South Africa’s border posts are increasingly becoming crucial hubs for organized crime posing serious national and regional security implications with far-reaching consequences. The country’s national security, economic stability, and community safety are significantly jeopardised by organised criminal enterprises at border posts. As a result, the porous borders of South Africa have fostered an environment that is conducive to a variety of unlawful activities, such as the smuggling of drugs into the country and human trafficking. This paper seeks to identify political, economic, and social factors that lead to organised crime, corruption, and weak border management systems. The paper employed a secondary data analysis of existing scholarly articles, government reports as well as relevant case studies. The study found that local communities are most affected by illegal activities at the ports of entry. The findings further emphasize the importance of inclusive approaches in responding to security challenges that address cross-border flow regulation, fight corruption in service delivery, and promote community resilience. The paper concludes with recommendations for strengthening border controls towards enhancing cooperation between countries and curbing transnational crime networks.

The aim of this research is to determine the incidence of socioeconomic variables in migration flows from the main countries of origin that form part of the international South-North migration corridor, such as Mexico, China, India, and the Philippines, during the 1990–2022 period. The independent variables considered are GDP per capita, unemployment, poverty, higher education, and public health, while the dependent variable is migration flows. An econometric panel data model is implemented. The tests conducted indicate that all variables have an integration order of I (1) and exhibit long-term equilibrium. The econometric models used, Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS) and Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS), reveal that unemployment and poverty had the strongest influence on migration flows. In both models, within this international migration corridor, GDP per capita, higher education, and health follow in order of importance.

This study investigated changes in lifestyles and psychological anxiety among Koreans during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic using the 2020 data from the nationwide Korean Community Health Survey. The study outcomes were psychological anxiety about the infection and death, due to COVID-19. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were used to evaluate the relationship between psychological anxiety and lifestyle changes. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people who practiced healthy behaviors and followed social distancing and quarantine regulations experienced increased psychological anxiety for infection and death. Daily life changes during the COVID-19 pandemic were not associated with psychological anxiety. The result of this study can provide baseline measures for further study on psychological anxiety during re-infection of COVID-19 and future pandemics in Korea.

The Modern Cities Program is the largest-scale urban development effort in the history of the country, with which the Government of Hungary aims to promote the simultaneous development of municipalities at the same hierarchical level. Its projects focus on the preservation of intangible and tangible cultural heritage, the transformation of urban public spaces and green areas into community spaces, the creation of institutions for sports and recreational activities, research and development, digitalization, projects for innovative and creative professionals, and public educational and cultural institutions. The study aims to analyze the funding granted for developing the cultural and creative sector of cities with county rights through the Modern Cities Program in the period 2016–2025, by comparing the size of their population, their strategic importance in regional economic policy and the relationship between the value of the cultural heritage with the amount of funding received. The paper unveils the distribution of grants over time and space, the modalities and proportion of grants, and the way the cities that has received grants align with the national strategy. This will also reveal a shift in the regional importance of the cities and their relationship. Until February 2024, the Government of Hungary has contributed more than HUF 322.6 billion (809.5 million EUR) to the implementation of 98 cultural and creative projects in 22 cities with county rights through its urban development support program that has been established for the development and regeneration of cities with county rights and to counter the dominance of the capital.

Background: Various studies have demonstrated the usefulness of Google search data for public health-monitoring systems. The aim of this study is to be estimated interest of public in infectious diseases in infectious diseases in South Korea, the five other countries. Methods: We conducted cross-country comparisons for queries related to the H1N1 virus and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). We analyzed queries related to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from 20 January to 13 April 2020, and performed time-descriptive and correlation analyses on trend patterns. Results: Trends in H1N1, MERS-CoV, and COVID-19 queries in South Korea matched those in the five other countries and worldwide. The relative search volume (RSV) for the MERS-CoV virus increased as the cumulative number of confirmed cases in South Korea increased and decreased significantly as the number of confirmed cases decreased. The volume of COVID-19 queries dramatically increased as South Korea’s confirmed COVID-19 cases grew significantly at the community level. However, RSV remained stable over time. Conclusions: Google Trends provides real-time data based on search patterns related to infectious diseases, allowing for continuous monitoring of public reactions, disease spread, and changes in perceptions or concerns. We can use this information to adjust their strategies of the prevention of epidemics or provide timely updates to the public.

Background: Kangyang tourism, a wellness tourism niche in China, integrates health preservation with tourism through natural and cultural resources. Despite a growing interest in Kangyang tourism, the factors driving tourist loyalty in this sector are underexplored. Methods: Using a sample of 413 tourists, this study employed Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling (CB-SEM) to examine the influence of destination image, service quality, tourist satisfaction, and affective commitment on tourist loyalty. Results: The findings reveal that destination image and service quality positively affect tourist satisfaction, affective commitment, and loyalty. Tourist satisfaction and affective commitment are identified as critical drivers of tourist loyalty. Notably, affective commitment plays a stronger role in fostering loyalty compared to satisfaction. Conclusion: These results highlight the importance of a positive destination image and high service quality in enhancing tourist loyalty through increased emotional and psychological attachment. The findings inform strategies for stakeholders to improve Kangyang tourism’s growth by focusing on emotionally engaging experiences and service excellence.