| 1 |
Author(s):
Thierry Maurille Setonde Somakpo.
Page No : 1-17
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Consideration of Socioeconomic Constraints to Finance Households’ Adaptation to Climate Change in the Least Developed Countries: The Case of Benin
Abstract
In the Least Developed Countries (LDC), there is an urgent need to finance households' adaptation to climate change, and several socioeconomic constraints may compromise their resilience to climate risks. Based on data from Benin, a Logit model was used to demonstrate that, apart from climate shocks, households are also affected by declining prices of agricultural products and rising prices of foodstuffs and inputs. The influence of these shocks is independent of the areas of residence. In addition to these variables of interest, the article also highlights the significative influence of other variables. In order to avoid these main constraints from changing the business climate to become disincentivised for household adaptation, their management should be integrated into climate change adaptation planning. Adaptation should be considered within broader development processes, including non-structural policy and institutional frameworks, rather than as an isolated policy that is supported by climate variables alone. This will allow for a better use of the insufficient public funding dedicated to adaptation to climate change.
| 2 |
Author(s):
Israel Olabode Aroge.
Page No : 18-29
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Effect of Public Projects’ Failure on Infrastructural Development in Ondo State, Nigeria
Abstract
The primary concern of infrastructural development is to improve and raise both the standard and quality of life. However, the consistent and worrisome failure creates several effects on infrastructural development. In the current dispensation of the global economy, there is an indication that infrastructural development is fast becoming a central issue in the area of sustainable development. This is a sequel to the fact that infrastructural development is an indispensable factor in sustainable development goals in project management. Hence, investigating the effects of public projects’ failure on infrastructural development is inevitable. In achieving the objectives of this work, a well-structured questionnaire was developed. One hundred and Twenty (120) copies of the questionnaire were distributed across the eighteen (18) Local Government Areas of the State. However, one hundred (110) copies of the questionnaire, representing 91.7%, were returned and found suitable for analysis. The respondents include Engineers, Community leaders, Civil servants and General Public. The data analysis used includes simple descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that economic deficit and poverty increased with a mean of 3.83, followed by lack of social amenities (3.78), poor standard of living (3.72), inability to meet citizen’s needs (3.40), visual effects (3.14) was the effect of public projects poor performance on infrastructural development. Moreover, the results further showed an increase in security risk (2.97), an abode for criminal activities (2.97), and poor urban development (2.78) as an additional effect. The study recommends effective monitoring and proper evaluation of public projects. Policies that support infrastructural projects development continuity is also imperative and should be legislated to improve the infrastructural development in the study area and the nation.
| 3 |
Author(s):
Christogonus Ifeanyichukwu Ugoh, Eghosa Sylvester Igbinosa, Felix Chikereuba Akanno, Pamela Owamagbe Omoruyi, Emwinloghosa Kenneth Guobadia.
Page No : 30-48
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Investigating the Determinants of Inflation in Leading Economies in Africa: A Panel Data Analysis
Abstract
This paper empirically investigates the determinants of inflation in leading economies in Africa, namely Nigeria, South Africa, and Angola for the period 2001-2020. By applying the techniques of the ordinary least square (OLS) panel regression model and fixed effect model, the study finds out broad money growth, deposit interest rate, and lending interest rate positively significantly affected inflation, whereas exchange rate and exports positively affected inflation but not significantly. On the other hand, gross domestic product growth negatively affected inflation, while real interest rates and imports affected inflation negatively but not significantly.
| 4 |
Author(s):
Christogonus Ifeanyichukwu Ugoh, Josephine Olohije Abode, Chukwuemeka Thomas Onyia, Pamela Owamagbe Omoruyi, Emwinloghosa Kenneth Guobadia.
Page No : 49-63
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Evaluating the Determinants of Exchange Rates in Emerging Markets: Evidence from Nigeria and South Africa
Abstract
This paper evaluates empirically the determinants of exchange rates in emerging markets, with emphasis on Nigeria and South Africa during the period 2001-2020. By applying the pooled OLS regression method on both panel data and countries as subsamples, the study finds out that under the panel level, inflation rate, government final consumption expenditure and broad money had a negative effect on exchange rate, and that only government final consumption expenditure effect was significant. On the other hand, real interest rate, current account balance, economic health, GDP per capita, gross capital formation, and trade had positive effects on exchange rate, but only the effects of economic health, gross domestic product per capita, and gross capital formation were significant. For Nigeria, inflation rate and GDP per capita had negative non-significant effect on exchange rate, while the economic health had a negative significant effect on exchange rate; consequently, real interest rate, current account balance, gross capital formation, trade, government final consumption expenditure, and broad money had positive non-significant effect on exchange rate. For South Africa, inflation rate, economic health, and gross capital formation had negative non-significant effect on exchange rate, meanwhile government final consumption expenditure and broad money had negative significant effect on exchange rate; in addition, real interest rate, current account balance, and trade had positive non-significant effect on exchange rate, while GDP per capita had positive significant effect on the exchange rate.
| 5 |
Author(s):
Johnbosco Chukwuma Ozigbu.
Page No : 64-75
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Trade Integration and Economic Well-being: Evidence from Generalised Methods of Moments (GMM) in the D-8 Countries
Abstract
This paper contributes to the trade-development nexus by investigating the link between trade integration and economic well-being in the developing eight (D-8) countries comprising Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Turkiye. Essentially, this paper examined how trade openness, financial openness, and the exchange rate contributed to gross national income (GNI) per capita (a proxy for economic well-being). The panel data obtained from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the World Bank’s World Development Indicator (WDI), and the Chinn-Ito index between 2005 and 2021 were analysed using the two-step generalized method of moments (GMM), panel unit root, and Rao cointegration, among others. Evidence of a long-run relationship among the variables was established from the Kao cointegration test results at the 5 per cent significance level. This suggests that trade integration has a forecasting ability for economic well-being in the D-8 countries. The results of the two-step GMM revealed that trade openness significantly enhanced the economic well-being of the D-8 countries. This finding explains that cross-border trade among the members of the D-8 countries plays a substantial role in improving the standard of living of the population. Similarly, the results showed that as the degree of financial openness grew, economic well-being improved significantly. However, the results further revealed that exchange rate depreciation had an insignificant negative effect on economic well-being. Given the findings, this paper recommends that policymakers in the D-8 countries should synergise to implement a non-restrictive trade policy, gradually collapse the barriers to financial openness, and promote exchange rate stability to create more opportunities for economic development.
| 6 |
Author(s):
David Asuquo Edet, Fabian Ugbe Udida.
Page No : 76-93
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Private Sector Participation and the Provision of Facilities for Universities Business Education Undergraduates’ Acquisition of 21st Century Skills
Abstract
This study investigated private sector participation and the provision of facilities for universities business education undergraduates’ acquisition of 21st century skills. It looked at infrastructural and instructional facilities. Two research questions were answered while two hypotheses guided the study. The population comprised heads of departments, heads of units, senior non-academic staff, 300 and 400 levels students in the 2021/2022 academic session from Vocational and Technical Education departments in which business education is a part drawn from two institutions: University of Calabar (UNICAL) and Cross River University of Technology (CRUTECH). A sample of 124 respondents out of a population of 376 was drawn therefrom. Of this number, 122 copies of the instrument representing 98.39% return rate was achieved. Census technique was used to select the heads of departments, heads of unit and senior non-academic staff, purposive sampling was used in selecting 300 and 400 levels students because they were considered relatively knowledgeable concerning the items contained in the questionnaire, while systematic random sampling was adopted in selecting the 300 and 400 levels students that actually responded to the questionnaire. A validated four point rating scale structured questionnaire titled Private Sector Participation and the Provision of Facilities for Universities Business Education Undergraduates’ Acquisition of 21st Century Skills Questionnaire (PSPPFUBEUSAQ) was used for data collection. A reliability estimate of .84 was achieved for the instrument using Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient after a pilot test. Mean and standard deviation were used in answering the research questions, while population t-test was used in testing the hypotheses at .05 level of significance. Findings revealed among others that the extent of private sector participation in the provision of infrastructural facilities for universities business education undergraduates’ acquisition of 21st century skills is significantly low. Based on this, it was recommended that the government as well as the regulatory authorities should as a matter of importance enact policies that will mandate private sector organizations to regularly donate educational facilities to institutions of learning in their operational areas. Such donations can be carried out as part of their philanthropic corporate social responsibilities which could aggregate a certain percentage of their annual profits.
| 7 |
Author(s):
Dr. Ethelmary Dim, Dr. Oguejiofor Ngozi D.C., Dr. Francisca Ezeanokwasa, Umoru Ladan Abdulwaris.
Page No : 94-105
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Small and Medium Scale Enterprises an Economic Growth Mechanism in Ihala Local Government Area of Anambra State
Abstract
This paper examined Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and Economic Growth in Ihiala LGA. The study identified sources of capital as one of the problems or challenges of SMEs. Objectives were raised in consonance with the hypotheses and useful information needed for the survival of SMEs were suggested. Relevant data for carrying out this research was collected using questionnaire. Stratified random sampling was used for the study. Data was analysed using frequency distribution and Chi-square. Based on the analysis, it was found that SMEs boost economic growth and enhance development in Ihiala LGA of Anambra State. The study concluded that it is imperative that those in rural areas develop ideas and look for opportunities offered by small and medium scale businesses. Based on the findings of this study, recommendations were made that managers and owners of these SMEs should explore business opportunities in Ihiala Local Government Area and make use of them; managers of SMEs used in the study should utilize economic opportunities available or provided by the government; and owners of the SMEs used should provide employment opportunities for people in that environment because it is one of the essence of entrepreneuship.
| 8 |
Author(s):
Oladipo A. Oluwaseun, Nkamnebe O. Edith, Nwokocha A. Florence, Saheed Z. Saheed, Egwaikhide C. I., Alexander A. Abraham.
Page No : 106-120
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Empirical Analysis of the Impact of Road and Construction Capital Expenditure on Economic Growth: Evidence from Nigeria
Abstract
This study examines the impact of road and construction capital expenditure on economic growth in Nigeria. The study covered the period of 1981 to 2020 and employed the Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL) to analyze the annual time series data collected from National Bureau of Statistics, BudgiT and Central Bank of Nigeria Statistical Bulletin. While the data for road and construction capital expenditure were collected from NBS and BudgiT database, the data for gross domestic product and commercial banks’ credit to the construction sector were obtained from CBN statistical Bulletin. The findings reveal that government capital expenditure on road and construction has a negative and statistically insignificant impact on economic growth in Nigeria. The result further shows that commercial banks’ credit to the construction sector has a positive but statistically insignificant impact on economic growth in Nigeria. The study therefore recommends that the government should ensure that allocations to this sector are properly monitored in order to enhance economic growth. Government should also encourage banks to give more loans for infrastructural development by reducing the bank rate.
| 9 |
Author(s):
Watema Joash Robert Alex.
Page No : 121-138
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Improving Household Welfare Through Income Diversity
Abstract
Accepting income diversity by households is regarded as a crucial step in breaking the vicious cycle of poverty. The study aims to investigate the empirical relationship between household welfare and income diversity. We examine the effects of potential endogeneity brought on by selection bias using instrumental variable static panel model regression. The Uganda National Panel Survey waves were used in the study. The results demonstrate that having a variety of sources of income significantly improves household welfare. The findings further revealed that household welfare is significantly predicted by the household head's education while living in the eastern or northern regions has a negative effect on welfare relative to living in the central region. The methods employed in this research were unable to adequately describe the subjective nature of welfare. Future studies may consider taking a pragmatic approach. The utilization of both primary and secondary data for further research may reveal amazing results. In contrast to past research that only used expenditure as a proxy for welfare, the research study advances the literature on welfare by demonstrating the impact of income diversity on household welfare as measured by poverty status and consumption expenditure. The study extends the welfare theory by showing how diversity of income enhances household welfare using a sample of households in Uganda, a developing economy.
| 10 |
Author(s):
Abubakar Okuwa Abdullahi, Abubakar Abbas Uthman.
Page No : 139-150
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The Impact of Cassava Production on Poverty Reduction in Nasarawa State, Nigeria
Abstract
Since Nigeria is now the world poverty capital, poverty remains a life-threatening catastrophe that every level of governance in Nigeria has to fight with all available resources and strategy. Interestingly, over 70% of Nigeria’s population and 80% of Nasarawa state’s population are farmers. Therefore, agricultural sector, specifically Cassava production is identified in this study as a panacea for poverty reduction in Nasarawa state, Nigeria. The study made used of survey design; questionnaires as well as binary logit regression were used as instruments of data collection and analysis. Consequently, the study found that Cassava production has significant impact on poverty reduction in Nasarawa state and recommended amongst other that government should encourage cassava production in a more definitive manner by providing farmers with necessary support, assistance and facilities.
