Chinese multinational enterprises (MNEs) have increasingly engaged in outward foreign direct investment in recent years, and particularly into the infrastructure sector of developing economies. This has been prompted by the infrastructure-led economic integration plan of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. However, such collaboration faces many challenges. Infrastructure projects are often undertaken in industries, countries, and regions posing particular and difficult challenges, and with divergent, often conflicting interests, with the ensuing conclusion that the MNE is simply exploiting the project and not delivering value to the host country. Overall, not only does the infrastructure project have to be well-functioning with expected returns (or savings) realized, but these projects face close scrutiny from local communities, labor, opposition parties, neighboring countries, and various international bodies and nonprofits, requiring delicate handling of the principals involved. The unfolding of these issues and their management by the multinational are examined through an in-depth longitudinal case study. The data are drawn from major participants and stakeholders around a leading Chinese MNE and the mega project of the construction of a major hydropower plant in Pakistan.

This paper focuses on studying the impact of institutional distance between home and host countries on the entry mode choice of multinational enterprises (MNEs). Based on theories of transaction costs and institutional theory, we predict the trend of choosing investment forms of wholly-owned enterprises (WOEs) and joint venture enterprises (JVEs) in the agricultural sector of Vietnam in the context of free trade agreement implementation. The data of 364 MNEs from 22 different nations that directly invested in the agricultural sector of Vietnam in the period 1996–2019 were extracted from Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI), which is provided by World Bank. An empirical investigation has employed logistic regression. The results show a positive relationship between institutional distance with regard to rule of law and regulatory quality and WOE choice. Furthermore, the entry mode choices of MNEs in Vietnam’s agricultural sector are also noticeably influenced by the implementation of freedom trade agreements (FTAs).

This article delves into an examination and analysis of leadership models within local government institutions in Indonesia, employing the conceptual framework of new institutionalism. We contend that informal local institutions within communities not only influence the behavior and identity of leaders as actors but, within the context of decentralization, have also undergone a process of reinstitutionalization regarding roles and functions, employing distinct patterns of appropriation. Employing an interpretive approach, this article focuses on phenomena within the management of local governance in the West Nusa Tenggara province. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, literature studies on local history, and online news searches. Through a case study of local governance in West Nusa Tenggara province, particularly Lombok, the article reveals that the Tuan Guru, an informal local institution in Lombok society, has experienced reinstitutionalization through vertical and horizontal appropriation. The conclusion drawn is that decentralization has created opportunities for informal institutions to re-establish their roles within formal governance through appropriation patterns.

Over the course of many years, the Mekong Delta region has experienced relatively low and inconsistent levels of business attraction and low quality of the enterprise environment compared to other regions in Vietnam. To delve into whether this discrepancy reflects a negative perception of the business environment in the area, this study employs a dataset comprising the aggregate Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) and nine of its component scores, alongside other significant control variables, to analyze business attraction trends spanning from 2010 to 2020. It based on the modeling analysis for the panel data that includes Pool-OLS, FEM and REM models. The findings indicate that PCI serves as an important indicator influencing the quality of the business environment and plays a role in determining the location preferences of businesses. It is observed that public investment has exerted an impact on enticing new businesses to the region throughout this period. These research outcomes carry several policy implications, suggesting that public policy interventions can positively shape the business environment, consequently bolstering the appeal of business investments in the region.

New Institutional Economics (NIE) uses solutions from law, economics and organization. The purpose of this article is to link in a single analytical approach the institutional environment, its change in the organizations uniting in one, what is happening in contracts with agricultural lands. The explanation of this type of governance means to integrate: theoretical definitions; formal rules (laws, court decisions and other legal acts); economic institutions—means and mechanisms of exchange; legal and economic forms in which, through governance of transactions property rights are transferred and protected. In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to present the elements of the institutional matrix that are the cause of changes in subordination and coordination. Following the process of implementing an approach for reconciling the legal and economic nature of the contract forms and integrating the states, contract organizations and transaction costs in a common model. In order to solve the research problems tasks are adapted methods from law, economics, statistics. Such are: (a) positive legal analysis of legislation; (b) historical (retrospective) method of analysis of changes; (c) discrete-structural analysis to explain the process; (d) comparative-institutional analysis to clarify alternatives and an explanation of any of the effects; (е) regression analysis to model the relationships and present possible one’s scenarios to show the direction in which changes are needed. Changes in legislation, legal forms, mechanisms and the amount of payments create new behavioral patterns that change the contract. Therefore, in retrospect, we are witnessing how the number of changes in legal acts, the amount of fees; the number of participants-administrators of the processes; the number and registers - change the number of transactions; the duration of the actions in the contracts, which ultimately predetermines the different amounts of transaction costs for agricultural lands. This interdependence was established by constructing an econometric model. The analysis presents opportunities for change that would lead to scenarios with a reduced level of transaction costs, that is, improving governance and showing the way to improve the institutional environment related to agricultural lands in Bulgaria.

This study investigates the impact of tourism and institutional quality on environmental preservation, utilizing principal component analysis to generate three composite indices of environmental sustainability for 134 countries from 2002 to 2020. The results reveal that environmental sustainability indices have generally improved in lower- and middle-income nations but have declined in certain high-income countries. The findings also underscore the critical role of institutional quality—particularly regulatory standards, government effectiveness, anti-corruption efforts, and adherence to legal frameworks—in promoting environmental sustainability. However, the study shows that both domestic and international tourism expenditures can have adverse effects on environmental sustainability. Notably, these negative effects are exacerbated in countries with well-developed institutions, which is an unexpected outcome. This highlights the need for careful, thoughtful policymaking to ensure that the tourism sector supports sustainable development, rather than undermining environmental objectives.