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.

The objective of this paper is to analyze the impact of infrastructure financing on economic growth in emerging markets through the application of both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. In this study, the research will employ both primary and secondary data to investigate the impact of different structures of infrastructure financing on the performance of the economy through interviews with the stakeholders and policy documents alongside quantitative data from the World Bank and the IMF. The quantitative analysis employs the econometric models to establish the effect of infrastructure investment on the GDP growth of the selected countries, India, China, Brazil, and Nigeria. Additional secondary qualitative data obtained from interviews with policymakers and financial specialists from Brazil, India, and South Africa offer more practical information regarding the efficiency of the discussed financing approaches. This paper is therefore able to conclude that appropriate management of infrastructure investments, particularly those that involve the PPP, are central to the development of the economy. However, certain drawbacks such as the lack of regularity of data and the disparity in the effectiveness of financing instruments by the regions are pointed out. The research provides policy implications to policymakers and investors who wish to finance infrastructure in the emerging economy to enhance economic growth in the long run.

In recent years, information technology and social media has developed very rapidly and has had an impact on government services to the public. Social media technology is used hugely by several developing countries to provide services, information and promote information disclosure in its government to improve its performance. This study aims to build role of social media technology concept as a public service delivery facilitator to the public. Furthermore, it discusses the potential impact of social media use on government culture. To achieve the goal, this study combines two theories, namely government public value theory and green smart city with four variables, namely quality of public services, user orientation, openness, and greenness. These variables are used as the foundation for data collection through in-depth interviews and group discussion forums. In-depth interviews are utilized as data search and direct observation. The informants consist of several government elements, including heads of regional apparatus organizations, heads of public service malls and Palembang city government employees. The study revealed that the Palembang government has several social media-based public services that have quality of services, user-orientation, openness, and environmental friendliness.

This study investigates the relationships among entrepreneurship, technical competency, and business performance, focusing on CEOs in the beauty service industry in the Busan area. A total of 215 survey responses were collected, with 213 valid responses selected for final analysis after excluding 2 unsuitable responses. The key findings of the study are as follows: First, entrepreneurship was found to partially influence technical competency. Second, technical competency was found to influence business performance. Third, entrepreneurship was found to partially influence business performance. Fourth, technical competency was found to partially mediate the relationship between entrepreneurship and business performance. Based on these results, the study systematically analyzes and explains the causal relationships among the entrepreneurship of CEOs in the beauty service industry, their technical competency, and business performance. It also seeks to provide useful reference materials for strengthening the innovation and competitiveness of CEOs in the beauty service industry and establishing a theoretical foundation for future research in related fields.

This research investigates the relationship between the quality of airline services, customer satisfaction, and brand loyalty with low-cost airlines in Bangkok’s aviation business. It uses structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the replies of 521 passengers. The study demonstrates a robust and favorable correlation between the quality of service and customer satisfaction, with a direct impact coefficient of 0.961. Furthermore, service quality directly (0.708) and indirectly (0.284) impact brand loyalty. These impacts are mediated by customer satisfaction, which directly affects brand loyalty with a correlation of 0.296. The model explains 92.3% and 99.0% of the variation in customer satisfaction and brand loyalty, respectively, suggesting a robust and reliable match. The demographic study reveals that the predominant group of participants consists of well-educated, middle-income women who regularly use airline services. These results highlight the importance of service quality in improving customer satisfaction and promoting brand loyalty among travelers. Airlines should emphasize the ongoing enhancement of service quality and customer satisfaction to sustain their competitive edge. This research enhances the existing body of knowledge by emphasizing the intermediate function of customer satisfaction and presenting detailed observations relevant to Bangkok’s aviation industry, providing guidance for infrastructural development and investment. It also offers practical suggestions for managing service quality and implementing customer retention strategies.

The government’s increased cigarette tariff aims to lower smoking rates and avoid adverse impacts. This study’s goal was to offer process innovation for lowering Asian’ smoking behavior. The participants were chosen by stratified random selection from a total of 738 people residing in Pathum Thani Province, Thailand. The instrument was a questionnaire. A software programmer was used to examine descriptive and inferential statistics using EFA and one-way ANOVA techniques. A strategic framework guideline using a SWOT analysis and TOWS matrix to encourage smoking reduction was proposed. The findings revealed two components: smoking behavior change and continues smoking that were based on SWOT analysis and TOWs matrix. There were nine strategies for the excise department to consider for the adjustment of the next policy in terms of reducing the number of smokers. The practical and policy suggestions could help reduce the negative impact of the cigarette industry on public health and increase government revenue while addressing weaknesses and threats in the industry.