Over the past twenty years, service organizations have adopted total quality management to enhance their service quality, significantly impacting business performance, customer satisfaction, and profitability. This study delves into policy development of sustainable quality management theory, benefits, and various service components, while reviewing its implementation in services industries and policy innovation. The concept of Sustainable Quality Management 4.0 (SQM 4.0) integrates sustainable management, traditional quality management, and Quality 4.0 principles to optimize resources, reduce environmental impacts, and enhance decision-making through Industry 4.0, IoT, AI, and big data analytics. The findings offer valuable framework and policy insights for managers and practitioners on quality management and service systems, providing an implementation framework for Sustainable Quality Management in the service sector. The paper outlines comprehensive elements and strategies for implementation as a SQM framework for attaining sustainable quality management in the services industry.

Most airport development projects entail disputes due to the features that are distinctive and complicated. Disputes can be minimized through creative problem-solving by implementing knowledge management practices into the system. This study investigates the direct influence of knowledge management (KM) on dispute minimization (DM) along with the key factors for developing a strategy that can enhance KM success. A mixed method was adopted including statistical data analysis based on the PLS-SEM and descriptive analysis with the SECI (Socialization, Externalization, Combination, Internalization) model approach for strategy development. These findings show that KM has a positive and significant direct influence on DM, while the factors that are considered to have a significant influence on KM success are human resources management (HR) and learning & training (LT) on airport development projects in state-owned airport companies. This research supports the importance of a well-developed HR system accompanied by regular LT to all members of the organization to optimize and encourage the spread of knowledge in the organization.

Rural tourism, which offers authentic cultural and nature-based experiences, is increasingly recognized as a vital tool for sustainable development. Ethiopia, with its rich rural landscapes and cultural heritage, holds immense potential for rural tourism, but the sector remains underdeveloped. This study assesses the facilitating conditions and challenges of rural tourism in Ethiopia using a mixed-methods approach. Results indicate that Ethiopia’s economic growth, improved rural infrastructure, large rural population, higher ethnic and religious diversity index, and 11 UNESCO World Heritage Sites provide strong foundations for rural tourism. However, significant challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, limited marketing, restricted access to financing, ethnic conflicts, environmental degradation, and insufficient stakeholder cooperation hinder its growth. To address these barriers, the study proposes a model encompassing strategic investments in infrastructure, enhancing marketing and promotion, access to finance initiatives, conflict resolution strategies, sustainable tourism practices, enhancing stakeholder coordination, and supportive policy frameworks. By employing these strategies, Ethiopia can harness the full potential of its rural tourism sector, contributing to economic development and community well-being while promoting cultural preservation and environmental sustainability. Also, the proposed model is highly applicable to other developing economies that share similar contexts. Besides, given the importance of the seven fundamental pillars of the model, it remains relevant across tourism types like coastal destinations.

Water physico-chemical parameters, such as pH and salinity, play an important role in the larval development of Aedes aegypti, the primary vector of dengue fever. although the role of these two factors is known, the interaction between pH and salinity in various aquatic habitats is still not fully understood, especially in the context of endemic areas. this study explored how the interaction between pH and salinity affects the development of Aedes aegypti larvae in dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) endemic areas. this study used a pure experimental design with a posttest-only control group approach. Aedes aegypti instar iv larvae were obtained from eggs collected in north kolaka regency, a dhf endemic area. the independent variables tested were pH (6 and 8) and salinity (0.4 gr/L and 0.6 gr/L), with the control group using pH 7 and no salinity. a two-way anova test was used to evaluate the interaction between pH and salinity, followed by tukey’s hsd post-hoc test to compare treatment groups. the results showed that, independently, pH and salinity had no significant effect on larval survival. however, the interaction between the two variables had a significant effect (p < 0.001). the combination of pH 8 and salinity 0.4 gr/L resulted in the highest survival rate, while pH 6 and salinity 0.6 gr/L caused a significant decrease in larval survival. the combination of alkaline pH (pH 8) and low salinity (0.4 gr/L) is the optimal condition for Aedes aegypti larval survival. the results of this study highlight the importance of considering the interaction between pH and salinity in environmental-based vector control strategies in endemic areas. further research is needed to explore other factors, such as aquatic microbiota and environmental variations, that may affect mosquito larval development.

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.

South Korea has experienced rapid economic development since the 1960s. However, pronounced regional disparities have concurrently emerged. Amid the escalating regional inequalities and persistent demographic challenges characterized by low fertility rates, regional decline has become a pressing issue. Therefore, the feasibility of expanding transportation networks as a countermeasure to regional decline has been proposed. This study utilizes the synthetic control method and spatial difference-in-differences methodologies to assess the impact of the 2017 opening of Seoul–Yangyang Expressway on economic development and population inflow within Hongcheon-gun, Inje-gun, and Yangyang-gun. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of highway development as a policy instrument to mitigate regional decline. Findings from the synthetic control method analysis suggest a positive impact of the opening of the expressway on Hongcheon-gun’s Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) in 2018, as well as Yangyang-gun’s net migration rates from 2017 to 2019. Conversely, the spatial difference-in-differences analysis, designed to identify spillover effects, reveals negative impacts of the highway on the GRDP and net migration rates of adjacent regions. Consequently, although targeted transportation infrastructure development in key non Seoul Metropolitan cities may contribute to ameliorating regional imbalances, results indicate that such measures alone are unlikely to suffice in attracting population to small- and medium-sized cities outside the Seoul Metropolitan Area.