Search results for: contraceptive policies

Authors: Rahmayanti, Theresia Simatupang, Ronald H. Sianturi

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Corruption criminal act develops rapidly since in the transition era there is weakness in law. Consequently, there is an opportunity for a few people to do fraud and illegal acts and to misuse their positions and formal functions in order to make them rich, and the criminal acts are done systematically and sophisticatedly. Some people believe that legal provisions which specifically regulate the corruption criminal act; namely, Law No. 31/1999 in conjunction with Law No. 20/2001 on the Eradication of Corruption Criminal Act are not effective any more, especially in onus probandi (the burden of proof) on corruptors. The research was a descriptive analysis, a research method which is used to obtain description on a certain situation or condition by explaining the data, and the conclusion is drawn through some analyses. The research used judicial normative approach since it used secondary data as the main data by conducting library research. The system of the burden of proof, which follows the principles of reversal of the burden of proof stipulated in Article 12B, paragraph 1 a and b, Article 37A, and Article 38B of Law No. 20/2001 on the Amendment of Law No. 31/1999, is used only as supporting evidence when the principal case is proved. Meanwhile, how to maximize the implementation of the burden of proof on the perpetrators of corruption criminal act in which the public prosecutor brings a corruption case to Court, depends upon the nature of the case and the type of indictment. The system of burden of proof can be used to eradicate corruption in the Court if some policies and general principles of justice such as independency, impartiality, and legal certainty, are applied.

Keywords: burden of proof, perpetrator, corruption criminal act

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Authors: Hirreche Baghdad Mohamed

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Our research is linked to cultural policies because the initiation to taste and beauty is a matter for all cultural and educational institutions. It's done by a downstream process (programs, actions, lessons, etc.) that begins at a young age in order to inscribe aesthetic values in memories, imaginations, and practices. Preparing future art lovers probably takes a lot of time. Upstream, continuity is ensured by the "cultural industries" which make cultural products available to actors in the "art market" through professional training, production, dissemination, and sales processes. It turns out that the cultural industries borrow from the "classical" industries the same processes and logic: product, production, marketing, diffusion, profit and profits, supply and demand, the market, the creation of wealth, the entrepreneurship. Today, culture has become a product almost like the others. In the cultural industries system, we protect the rights of authors (owners) and the rights of intermediaries (entrepreneurs of culture), and we provide consumers with an accessible product that meets their needs and expectations. We aim to present an inventory and to reveal, through the speeches of the actors themselves, the processes and modes of operation and deployment of the plastic arts market by showing how it is perceived, imagined, and lived in the city of 'Oran from the 2000s to the present day. However, it is possible to clarify this field of research by looking at previous periods; and even to make comparisons with other regions in Algeria in order to give meaning to practices in various contexts.

Keywords: Oran, Algeria, fine art, art market

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Authors: A. Chabert

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The present paper is motivated by the current influence of communicative approaches in language policies around the globe (especially through the Common European Framework of Reference), along with the exponential spread of English as a Lingua Franca worldwide. This study focuses on English language learning and teaching in the last year of primary education in Spain (in the bilingual Valencian region), Norway (in the Trondelag region), and China (in the Hunan region) and proposes a plurilingual communicative approach to ELT in line with ELF awareness and the current retheorisation of ELF within multilingualism (Jenkins, 2018). This study, interdisciplinary in nature, attempts to find a convergence point among English Language Teaching, English as a Lingua Franca, Language Ecology and Multilingualism, breaking with the boundaries that separate languages in language teaching and acknowledging English as international communication, while protecting the mother tongue and language diversity within multilingualism. Our experiment included over 400 students across Spain, Norway, and China, and the outcomes obtained demonstrate that despite the different factors involved in different cultures and contexts, a plurilingual approach to English learning improved English scores by 20% in each of the contexts. Through our study, we reflect on the underestimated value of the mother tongue in ELT, as well as the need for a sustainable ELF perspective in education worldwide.

Keywords: English as a Lingua Franca, English language teaching, language ecology, multilingualism

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Authors: Sankar Majumder

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Development of Rural Entrepreneurs requires a holistic approach involving social, economic, political, technical, and environmental and many other issues. It needs a thorough understanding of the economy and society. It's true that agricultural development, rural development and many other social and right based development programmes have resulted in the growth of income in the rural sector. The development of rural entrepreneurs is necessary to utilise these opportunities. Many programmes and policies in the spheres of organisational, financial, infrastructural and technical supports have been taken to promote rural industries. But if one looks at the growth and development of rural industrial units, especially the manufacturing units, the picture is not promising. This paper aims at analysing the possible causes and its solutions in terms of (1) Mind set of the society towards business as a livelihood; (2) Sufficiency and appropriateness of the existing organisational, financial, infrastructural and technical supports. The paper is based on secondary data on various aspects of rural enterprises and the author’s experiences in the course of his work as a practitioner in this field. Growth of units and employment in the rural industries shows that the entrepreneurs are more inclined towards trading units than towards manufacturing ventures. The growth of rural industries is constrained not by the insufficiency of the supply of finance but by the insufficient demand for finance. The task is to increase the supply of entrepreneurs by creating an entrepreneurial environment. Incubation for rural entrepreneurs is the need of the hour.

Keywords: business mind set, entrepreneurial environment, supply of finance, technical support

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Authors: Daniel Stabler, Anne-Laure Mention, Henri Hakala, Ahmad Alaassar

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In Europe, 2.2 billion tons of waste annually generate severe environmental damage and economic burdens, and negatively impact human health. A stark illustration of the problem is found within the consumer electronics industry, which reflects one of the most complex global waste streams. Of the 5.3 billion globally discarded mobile phones in 2022, only 17% were properly recycled. To address these pressing issues, Europe has made significant strides in developing waste management strategies, Circular Economy initiatives, and Right to Repair policies. These endeavors aim to make product repair and maintenance more accessible, extend product lifespans, reduce waste, and promote sustainable resource use. European countries have introduced Right to Repair policies, often in conjunction with extended producer responsibility legislation, repair subsidies, and consumer repair indices, to varying degrees of regulatory rigor. Changing societal trends emphasizing sustainability and environmental responsibility have driven consumer demand for more sustainable and repairable products, benefiting repair-focused consumer electronics businesses. In academic research, much of the literature in Management studies has examined the European Circular Economy and the Right to Repair from firm-level perspectives. These studies frequently employ a business-model lens, emphasizing innovation and strategy frameworks. However, this study takes an institutional perspective, aiming to understand the adoption of Circular Economy and repair-focused business models within the European consumer electronics market. The concepts of the Circular Economy and the Right to Repair align with institutionalism as they reflect evolving societal norms favoring sustainability and consumer empowerment. Regulatory institutions play a pivotal role in shaping and enforcing these concepts through legislation, influencing the behavior of businesses and individuals. Compliance and enforcement mechanisms are essential for their success, compelling actors to adopt sustainable practices and consider product life extension. Over time, these mechanisms create a path for more sustainable choices, underscoring the influence of institutions and societal values on behavior and decision-making. Institutionalism, particularly 'neo-institutionalism,' provides valuable insights into the factors driving the adoption of Circular and repair-focused business models. Neo-institutional pressures can manifest through coercive regulatory initiatives or normative standards shaped by socio-cultural trends. The Right to Repair movement has emerged as a prominent and influential idea within academic discourse and sustainable development initiatives. Therefore, understanding how macro-level societal shifts toward the Circular Economy and the Right to Repair trigger firm-level responses is imperative. This study aims to answer a crucial question about the impact of European Right to Repair initiatives had on the financial and environmental performance of European consumer electronics companies at the firm level. A quantitative and statistical research design will be employed. The study will encompass an extensive sample of consumer electronics firms in Northern and Western Europe, analyzing their financial and environmental performance in relation to the implementation of Right to Repair mechanisms. The study's findings are expected to provide valuable insights into the broader implications of the Right to Repair and Circular Economy initiatives on the European consumer electronics industry.

Keywords: circular economy, right to repair, institutionalism, environmental management, european union

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Authors: Htay Htay Yi, Zin May Aye

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Network security is role of the ICT environment because malicious users are continually growing that realm of education, business, and then related with ICT. The network security contravention is typically described and examined centrally based on a security event management system. The firewalls, Intrusion Detection System (IDS), and Intrusion Prevention System are becoming essential to monitor or prevent of potential violations, incidents attack, and imminent threats. In this system, the firewall rules are set only for where the system policies are needed. Dataset deployed in this system are derived from the testbed environment. The traffic as in DoS and PortScan traffics are applied in the testbed with firewall and IDS implementation. The network traffics are classified as normal or attacks in the existing testbed environment based on six machine learning classification methods applied in the system. It is required to be tested to get datasets and applied for DoS and PortScan. The dataset is based on CICIDS2017 and some features have been added. This system tested 26 features from the applied dataset. The system is to reduce false positive rates and to improve accuracy in the implemented testbed design. The system also proves good performance by selecting important features and comparing existing a dataset by machine learning classifiers.

Keywords: false negative rate, intrusion detection system, machine learning methods, performance

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Authors: Hong-Yi Lin, Feng-Tyan Lin

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In a Bike-sharing system (BSS), users can easily rent bikes from any station in the city for mid-range or short-range trips. BSS can also be integrated with other types of transport system, especially Green Transportation system, such as rail transport, bus etc. Since BSS records time and place of each pickup and return, the operational data can reflect more authentic and dynamic state of user behaviors. Furthermore, land uses around docking stations are highly associated with origins and destinations for the BSS users. As urban researchers, what concerns us more is to take BSS into consideration during the urban planning process and enhance the quality of urban life. This research focuses on the simulation of travel behavior of BSS users in Kaohsiung. First, rules of users’ behavior were derived by analyzing operational data and land use patterns nearby docking stations. Then, integrating with Monte Carlo method, these rules were embedded into a travel behavior simulation model, which was implemented by NetLogo, an agent-based modeling tool. The simulation model allows us to foresee the rent-return behaviour of BSS in order to choose potential locations of the docking stations. Also, it can provide insights and recommendations about planning and policies for the future BSS.

Keywords: agent-based model, bike-sharing system, BSS operational data, simulation

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Authors: Chusit Apirumanekul, Chayanis Krittasudthacheewa, Ratchapat Ratanavaraha, Yanyong Inmuong

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Rapid economic development in the Lower Mekong region is leading to changes in water quantity and quality. Changes in land- and forest-use, infrastructure development, increasing urbanization, migration patterns and climate risks are increasing demands for water, within various sectors, placing pressure on scarce water resources. Appropriate policies, strategies, and planning are urgently needed for improved water resource management. Over the last decade, Thailand has experienced more frequent and intense drought situations, affecting the level of water storage in reservoirs along with insufficient water allocation for agriculture during the dry season. The Huay Saibat River Basin, one of the well-known water-scarce areas in the northeastern region of Thailand, is experiencing ongoing water scarcity that affects both farming livelihoods and household consumption. Drought management in Thailand mainly focuses on emergency responses, rather than advance preparation and mitigation for long-term solutions. Despite many efforts from local authorities to mitigate the drought situation, there is yet no long-term comprehensive water management strategy, that integrates climate risks alongside other uncertainties. This paper assesses the application in the Huay Saibat River Basin, of the Robust Decision Support framework, to explore the feasibility of multiple drought management policies; including a shift in cropping season, in crop changes, in infrastructural operations and in the use of groundwater, under a wide range of uncertainties, including climate and land-use change. A series of consultative meetings were organized with relevant agencies and experts at the local level, to understand and explore plausible water resources strategies and identify thresholds to evaluate the performance of those strategies. Three different climate conditions were identified (dry, normal and wet). Other non-climatic factors influencing water allocation were further identified, including changes from sugarcane to rubber, delaying rice planting, increasing natural retention storage and using groundwater to supply demands for household consumption and small-scale gardening. Water allocation and water use in various sectors, such as in agriculture, domestic, industry and the environment, were estimated by utilising the Water Evaluation And Planning (WEAP) system, under various scenarios developed from the combination of climatic and non-climatic factors mentioned earlier. Water coverage (i.e. percentage of water demand being successfully supplied) was defined as a threshold for water resource strategy assessment. Thresholds for different sectors (agriculture, domestic, industry, and environment) were specified during multi-stakeholder engagements. Plausible water strategies (e.g. increasing natural retention storage, change of crop type and use of groundwater as an alternative source) were evaluated based on specified thresholds in 4 sectors (agriculture, domestic, industry, and environment) under 3 climate conditions. 'Business as usual' was evaluated for comparison. The strategies considered robust, emerge when performance is assessed as successful, under a wide range of uncertainties across the river basin. Without adopting any strategy, the water scarcity situation is likely to escalate in the future. Among the strategies identified, the use of groundwater as an alternative source was considered a potential option in combating water scarcity for the basin. Further studies are needed to explore the feasibility for groundwater use as a potential sustainable source.

Keywords: climate change, robust decision support, scenarios, water resources management

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Authors: Sajjad Ahmed

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Since September 2001, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) have become a hotbed of Talibanization. The eruption of Talibanization has caused a catastrophic human and socio-economic cost on Pakistan ever since. The vast majority of extant studies have tended to focus on assessing the current disparaging and destructive condition of FATA as a product of the notorious 'Global War on Terrorism' and its consequences in the form of the Afghan war and the rising socio-political unrest in the region. This, however, is not the case. This study argues that the Talibanization has not happened overnight, the magma of current militant volcanic outburst has been stockpiled since the inception of Pakistan in 1947. The study claims that the Talibanization is the expression of the conflict between the privileged and the underprivileged. The prevailing situation in FATA warrants an in-depth analysis of the problem. By using a qualitative and quantitative research principle, this paper attempts to critically examine 'How is Talibanization in Pakistan connected with the political, social, and economic conditions in FATA?' The critical analyses of this study would assist to policymakers in order to formulate all-encompassing anti-radicalization policies to effectively root out Talibanization in FATA. This research intends to explore the undiscovered root causes of the problem and to suggest remedial measures.

Keywords: exclusion, FATA (Federally Administrated Tribal Areas), inequalities, marginalization, Pakistan, socio-economic, talibanization

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Authors: Mohd Sarfaraz

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The objective of this study is to investigate the work-life balance and job satisfaction among women employees in a hospital in India. It is believed that balancing a successful career with a family life or personal life can be challenging. WLB impacts on persons' satisfaction in their work and personal life roles. For this purpose, a questionnaire is developed with 22 items. The data collected from women employees who are working in a hospital in Aligarh, India. The constructs considered in this study include WLB and job satisfaction. The demographic and organisational variables considered in the study are genders, age and tenure of the job. Factors of WLB are flexible working conditions, work-life balance programs, and employee intention to change/leave a job, work pressure/stress and long working hours. This paper examines the relationship between work-family conflict, policies, and job and life satisfaction. Appropriate statistical tool using SPSS will be applied to achieve the objective. The anxiety over work-life balance is progressively becoming a common talk, especially for female employees.Increasing demands from the work and family domains represent a high strain for employees which even lead to the health problems among employees. Although it is believed that work-family role strain is more common among women employees. Therefore, the study will focus on these issues of WLB and job satisfaction among female professionals.

Keywords: work-life balance, job satisfaction, work- family conflict, health

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Authors: Rosemary I. Eneji, Stephen Adi Odey, Edem Carole, Eucharia Nwagbara

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Sexual and reproductive health behaviors are the main causes of death, disability, and disease among adolescents in Nigeria. In this study, we determined the accessibility of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services to secondary school adolescents in southern Cross River state, Nigeria. Nineteen randomly selected public secondary schools across the seven local government areas in the zone were used. The respondents were four hundred senior secondary (classes SSI - SS3) students aged 15-19 years, comprising 63.7% females and 36.3% males. A 50-item structured questionnaire was used for the study. There was a strong influence of age and sex of adolescents, income and occupation of parents, knowledge and awareness of adolescents, and tradition on the accessibility and use of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services (YFSRHS) to the adolescents. The attitude of health workers towards accessibility was of little effect. Overall, youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services were not easily accessible to adolescents in the study area. Thus, there is need to enforce adolescent reproductive health policies in the area. Training and use of trained caregivers and peer educators to attend to adolescents and the inclusion of adolescent reproductive health as a subject in the curriculum are strongly recommended.

Keywords: youth, reproductive health, cross river state, secondary schools, Nigeria

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Authors: Sheriff Muhammad Ibrahim, Tijjani Muhammad

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The study assesses the Islamic Microfinance Bank's role in promoting customers' social welfare, using the newly developed products of Yobe Microfinance Bank to encourage inclusion and alleviate poverty in the Yobe communities. Yobe state is ranked bottom as the poorest in the region and scores low on human development and poverty alleviation. It is clearly indicated low education rates, poor implementation of government policies on poverty, and a high rate of financial exclusion. The study adopted a qualitative approach using random sampling to collect data from customers of Yobe Microfinance Bank. Using the acceptability of the newly introduced sharia complaint products of Yobe Microfinance among the people in Yobe state, using the Structural Equation Modelling, a total of 300 respondents completed the survey using a Likert scale. The study employed Structural Equation Modeling to analyze and test reliability and validity to provide accuracy of respondents' information. The finding indicates the positive relationship between Islamic banking products and customer satisfaction. The study concludes that introducing and consistently managing Islamic products can improve social welfare and reduce poverty through financial inclusion in the state.

Keywords: islamic microfinance, social welfare, products, poverty

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Authors: Esma Birisci, Ronald McGarvey

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One of the common problems in food service industry is demand uncertainty. This research presents a multi-criteria optimization approach to identify the efficient frontier of points lying between the minimum-waste and minimum-shortfall solutions within uncertain demand environment. It also addresses correlation across demands for items (e.g., hamburgers are often demanded with french fries). Reducing overproduction food waste (and its corresponding environmental impacts) and an aversion to shortfalls (leave some customer hungry) need to consider as two contradictory objectives in an all-you-care-to-eat environment food service operation. We identify optimal production adjustments relative to demand forecasts, demand thresholds for utilization of leftovers, and percentages of demand to be satisfied by leftovers, considering two alternative metrics for overproduction waste: mass; and greenhouse gas emissions. Demand uncertainty and demand correlations are addressed using a kernel density estimation approach. A statistical analysis of the changes in decision variable values across each of the efficient frontiers can then be performed to identify the key variables that could be modified to reduce the amount of wasted food at minimal increase in shortfalls. We illustrate our approach with an application to empirical data from Campus Dining Services operations at the University of Missouri.

Keywords: environmental studies, food waste, production planning, uncertain and correlated demand

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Authors: Oluwaseun Adeleke, Samuel O. Ikani, Simeon Christian Chukwu, Fidelis Edet, Anthony Nwala, Mopelola Raji, Simeon Christian Chukwu

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Background: Health service providers are offered in-service training periodically to strengthen their ability to deliver services that are ethical, quality, timely and safe. Not all capacity-building courses have successfully resulted in intended service delivery outcomes because of poor training content, design, approach, and ambiance. The Delivering Innovations in Selfcare (DISC) project developed a Moment of Truth innovation, which is a proven training model focused on improving consumer/provider interaction that leads to an increase in the voluntary uptake of subcutaneous depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-SC) self-injection among women who opt for injectable contraception. Methodology: Six months after training on a moment of truth (MoT) training manual, the project conducted two intensive rounds of qualitative data collection and triangulation that included provider, client, and community mobilizer interviews, facility observations, and routine program data collection. Respondents were sampled according to a convenience sampling approach, and data collected was analyzed using a codebook and Atlas-TI. Providers and clients were interviewed to understand their experience, perspective, attitude, and awareness about the DMPA-SC self-inject. Data were collected from 12 health facilities in three states – eight directly trained and four cascades trained. The research team members came together for a participatory analysis workshop to explore and interpret emergent themes. Findings: Quality-of-service delivery and performance outcomes were observed to be significantly better in facilities whose providers were trained directly trained by the DISC project than in sites that received indirect training through master trainers. Facilities that were directly trained recorded SI proportions that were twice more than in cascade-trained sites. Direct training comprised of full-day and standalone didactic and interactive sessions constructed to evoke commitment, passion and conviction as well as eliminate provider bias and misconceptions in providers by utilizing human interest stories and values clarification exercises. Sessions also created compelling arguments using evidence and national guidelines. The training also prioritized demonstration sessions, utilized job aids, particularly videos, strengthened empathetic counseling – allaying client fears and concerns about SI, trained on positioning self-inject first and side effects management. Role plays and practicum was particularly useful to enable providers to retain and internalize new knowledge. These sessions provided experiential learning and the opportunity to apply one's expertise in a supervised environment where supportive feedback is provided in real-time. Cascade Training was often a shorter and abridged form of MoT training that leveraged existing training already planned by master trainers. This training was held over a four-hour period and was less emotive, focusing more on foundational DMPA-SC knowledge such as a reorientation to DMPA-SC, comparison of DMPA-SC variants, counseling framework and skills, data reporting and commodity tracking/requisition – no facility practicums. Training on self-injection was not as robust, presumably because they were not directed at methods in the contraceptive mix that align with state/organizational sponsored objectives – in this instance, fostering LARC services. Conclusion: To achieve better performance outcomes, consideration should be given to providing training that prioritizes practice-based and emotive content. Furthermore, a firm understanding and conviction about the value training offers improve motivation and commitment to accomplish and surpass service-related performance outcomes.

Keywords: training, performance outcomes, innovation, family planning, contraception, DMPA-SC, self-care, self-injection.

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Authors: Rudolf Egger

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This paper explores the relationships between the basic learning processes of leading trade union workers and their methods for coping with the changes in the life-courses of societies today. It will discuss the fragile discourse on lifelong learning in trade unions and the “production of self-techniques” to get in touch with the new economic forms. On the basis of an empirical project, different processes of the socialization of leading trade union workers will be analysed to discover the consequences of the lifelong learning discourse. The results show what competences they need to develop for the “wider benefits of negotiations”. The main challenge remains to make visible how deeply intertwined trade union learning and education are with development in an ongoing dynamic economic process, rather than a quick-fix injection of skills and information. There is a complex relationship existing between the three ‘partners’, work, learning and society forming. The author suggests that contemporary trade unions could be trendsetters who make their own learning agendas by drawing less on formal education and more on informal and non-formal learning contexts. This is in parallel with growing political and scientific consciousness of the need to arrive at new educational/vocational policies and practices.

Keywords: trade union workers, educational leadership, learning societies, social acting

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Authors: Maria Angelica Trak-Fellermeier, Alison K. Macchi, Rodolfo Galvan, Yolangel Hernandez, Thresia Gambon, Rebeca Martinez, Cristina Palacios

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Poor lifestyle habits, vitamin D deficiency, and inadequate calcium intake, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, may contribute to severe osteopenia in childhood, increasing future fractures and osteoporosis risk. We here present a case of osteopenia in a 13-year-old white, Hispanic, premenarchal girl who completed the baseline visit of the MetA-Bone Trial during the COVID-19 pandemic. The premenarchal girl has a family history of osteoporosis (maternal grandfather) but no previous fractures; moderate outdoor activity was <1 hour/day 3 times/week with 8 hours/day of sleep. Consumption of dairy products and vegetables was <1 serving/day. Lab blood tests confirmed vitamin D deficiency (serum 25(OH)D: 9 ng/L) and hyperphosphatemia (5.2 mg/dL); other tests were normal. DXA scan Z‐score was ‐2.2 SD (indicative of osteopenia by age and sex). The premenarchal girl was referred to a pediatrician, who confirmed the results, and prescribed a daily supplement with 2000 IU of vitamin D and 1000 mg of calcium. Seclusion during the COVID-19 pandemic may have contributed to the severity of the findings. Therefore, we recommend screening children undergoing growth spurts for vitamin D, calcium, and poor lifestyle habits during and after the pandemic.

Keywords: bone mass, vitamin D, puberty, Hispanic

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Authors: Ali Babaei

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There is a worldwide growing tendency toward construction of infrastructures with the possibility of private sector participation instead of free exploitation of public infrastructures. The construction and development of roads through private sector participation is performed by different countries because of appropriate results and benefits such as compensation of public budget deficit in road construction and maintenance and responding to traffic growth (demand). Toll is the most definite form of budget provision in road development. There are two issues in the toll rate assignment: A. costing of transport, B. Cost allocation and distribution of cost between different types of vehicles as each vehicle pay its own share. There can be different goals in toll collection and its extent is variable according to the strategy of toll collection. Costing principles in different countries are based on inclusion of the whole transport and not peculiar to the toll roads. For example, fuel tax policy functions where the road network users pay transportation cost (not just users of toll road). Whereas transportation infrastructures in Iran are free, these methods are not applicable. In Iran, different toll freeways have built by public investment and government provides participation in the road construction through encouragement of financial institutions. In this paper, the existing policies about the toll roads are studied and then the appropriate method of costing and cost allocation to different vehicles is introduced.

Keywords: toll allocation, road pricing, transportation, financial and industrial systems

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Authors: Rungrot Trongsakul

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This paper was aimed to study the model of education cooperation during Thailand and neighbor countries, especially the countries which the territory-cohesion border with Thailand used “Soft Power” to enhance the good relationship. This research employed qualitative method, analyzed and synthesized the content of cooperation projects, policies, laws, relevant theories, relevant research papers and documents and used SWOT analysis. The research findings revealed that Thailand’s education cooperation projects with neighbor countries had two characteristics: 1) education cooperation projects/programs were a part in economic cooperation projects, and 2) there were directly education cooperation projects. The suggested education cooperation model was based on the concept of “Soft Power”, thus the determination of action plans or projects as key factors of public and private organizations should be based on sincere participation among people, communities and relevant organizations of the neighbor countries. Adoption of education-cultural exchange, learning and sharing process is a key to strengthen good relationship of the countries’ cooperation. The roles of education in this included sharing and acceptance of culture and local wisdom, human resource development, knowledge management, integration and networking building could enhance relationship between agents of related organizations of Thailand and neighbors countries.

Keywords: education, soft-power, relationship, cooperation, Thailand neighboring countries

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Authors: Dena Alhaloul

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The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is characterized by diverse cultures, economies, and social structures. Fertility rates in MENA have seen significant changes over time, with variations among countries and subregions. Understanding fertility patterns in this region is essential due to its impact on demographic dynamics, healthcare, labor markets, and social policies. Rising or declining fertility rates have far-reaching consequences for the region's socioeconomic development. The main thrust of this study is to comprehensively examine fertility rates in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. It aims to understand the distribution, determinants, and temporal trends of fertility rates in MENA countries. The study seeks to provide insights into the factors influencing fertility decisions, assess how fertility rates have evolved over time, and potentially develop statistical models to characterize these trends. As for the methodology of the study, the study uses descriptive statistics to summarize and visualize fertility rate data. It also uses regression analyses to identify determinants of fertility rates as well as statistical modeling to characterize temporal trends in fertility rates. The conclusion of this study The research will contribute to a deeper understanding of fertility dynamics in the MENA region, shedding light on the distribution of fertility rates, their determinants, and historical trends.

Keywords: fertility, distribution, modeling, regression

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Authors: C. F. Popoola, P. Osho, S. B. Babarinde

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This study examined economic indicators as correlates of inward FDI. An exploratory research design was used to obtained annual published data on inflation rate, market size, exchange rate, political instability, human development, and infrastructure from Central Bank of Nigeria, National Bureau of Statistics, Nigerian Capital Market, Nigeria Institute of Social and Economic Research, and UNCTAD. Data generated were analyzed using Pearson correlation, analysis of variance and regression. The findings of the study revealed that market size (r = 0.852, p < 0.001), infrastructure (r = 0.264, p < 0.001), human development (r = 0.154, p < 0.01) and exchange rate ( r= 0.178, p < 0.05) correlate positively with inward FDI, while inflation rate (r = -0.88, p < 0.001), and political instability (r= -0.102, p < 0.05) correlate negatively with inward FDI. Findings also revealed that the economic indicators significantly predicted inward FDI (R2 = 0.913; F(1,19) = 29.40; p < 0.05) for Nigeria. It was concluded that exchange rate, market size, human development, and infrastructure positively related to inward FDI while the high level of inflation and political instability negatively related to inward FDI. Therefore, it was suggested that policy makers and government agencies should readdress steps and design policies that would encourage more FDI into the country.

Keywords: exchange rate, foreign direct investment, human development, inflation rate, infrastructure, market size, political instability

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Authors: Trinh Hoang Hong Hue

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Citizen Participation has been largely considered as an important objective of improving democracy and government decision-making in Vietnam recently. The Public Administration Performance Index Survey data (PAPI) indicated that citizens in provinces that have a higher proportion of male often less participate in local governance than those in provinces that have lower proportion of male. That means Vietnamese women more actively participate at the local governance rather than men. Thus this study will explore factors involving gender differences that impact on citizen participation at the local level. Applying qualitative approach, mainly in-depth interview, this study explores four diverse perspectives on enhancing citizen participation for both women and men at the local governance including civic knowledge; the trust of citizens; suitable policies of local government; and the role of NGOs. Furthermore, this study also points out two crucial reasons that are leading to the gender differences of citizen participation at the local level. Firstly, because Vietnamese women play the main role in family financial management; then they are willing to highly contribute to ‘voluntary contributions’; one of the four sub-dimensions of the concept ‘citizen participation’ of PAPI. Secondly, in Vietnam, women are deeply prone to be interested in the small issues at the local governance; whereas men are much keen on the bigger issues at national and international governance.

Keywords: citizen participation, gender, women, local governance, PAPI, Vietnam

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Authors: Seyed Hossein Iranmanesh, Hassan Nouri, Seyed Reza Iranmanesh

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In the dynamic and complex landscape of today’s business, organizations often face challenges in impactful decision-making across multi-project settings. To efficiently allocate resources, coordinate tasks, and optimize project outcomes, establishing robust decision-making processes is essential. Furthermore, the increasing importance of information systems and their integration within organizational workflows introduces an additional layer of complexity. This research proposes the use of blockchain technology as a suitable solution to enhance decision-making in multi-project environments, particularly within the realm of information systems. The conceptual framework in this study comprises four independent variables and one dependent variable. The identified independent variables for the targeted research include: Blockchain Layer in Integrated Systems, Quality of Generated Information ,User Satisfaction with Integrated Systems and Utilization of Integrated Systems. The project’s performance, considered as the dependent variable and moderated by organizational policies and procedures, reflects the impact of blockchain technology adoption on organizational effectiveness1. The results highlight the significant influence of blockchain implementation on organizational performance.

Keywords: multi-project environments, decision support systems, information systems, blockchain technology, decentralized systems.

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Authors: Merieleen Engtipi

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India's total share of global population is nearly 18%; however, its per capita energy consumption is only one-third of global average. The demand and supply of electricity are uneven in the country; around 240 million of the population have no access to electricity. However, with India's trajectory for modernisation and economic growth, the demand for energy is only expected to increase. India is at a crossroad, on the one hand facing the increasing demand for energy and on the other hand meeting the Paris climate policy commitments, and further the struggle to provide efficient energy. This paper analyses the policies to meet India’s need for energy, as the per capita energy consumption is likely to be double in 6-7 years period. Simultaneously, India's Paris commitment requires curbing of carbon emission from fossil fuels. There is an increasing need for renewables to be cheaply and efficiently available in the market and for clean technology to extract fossil fuels to meet climate policy goals. Fossil fuels are the most significant generator of energy in India; with the Paris agreement, the demand for clean energy technology is increasing. Finally, the U.S. decided to withdraw from the Paris Agreement; however, the two countries plan to continue engaging bilaterally on energy issues. The U.S. energy cooperation under Trump administration is significantly vital for greater energy security, transfer of technology and efficiency in energy supply and demand.

Keywords: energy demand, energy cooperation, fossil fuels, technology transfer

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Authors: Catherine Chua, Kashif Raza

Abstract:

Work-integrated learning (WIL) has been heightened in the last few years across countries. With a specific attention on working adults, the key objective is to integrate work experiences with academic studies so that they will be given more opportunities to advance, gather relevant skills and credentials to enable them to contribute more positively to the labour market. In Singapore, developing talent through WIL aims to develop specialist and enduring skills for the industries. Collaborating with the institutes of higher education in Singapore, the Integrated Work Study Programs (IWSP) seek to harmonize classroom learning with practical work experiences so that adult students can develop skills and knowledge that are needed in the existing and future workplaces. Local higher education institutions will also work closely with industry partners, and design courses that support these students to deepen their skills. Using Critical Discourse Analysis, this paper examines the Singapore government policies in WIL and argues that despite the various supports and interventions provided by the government, it is equally important to create a ‘space’ in the society whereby there is a greater recognition for WIL as a valuable education approach, i.e., “continuous meritocracy”. This is especially so in Singapore where academic excellence and conventional front-loaded approach to education are valued.

Keywords: work-integrated learning, adult learners, continuous meritocracy, skillsfuture singapore

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Authors: Tim Nedyalkov

Abstract:

A business decision to move to the cloud brings fundamental changes in how an organization develops and delivers its Information Technology solutions. The accelerated pace of digital transformation across businesses and government agencies increases the reliance on cloud-based services. They are collecting, managing, and retaining large amounts of data in cloud environments makes information security and data privacy protection essential. It becomes even more important to understand what key factors drive successful cloud adoption following the commencement of the Privacy Amendment Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB) Act 2017 in Australia as the regulatory changes impact many organizations and industries. This quantitative correlational research investigated the governance, risk management, and compliance factors contributing to cloud security success. The factors influence the adoption of cloud computing within an organizational context after the commencement of the NDB scheme. The results and findings demonstrated that corporate information security policies, data storage location, management understanding of data governance responsibilities, and regular compliance assessments are the factors influencing cloud computing adoption. The research has implications for organizations, future researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and cloud computing providers to meet the rapidly changing regulatory and compliance requirements.

Keywords: cloud compliance, cloud security, data governance, privacy protection

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Authors: James M. Wakiru, Liliane Pintelon, Peter Muchiri, Peter Chemweno

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The fast-changing business and operational environment are forcing organizations to adopt asset performance management strategies, not only to reduce costs but also maintain operational and production policies while addressing demand. To attain optimal asset performance management, a framework that ensures a continuous and systematic approach to analyzing an organization’s current maturity level and expected improvement regarding asset maintenance processes, strategies, technologies, capabilities, and systems is essential. Moreover, this framework while addressing maintenance-intensive organizations should consider the diverse business, operational and technical context (often dynamic) an organization is in and realistically prescribe or relate to the appropriate tools and systems the organization can potentially employ in the respective level, to improve and attain their maturity goals. This paper proposes an asset maintenance maturity model to assess the current capabilities, strength and weaknesses of maintenance processes an organization is using and analyze gaps for improvement via structuring set levels of achievement. At the epicentre of the proposed framework is the utilization of maintenance objective selected by an organization for various maintenance optimization programs. The framework adapts the Capability Maturity Model of assessing the maintenance process maturity levels in the organization.

Keywords: asset maintenance, maturity models, maintenance objectives, optimization

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Authors: T. Garba, Y. Y. Babanyara, M. Isah, A. K. Muktari, R. Y. Abdullahi

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The increased in demand of fuel wood for heating, cooking and sometimes bakery has continued to exert appreciable impact on natural vegetation. This study focus on the use of multi-temporal data from land sat TM of 1986, land sat EMT of 1999 and lands sat ETM of 2006 to investigate the changes of Natural Vegetation resulting from charcoal production activities. The three images were classified based on bare soil, built up areas, cultivated land, and natural vegetation, Rock out crop and water bodies. From the classified images Land sat TM of 1986 it shows natural vegetation of the study area to be 308,941.48 hectares equivalent to 50% of the area it then reduces to 278,061.21 which is 42.92% in 1999 it again depreciated to 199,647.81 in 2006 equivalent to 30.83% of the area. Consequently cultivated continue increasing from 259,346.80 hectares (42%) in 1986 to 312,966.27 hectares (48.3%) in 1999 and then to 341.719.92 hectares (52.78%). These show that within the span of 20 years (1986 to 2006) the natural vegetation is depreciated by 119,293.81 hectares. This implies that if the menace is not control the natural might likely be lost in another twenty years. This is because forest cleared for charcoal production is normally converted to farmland. The study therefore concluded that there is the need for alternatives source of domestic energy such as the use of biomass which can easily be accessible and affordable to people. In addition, the study recommended that there should be strong policies enforcement for the protection forest reserved.

Keywords: charcoal, classification, data, images, land use, natural vegetation

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Authors: Milda Istiqomah

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Deradicalization program has long been the subject of investigation. There is a steadily growing interest in examining the results on how Islamist terrorists agree to abandon violence and leave radicalism; however, it is argued that de-radicalization program on terrorism in many countries is still questionable for its effectiveness. This article aims to provide an overview of the deradicalization program specifically related to the victim-centred approach conducted by the Indonesian government and investigates critical issues surrounding the analysis of their effectiveness and outcomes. This research employs several case studies of a victim-centred approach conducted by the Indonesian Witness and Victim Protection Agency as well as the Indonesian Counter-terrorism Agency. This paper argues that the victim-centred approach to de-radicalize former terrorist prisoners faces several implemental challenges; however, the initiative may offer promise for future successful de-radicalization program. Furthermore, until more data surrounding the efficacy of this initiative available, the victim-centred approach may also constitute a significant and essential component of disengagement, de-radicalisation, and reintegration of terrorist prisoners. In conclusion, this paper suggests that further empirical research concerning prevention policies and disengagement interventions related to victim-centred approach need to be explored to give more inputs to the Indonesian government to achieve the effectiveness of de-radicalization program.

Keywords: terrorism, victim-centred approach, de-radicalization, Islamist extremism

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Authors: Ahmad E. Aldousaria, Abdulla Al Kafy

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Urbanization is an incessant process that involves the transformation of land use/land cover (LULC), resulting in a reduction of cool land covers and thermal comfort zones (TCZs). This study explores the directional shrinkage of TCZs in Kuwait using Landsat satellite data from 1991 – 2021 to predict the future LULC and TCZ distribution for 2026 and 2031 using cellular automata (CA) and artificial neural network (ANN) algorithms. Analysis revealed a rapid urban expansion (40 %) in SE, NE, and NW directions and TCZ shrinkage in N – NW and SW directions with 25 % of the very uncomfortable area. The predicted result showed an urban area increase from 44 % in 2021 to 47 % and 52 % in 2026 and 2031, respectively, where uncomfortable zones were found to be concentrated around urban areas and bare lands in N – NE and N – NW directions. This study proposes an effective and sustainable framework to control TCZ shrinkage, including zero soil policies, planned landscape design, manmade water bodies, and rooftop gardens. This study will help urban planners and policymakers to make Kuwait an eco–friendly, functional, and sustainable country.

Keywords: land cover change, thermal environment, green cover loss, machine learning, remote sensing

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Authors: Rakiya Abba

Abstract:

This paper investigates the effect of the money supply, exchange and interest rate on economic growth in Nigeria through the application of Augmented Dickey-Fuller technique in testing the unit root property of the series and Granger causality test of causation between GDP, money supply, the exchange, and interest rate. The results of unit root suggest that all the variables in the model are stationary at 1, 5 and 10 percent level of significance, and the results of Causality suggest that money supply and exchange granger cause IR, the result further reveals two – way causation existed between M2 and EXR while IR granger cause GDP the null hypothesis is rejected and GDP does not granger cause IR as indicated by their probability values of 0.4805 and confirmed by F-statistics values of 0.75483. The results revealed that M2 and EXR do not granger causes GDP, the null hypothesis is accepted at 75percent 18percent respectively as indicated by their probability values of 0.7472 and 0.1830 respectively; also, GDP does not granger cause M2 and EXR. The Johansen cointegration result indicates that despite GDP does not granger cause M2, IR, and EXR, but there existed 1 cointegrating equation, implying the existence of long-run relationship between GDP, M2 IR, and EXR. A major policy implication of this result is that economic growth is function of and money supply and exchange rate, effective monetary policies should direct on manipulating instruments and importance should be placed on justification for adopting a particular policy be rationalized in order to increase growth in economy

Keywords: economic growth, money supply, interest rate, exchange rate, causality

Procedia PDF Downloads 267