The paper reports on the results of research on the institution of public-private partnerships in the field of implementation of state youth policy, particularly through socially important social youth projects, including social-entrepreneurial. The study explores social projects that enjoy the full range of support from all subjects in public-private partnerships: the state represented by public authorities, business structures, non-profit organizations, and youth. The authors highlight that the infrastructure of youth policy in the implementation of social-entrepreneurial youth projects needs to be changed conceptually. There is a need to establish comprehensive creative and professional spaces that shape young people’s personalities and practice a future-oriented model of organizing collaborative social projects.

Bibliometric analysis is a commonly used tool to assess scientific collaborations within the researchers, community, institution, regions and countries. The analysis of publication records can provide a wealth of information about scientific collaboration, including the number of publications, the impact of the publications, and the areas of research where collaborations are most common. By providing detailed information on the patterns and trends in scientific collaboration, these tools can help to inform policy decisions and promote the development of effective strategies to support and enhance scientific collaborations between countries. This study aimed to analyze and visualize the scientific collaboration between Japan and Russia, using bibliometric analysis of collaborative publications from the Web of Science (WoS) database. The analysis utilized the bibliometrix package within the R statistical program. The analysis covered a period of two decades, from 2000 to 2021. The results showed a slight decrease in co-authored publications, with an annual growth rate of −1.26%. The keywords and thematic trends analysis confirmed that physics is the most co-authored field between the two countries. The study also analyzed the collaboration network and research funding sources. Overall, the study provides valuable insights into the current state of scientific collaboration between Japan and Russia. The study also highlights the importance of research funding sources in promoting and sustaining scientific cooperation between countries. The analysis suggests that more efforts in government funding are needed to increase collaboration between the two countries in various fields.

Coordination and integration among farms within agri-food chains are crucial to tackle the issue of fragmentation within the primary sector, both at the European and national level. The Italian agri-food system still complains about the need to aggregate supply to support market dynamics, especially for niche and quality products that characterize the Made in Italy. It is well known that the Italian agri-food sector is closely linked to the relationship between agriculture on one hand and culture/tradition on the other, which is reflected in the high number of quality products that have obtained EU PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) recognition. The development of vertical forms of coordination has found significant support in recent years from the integrated supply chain design approach, which is increasingly becoming an essential tool for implementing rural development policies. In this context, the study provides a comparison between companies that have joined the Integrated Supply Chain Projects of the Rural Development Program and those that have not applied. The aim is to highlight any differences in order to understand policy impact. The analysis is based on the Emilia-Romagna region Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data, and the sample consists of more than 2 thousand farms. The statistical analysis conducted compares treated and non-treated using the Welch-t-test for independent unmatched samples. The main results show higher values for treated farms when structural variables are analyzed, like the utilized agricultural area or the agricultural work unit. In general, higher balance sheet performances emerged for treated farms. In conclusion, this study shows that the Integrated Supply Chain Projects represent a worthwhile tool both to increase cooperation, food quality, and to enhance a competitive agricultural sector.

North Korea has been isolated from the international community because of high-intensity sanctions. Nonetheless, research on North Korea should continue so that we are prepared not for contingencies that may occur because of sudden political changes in that country, as occurred after the unification of Germany and dissolution of the Soviet Union, and also to cope with future risks and threats wisely. This study conducted a quantitative survey regarding “inter-Korean cooperation in science and technology,” targeting experts at the Korean government-funded research institutes. As a qualitative survey, focus group interviews (FGI) were conducted to gain insights into the possibilities, considerations, and procedures for inter-Korean cooperation in science and technology. This study is the first to conduct quantitative research on inter-Korean exchange and cooperation in science and technology and shows significant statistical results.

Regional cooperation stands as a key strategy to address intense economic competition and formidable local governance challenges. Successful regional collaborations are typically founded on the basis of institutional similarity, which also serves as the starting point for a multitude of related theoretical studies. Consequently, the regional cooperation within the context of institutional conflicts has been overlooked. This paper aims to explore the process of regional cooperation against the backdrop of conflicts, using the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) as a case study and analyzing it from the perspective of the sociology of knowledge. The article posits that conflicts can stimulate interactions among various actors, foster the generation of local knowledge, and propel specific cooperative practices. Moreover, local and central governments, grounded in local knowledge and universal managerial insights, continuously authenticate and propagate local innovations, establishing guiding policies and, consequently, producing rational knowledge. The accumulation of such knowledge has not only strengthened civilian cooperation but also facilitated broader collaborative efforts. The study reveals that despite the GBA’s remarkable achievements in cooperation, challenges persist: on the one hand, there are issues with the government’s process of rational knowledge production and the quality of knowledge itself; on the other hand, excessive governmental dominance may suppress the production and application of local knowledge. Therefore, refining the knowledge production mechanism is especially critical. The findings of this paper uncover the mechanisms of regional cooperation amidst institutional conflicts and deepen our understanding of regional collaboration and cross-border governance.

Purpose: The paper aims to study the methodology and functional of Internal Audit (IA) during the transition to remote working methods necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic crisis period. Design/methodology/approach: Data are collected over a sample of 352 internal audit departments in retail SMEs distributed in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region. The six variables are measured using a reflective model. An exploratory factor analysis is applied to gauge the measurement model’s validity and reliability. Findings: The research findings revealed that internal auditing within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the Qatari retail sector is not sufficiently advanced. The focus of internal auditing primarily revolves around compliance audits rather than performance audits, thereby limiting their degree of agility and strategy which negatively affects the IA methodology. Conversely, for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) retail companies the research hypotheses were validated showing an IA functions evolution, an IA reassurance and IA agility that are conducted throughout a remote working and a strategic design that affect positively IA working methodology. Originality: The originality impregnates by the fact that reviews of traditional audit working methods were updated and shaped according to the deficiencies that couldn’t be identified during a pre COVID-19 period. A traditional audit plan may not work in this situation. The originality of the study consists of estimating IA methodological review through an agile approach that provides internal reassurance and risk attenuation.