values, and behaviours. The current study builds on contemporary literature and develops last research to explore how behaviour economics helps policymakers design cost-effective policies to change behaviours toward sustainable environmental practices. The results indicated that behavioural economics has a minimal role in designing sustainable development policies and environmental interventions in Egypt- as a developing country- and showed that there is an overall willingness to change the way of thinking toward more environmentally friendly choices, specifically if policy interventions derive the behaviours in that direction. Finally, many essential recommendations and policy implications were concluded to develop public policies according to environmental sustainability considerations.

This paper examines Russia's Arctic Strategy, in general, and the development of the Northern Sea Route, in particular.  The current Russian regime regards the successful development of the Northern Sea Route (NSR) as the linchpin of its Arctic endeavors and the harbinger of Russia's economic future, focusing upon not only creating a faster and cheaper shipping route from Asia to Europe, but also spiriting out to world markets the vast fossil fuel and mineral deposits that lie in Russia's frozen north.  After discussing recent factors causing Russia's leaders to invest significant resources in its Arctic region and the novel transportation artery, we then focus upon recent steps made toward building out the NSR.  The article concludes with an examination of significant problems plaguing the route's development and provides a tentative assessment of the project's overall soundness.

China is a very interesting country, and the entire world is looking at it. This is not only because of its spectacular rise in the world stage and the fact that it has become one of the largest markets in the world. China has become a superpower economically as well as militarily. Simultaneously it has a penchant for doing things differently – from the established norms and practices, as followed primarily by the West. It is likely that China will be in a position to challenge USA shortly as the number one power in the world. It is also likely that China will soon be influencing world events in a major way. These are the primary reasons for undergoing this study.

The specific objective is to understand in detail one of the grandest and most ambitious schemes floated by any country in modern times - that of the Belt and Road Initiative by China. The author is sure that this project will have a very substantial impact on the strategies and politics of the entire world. The originality of this study is that it takes a macro-view of the entire initiative and dissects the implications for each major region of the entire world - in terms of strategy as well as politics. It wishes to connect Asia and Europe and also bring Africa into the project and thus form a unified market known as Afro-Eurasia. China, also known as PRC (People’s Republic of China), has developed tremendously in the past few decades and has now spare capacities as well as resources. So, it has initiated the project BRI wherein they are giving loans to underdeveloped countries to build infrastructure of these nations.

There are two primary routes which PRC aims to develop. One of them is the land route called the BELT, which connects Europe to China over land. The other is the maritime route through the oceans which again connects the Eastern parts of China right up to Europe – and including Africa in between. The countries along these routes are being helped by China to develop their infrastructure like railways or seaports so that they may also emerge as modern logistics and distribution hubs for transporting goods between China and Europe. PRC thus ensures that it receives its continuous supply of energy requirements and other commodities for consumption. It will also be able to increase its exports right up to Western Europe through these routes which will save them a lot of time and costs also. Some nations are however skeptical about the real intentions of China. These countries think that China is emerging as a major superpower of the world and one day, it might want to dominate this part of the world entirely. Whether China has military intentions or not will be clear sometime later. As of today, China claims that its intentions are completely peaceful.

As a form of a public-private partnership with local authorities, the business improvement district (BID) is created when most businesses or business property owners agree through balloting to manage a delimited commercial area with prior authorization by the local authority. The district is managed through a non-profit organization that provides additional public services such as security, maintenance, infrastructure improvement, and marketing, to improve decaying commercial and residential areas. BIDs have been praised as engines for urban development, filling the need gap between the public and private sector by providing entrepreneurial local public management and augmented public services for socioeconomic revitalization. The business improvement districts (BIDs) and similar forms of a public-private partnership, as a new mechanism for urban renewal and economic development, have emerged in North America five decades ago and quickly adopted in many cities worldwide.

Since 2011, the model has been applied in 8 districts in Albania, contributing to improved business life, infrastructure improvements, and enhanced general public services. This time is considered long enough to offer insights regarding their evolution and transformative effects. This study aims at exploring the adaptation of the business improvement district (BID) model in urban areas in Albania and, at the same time, point out its characteristics, operational and functional activities, accountability, and contribution to business development and area revitalization.

The methodology used in this study adopts a qualitative method, including a case study approach to data gathering Primary data sources include semi-structured interviews with BID association members, administrators, and consultants in Albania, businesses, local government officials, and lawyers. This study will contribute to a more robust contextual understanding of the establishment and effectiveness of BIDs in developing economies

The findings presented demonstrate BID’s transformative role for area regeneration, economic and social development. Furthermore, this study provides additional insights regarding the effects of development organizations’ involvement in this public-private partnership model for area regeneration. The results have important implications for Albania’s public and development policies and provide practical lessons for practitioners in these fields. Furthermore, it contributes to the international literature on BIDs, including evidence of this model applied in a developing economy.