The significance of infrastructure development as a determinant of economic growth has been widely studied by economists and policymakers. Though there is no much debate about the importance of infrastructure on growth, the extent to which infrastructure affects growth in the long run is often debated among researchers. This paper aims to examine the effect of infrastructure development on economic growth in ten sub-Saharan Africa. This study uses balanced panel data of ten African countries, particularly sub-Saharan Africa over the period of 2010–2020 by analyzing a set of independent variables with relation to the dependent, which is GDP per capita. The study has found that water supply & sanitation index and electricity index have positive and significant relationship with economic growth, while transport index and Information & Communications (ICT) have negative relationship with economic growth in these countries.

National governments and academic higher education institutions continue to realign human resource development (HRD) strategies to address the gaps in HRD mandate. This study will investigate new and recalibrated skills that higher institutions (HEIs) professionals and the labor force produce to reconfigure curriculum development in tertiary education. The study extracts narrative from 6 curriculum developers, 3 HRD heads and h3 manpower organizations on the labor landscapes from different local and multinational industries from entry-level to mid-career ranges through case scenario-based interviews and focus group discussions to determine the skills around motivation, innovativeness, and adaptability and subsequently integrate strategic initiatives to reconfigure the compatibility of these skills from higher education institutions to post-pandemic industries. The findings reveal skills that can be managed at the individual level, e.g., self-motivation and adaptability as well as the need to emerge from the technological pressures by adapting to organizational and clientele demands. These human resource traits become the mantra of surviving and progressing in a landscape shaped by the pre- and post-pandemic setting and become the basis of HEI programs to match the needs of the labor force and the industries.

Iran has one of the oldest civilizations in the world, and many elements of today’s urban planning and design have their origins in the country. However, mass country-city migration from the 1960s onwards brought enormous challenges for the country’s main cities in the provision of adequate housing and associated services, resulting in a range of sub-standard housing solutions, particularly in Tehran, the capital city. At the same time, and notably in the past decade, Iran’s main cities have had significant involvement in the smart city movement. The Smart Tehran Program is currently underway, attempting to transition the capital towards a smart city by 2025. This study adopts a qualitative, inductive approach based on secondary sources and interview evidence to explore the current housing problems in Tehran and their relationship with the Smart Tehran Program. It explores how housing has evolved in Tehran and identifies key aspects of the current provision, and then assesses the main components of the Smart Tehran Program and their potential contribution to remedying the housing problems in the city. The article concludes that although housing related issues are at least being raised via the new smart city technology infrastructure, any meaningful change in housing provision is hampered by the over centralized and bureaucratic political system, an out of date planning process, lack of integration of planning and housing initiatives, and the limited scope for real citizen participation.

The women’s sector in the academe is one of the most affected profiles during the COVID-19 pandemic which directly ravages their livelihood and other economic activities. Thus, this research project investigated the economic situations of 30 private and public-school teachers who were displaced from their occupations or were forcibly deprived of income-generating activities. In-depth interviews as research instruments were employed in the study to extract responses on how the educators creatively apply adaptive economic strategies and how government should aid them during a global crisis. The research findings showed that the pandemic has affected the economic activities of the respondents including the loss of their livelihood and other economic sidelines. They responded to these economic effects through adaptive strategies using diversifying and analyzing trends, using digital technology resources, data-driven, acquiring new alternative skills, pricing strategy, and becoming an expert. Results dictated that government could support affected women by initiating training options, homepreneurship support, encouraging independent income-earners, financial management and tax breaks, and industry compatibility endorsement. This study is important to map out the specific economic effects of the pandemic and aid them with initiatives by providing them with concrete economic tools and programs.

A review of the CARG Project of the Campania Region (marine counterpart) up to water depths of 200 m is herein proposed referring to the Gulf of Naples (southern Tyrrhenian Sea) aimed at focusing on the main scientific results obtained in the frame of this important project of marine geological cartography. The Gulf of Naples includes several geological sheets, namely n. 464 “Island of Ischia” both at the 1:25,000 and 1:10,000 scale, n. 465 “Island of Procida” at the 1:50,000 scale, n. 466–485 “Sorrento–Termini” at the 1:50,000 scale, n. 446–447 Naples at the 1:50,000 scale, and n. 484 “Island of Capri” at the 1:25,000 scale. The detailed revision of both the marine geological and geophysical data and of the literature data has allowed us to outline new perspectives in marine geology and cartography of Campania Region, including monitoring of coastal zone and individuation of coastal and volcano-tectonic and marine hazards.

The direct expansion heat pump with solar energy is an energy conversion system used for water heating applications, air heating for air conditioning buildings, water desalination, solar drying, among others. This paper reviews the main designs and analysis of experiments in order to identify the fundamental objectives of any experiment which may be: to determine the factors that have a significant influence, to obtain a mathematical model and/or to optimize performance. To achieve this task, the basic and advanced configuration of this system is described in detail in order to characterize its thermal performance by means of energy analysis and/or exergy-based analysis. This review identifies possible lines of research in the area of design and analysis of experiments to develop this water heating technology for industrial applications.