This research aims to identify best practices and policy guidelines that foster sustainable urban ecotourism. As urban areas continue to expand, integrating ecotourism into urban planning emerges as a critical approach to sustainable development. This paper compares the policies and practices of urban ecotourism development in Thailand and China, aiming to construct a sustainable framework applicable to urban ecotourism development. Employing a comparative literature review, this research synthesizes findings from peer-reviewed journals, governmental reports, and case studies published between 2000 and 2024. The analysis focuses on the policies and practices adopted by Thailand and China to promote urban ecotourism, examining their effectiveness, challenges, and outcomes. The review shows distinct approaches in the two countries, with Thailand emphasizing community-based practices and stakeholder involvement and China primarily focusing on top-down policy initiatives for urban ecotourism development. Despite differing strategies, both countries demonstrate a commitment to integrating ecotourism into urban development plans. From the environmental, socio-cultural, and economic three dimensions, key successes include enhanced biodiversity conservation, increased local community participation, and improved tourist satisfaction. Challenges such as inadequate policy implementation, environmental degradation, and the sustainability of ecotourism practices are also discussed. The conclusion is that a holistic approach to urban ecotourism development that aligns policy and practice with the principles of sustainability is meaningful. The proposed framework offers actionable insights for policymakers, urban planners, and ecotourism practitioners aiming to use the potential of ecotourism as a tool for sustainable urban development in Thailand, China, and beyond.

This work centres on the contribution of the Nigerian government’s Anchor Borrowers’ Programmes on rice production in the country. This study employs quantitative methodology and with a primary objective to dissect the efficacy of modern farming techniques facilitated by the Anchor Borrowers’ Programmes (ABP), evaluates the advantages and disadvantages inherent in rice production under this programme. Conducted within the agricultural landscape of Ebonyi State, Nigeria, this study adopts a cross-sectional survey approach to gauge the symbiotic relationship between rice production and the ABP. Targeting a cohort of rice smallholder farmers who have directly benefited from the program, the work employs stratified random sampling and purposeful selection techniques to guarantee comprehensive representation within a population of 400 respondents. This study utilizes the mixed-methods approach to data collection, including structured questionnaires administered to rice farmers in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. This research tests hypotheses by utilising statistical tools such as regression analysis. The outcome of this study underscores the imperative for continued support and refinement of the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme. Moreover, it elucidates the pivotal role of financial institutions and agricultural lending agencies in equipping farmers with the requisite skills and resources. Ultimately, this study affirms the crucial role of modern farming methodologies in propelling rice production within Ebonyi State, Nigeria. It recommends that young school leavers, especially those in the rural areas should also be encouraged to venture into agriculture through schemes such as the ABP, bank financing and innovative financing so as to help the Federal Government achieve its economic diversification drive.

This research aims to do the assessing the feasibility of the Public-Private Partnership project in investing in the construction of the Palu-Parigi By-pass road through a PPP financing scheme, thereby providing opportunities for the private sector to participate in the provision of special road infrastructure. In this context, experimental criteria for determining Value for Money (VFM) are applied using the PPP model, to evaluate projects. The main objective also emphasizes the provision of greater VFM Goods through private financing, through conventional methods that are economical, efficient and effective. Furthermore, financial performance measurement reports apply several methods, including Payback Period (PP), Net Present Value (NPV), and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) which determine the feasibility and time required for returns on invested capital. The previous Economic Feasibility Study of the Palu-Parigi By-pass Road Construction project also showed an EIRR value of 20.1% in 2014, illustrating the economic development of this work. In connection with the limitations currently faced by the Regional Budget Agency of Central Sulawesi Province, the next PPP scheme is recommended for road construction by prioritizing infrastructure completion after the 28 September 2018 earthquake and the COVID-19 pandemic. The DBFMT (Design–Build–Finance–Maintenance–Transfer) model was also applied to the project, with GCA responsible for design, construction, financing, periodic maintenance and transfer at the end of the collaboration agreement.

COVID-19 has presented considerable challenges to fiscal budget allocations in developing countries, significantly affecting decisions regarding number of investments in the transport sector where precise resource allocation is required. Elucidating the long-term relationship between public transport investment and economic growth might enable policymaker to effectively make a decision in regard to those budget allocation. Our paper then utilizes Thailand as a case study to analyze the effects on economic growth in a developing country context. The study employs Cointegration and Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) techniques to account for long-term correlations among explanatory variables during 1991–2019. The statistical findings reveal a significantly positive correlation between transport investment and economic growth by indicating an increase of 0.937 in economic growth for every one-percent increment in transport investment (S.D. = 0.024, p < 0.05). This emphasizes the potential of expanding the transport investment to recover Thailand’s economy. Furthermore, in terms of short-term adjustments, our results indicate that transport investment can significantly mitigate the negative impact of external shocks by 0.98 percent (p < 0.05). These findings assist policymakers in better managing national budget allocations in the post-Covid-19 period, allowing them to estimate the duration of crowding-out effects induced by shocks more effectively.

The rapid progress of information technology has made public online participation in policy formulation an inevitable product of modern government reshaping and reconstruction. However, compared with developed countries, citizens’ online participation in policy formulation in China started relatively late. Thus, in order to explore an effective and efficient method for Chinese citizens’ participation in policy formulation, this research made a brief review of the experiences from the typical developed country of United States of America at first, followed by some other developed countries such as Singapore, South Korea, and Japan in Asia with similar situations. Still, combined with the current situation of the China itself into consideration, this research further proposes targeted recommendations. It is expected that the findings in this research could provide some references for the Chinese government to form more effective and efficient theoretical frameworks targeted at the future development trends of the Chinese society and accordingly, to improve the construction of democracy in China.