This paper aims to show the crisis of contemporary criminal systems, however legislative excess of stipulating the penalty of imprisonment, as a penalty depriving freedom, while sometimes stipulating the penalty of imprisonment is mandatory, rather combining it with other penalties, and more than that, depriving the judge of his discretionary power in determining the punishment, this threatens the theory of individualized punishment in a fatal way, so as a result, prisons are overcrowded with inmates, which places a heavy burden on the state from an economic perspective that exhausts and drains its budget, while there is also a social cost of the prison sentence, paid by the prisoner’s family and close circle, moreover the greatest cost is the failure of the penal system to perform its role towards the prisoner by reforming and rehabilitating, therefore, this paper focuses on presenting the causes of the problem and its negative repercussions, trying to find some solutions, by presenting alternatives to the prison sentence, while expanding the view to include some criminal systems, such as the Islamic criminal system and its decision on the penalty of exile.

A precise risk assessment in a production line constitutes a significant item to identify susceptible areas where there is a possibility of product quality degradation. This also applies to the precast concrete production line in Indonesia that has a spun pile product. Based on a risk assessment activity conducted in this study, it is proposed to build a traceability model in order to maintain and even improve the spun pile product quality in Indonesia. The approach used was the Neural Network of the perceptron model for weighing and will result in a defined traceability path in the context of reducing defects and even failed spun pile products. The simulation result showed that the model has been able to detect risky path possibilities to reduce product quality. The accumulation result of high-risk and medium-risk paths in this study showed that closer to product finalization, the risk will be higher. It is evident that when assessing Indicators, the order from the highest accumulation value first is Curing & Demolding and Stressing & Spinning at 29% each, Casting at 14%, Forming & Setting at 14%, and lastly Cutting & Heading at 14%. Regarding the risk assessment for activities, the first position is Curing & Demolding and Stressing & Spinning with 30% each, the second is Casting and Forming & Setting with 15% each, and the third is Cutting & Heading with 10%.

The purpose of the article is to examine the changes in cross-border cooperation between Vietnam and China as a result of the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure between the two countries. This article is based on a mixed-methods study that includes desk research and surveys. The article explains how the two countries’ approaches to border shifted from ‘barrier’ to the border of ‘connectivity’. Accordingly, the article examines the changes in border management cooperation between the two countries, which serves as a vital basis for cross-border development cooperation. Furthermore, the article examines the perceptions of the two countries regarding the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and beyond. At the same time, the article examines how the two countries promote the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure, both hard and soft. The article also examined some initial results and some issues facing the two countries. The paper concludes with some findings. In particular, the article concludes that increased border connectivity will encourage cross-border cooperation and integration between the two countries and help to alleviate security concerns. Although the two countries have made efforts to open their borders, in the transition from a border of ‘barriers’ to a border of ‘connectivity’ remain partly to Vietnamese people’s memories of the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese border war, as well as the impact of the two countries’ unresolved South China Sea disputes. However, Vietnam also tries to promote cross-border cooperation within a controllable level.

This study investigates the buying styles of young consumers, especially the millennials—Gen Y, and Gen Z whose idiosyncrasies and consumption peculiarities are quite different from the older generations. Besides Sproles and Kendall’s eight (8) consumer-style inventory dimensions, this study presents new dimensions and develops six constructs that define young consumers’ decision-style inventory in a developing market. The study population consisted of all younger consumers—Gen Y, and Gen Z in Lagos State, Nigeria. One hundred and twenty-five (125) respondents were selected randomly across all 20 Local Governments in Lagos State, Nigeria. Factor analyses through varimax rotation, latent root criterion (eigenvalue = 1), screen plot test and the percentage of variance were conducted to determine the significant factors to retain among the variables. The findings clearly showed that newly developed CSI constructs in this study (sexiness, trendiness, global branding, smartness, socialisation and entertainment) were strong and significant among young consumers’ decision-making styles. The six (6) constructs developed showed that the younger consumers’ consumption styles are evolving, becoming sophisticated and relatively dynamic, hence the reliance on Sproles and Kendall’s dimensions to measure the younger consumers’ consumption decision styles will be inadequate in business/behaviour strategy development. The dimensions of entertainment, sexy, social, trendy, smartness and global branding variables are mostly underpinned and dominate considerations in purchase decision styles and behaviours among young consumers.

South Africa, like many emerging economies, grapples with the challenges of rapid urbanisation, unequal access to resources, and historical spatial inequalities. Addressing these issues requires a multifaceted approach that reimagines urban real estate development as a catalyst for positive social change. This paper explores the imperative of inclusive urban real estate development in South Africa and presents innovative strategies to promote equity, accessibility, and sustainability in urban environments. Following a quantitative inquiry technique, primary data was gathered from 109 built environment professionals with experience in sustainable urban development. To support this, descriptive and inferential statistics, particularly exploratory factor analysis (EFA), were used. According to the descriptive analysis using the mean score (MS) ranking technique, the development of affordable housing was one of the higher up-front innovative strategies for reshaping real estate development. Ensuring objectivity in city planning, re-engineering the city streets and buildings to create a safer environment were among the highly ranked strategies. The EFA further demonstrated that “urban redevelopment”, “government regulations”, “spatial planning”, “urban policy” and “diversification” were the underlying groups of new approaches for inclusive development. Implementing these innovative strategies, South Africa can move towards a more inclusive and equitable urban landscape, where urban real estate development becomes a force for positive social change, fostering sustainable economic growth and improving the quality of life for all citizens. This research contributes to the ongoing dialogue on urban development in South Africa and offers actionable insights for policymakers, developers, and community stakeholders invested in shaping more inclusive cities.

This study investigated the relationship between telecommunications development, trade openness and economic growth in South Africa. It determined explicitly if telecommunications development and trade openness directly impact economic growth or whether telecommunications strengthen or weaken the link between trade openness and economic growth using the ARDL bounds test methodology. The findings reveal that both telecommunications development indicators and trade openness significantly and positively impact South Africa’s GDP in the short and long terms. The study also found that control variables like internet usage and gross fixed capital formation significantly and positively influence GDP. Conversely, inflation was found to consistently affect GDP negatively and significantly. The findings from the ARDL cointegration analysis affirm a long-run economic relationship between the independent variables and GDP. The study also established that telecommunications development slightly distorts trade in the foreign trade-GDP nexus in South Africa. Despite this, the negative interaction effect is not substantial enough to overshadow the positive impact of trade openness on economic growth. From a policy perspective, the study recommends that South African policymakers prioritise enhancing local goods’ competitiveness in global markets and reducing trade barriers. It also advocates for improving the accessibility and affordability of telecommunications technologies to foster economic development.