As autonomous vehicles (AVs) revolutionize the global transportation landscape, their implications for emerging economies like Malaysia remain a subject of significant interest. This study delves into the multifaceted world of AV technology, focusing on Malaysia’s unique transportation challenges and opportunities. Through interviews with key stakeholders and experts, the research uncovers valuable insights into AV technology’s awareness, regulatory landscape, integration hurdles, potential benefits, and inclusivity impact in the Malaysian context. The study finds that while AVs hold the promise of improved road safety, reduced traffic congestion, and enhanced environmental sustainability, addressing challenges related to regulation, infrastructure, and public acceptance is imperative for successful integration. Additionally, AV technology has the potential to significantly enhance inclusivity in transportation, benefiting individuals with disabilities. The study underscores the need for holistic policy and infrastructure development to leverage the benefits of AV technology and pave the way for a sustainable and inclusive transportation future in Malaysia.

The reference urban plan is an urban planning tool often used to orient the development of Chadian cities. However, expanding Chadian urban centers, such as Sarh, face challenges in implementing urban planning orientations of their urban plans within the set deadlines. The objective of this study is to identify the factors impeding the effective implementation of the reference urban plan for Sarh town. The methodology employed encompasses a literature review, individual interviews with urban planning experts, geographic information system (GIS) data, household surveys and statistical analysis. The results revealed that less than a quarter (19.72%) of the households surveyed were aware of the reference urban plan. The applied logistic regression model identified age, occupation and level of education as the main factors influencing public participation in the preparation of the reference urban plan. On average, 33.33% of the urban planning guidelines and 21.74% of the projected urban projects were implemented, with a difference of 1631.28 hectares (ha) between the projected plan and the actual plan for the town. Five factors were identified as contributing to the failure to implement the reference urban plan for Sarh town, including low funding, inadequate land management, a lack of political will, weak governance and poor communication. Consequently, participatory and inclusive planning approaches, effective financial mobilisation, strong governance, and the use of modern technologies such as GIS tools are recommended to enhance the implementation of urban planning tools.

The creation of points where law, politics and education policies take intersection is a very complex and dynamic environment determined by philosophical shifts, economic problems, and social dynamics. This study dissects various complicated challenges facing the process of the framing of educational policies and their implementation which have become rampant due to the rapid political transformations. The researched evaluation is applied via both qualitative and quantitative methods, including juridical research, case and best practices studies and surveys, with the descriptive nature of the research as the main tool. The heart of the essay is three main themes - the contention between the rigidity of the academic standards and the holistic growth of students, its possible effects when students are too identified with a test-centric approach as their knowledge is sacrificed for their test scores, and the inclusion of rights and protections for underrepresented populations even when faced with a government’s resistance. Similarly, the research examines the perils of creating legislation too quickly, especially, because of unexpected side effects and interpretation conflicts. Findings show profound demographic differentials over districts which implies the designing and implementation of policies need to be modified accordingly. Unless a certain policy brings the best outcomes in the learning process, then nobody should choose it even if it means disrupting student well-being and decreasing their involvement. It is also emblematic of how cross-party cooperation and stakeholders’ understanding are important aspects of fairly dealing with complicated policy environments.

This paper highlights the opportunities as well as challenges posed for Bangladesh by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of China. BRI is being considered as the most expensive project ever initiated connecting more than half of the world population from Asia, Europe and Africa. For writing this paper, the authors utilized published sources such as journal articles, newspaper articles and web-based information published from 2013 to 2024. The article proposes that although the involvement of Bangladesh in the BRI is not absolutely free of challenges, it can serve the ultimate national interest through greater connectivity with other countries, increased volume of trade and economic activities and socio-cultural exchange. Although, as the originator and major contributor of the BRI, China will be the principal benefiter, other partner countries can also attain considerable benefits out of this historical mega scheme through the application of appropriate vision and strategic implementation. This paper has highlighted those benefits/opportunities and challenges for Bangladesh that can be beneficial for upcoming research projects particularity aimed at development studies, political economy and international relations. On the other hand, based on the arguments made on this paper, policymakers and businessmen can formulate their best policies as well as trading strategies with mutual benefits for all the stakeholders involved.

This paper examines the sustainability practices implemented by healthcare establishments, mainly Small and Medium enterprises (SMEs), We focus on identifying opportunities with challenges involved. This systematic literature analyses 47 studies that explore sustainability practices in the healthcare system globally. The finding from the studies reveals that healthcare organizations with SMEs adopt diverse measures like renewable energy, a reduction, and a response procurement in minimizing the impact on the environment and ensuring financial stability. The challenges SMEs face comprise limited financial resources, lack of expertise, with difficulties accessing information and support. Furthermore, we suggest opportunities for SMEs to enhance sustainability practices with partnerships with other organizations and investing in educating employees. Implementation of sustainability practices will improve the financial stability, and environmental impact, with the wellbeing of healthcare stakeholders. The empirical evidence, comparative studies with cross-disciplinary are needed in exploring the effectiveness of the different suitability practices, potential trade-offs, synergies between sustainability and other organizational goals, the effect of sustainability practice in the financial with non-financial performance on SMEs in healthcare establishment are positive, with cost-effectiveness, efficiencies operations, improving brand reputations and engaging the employee. Established factors like regulating frameworks and government initiatives play a major role in the influence of adopting sustainability practices with cultural factors.

Lifelong learning (LLL) is progressively recognized as a crucial component of personal and professional development, particularly for adult students. As a heavily populated developing country, China requires profound national education reform to support its economic development and maintain its competitive advantage on the global economic stage. The governmental policy endorses the execution of diverse forms of lifelong learning programs to bolster the national education reform. However, implementing such programs can be challenging for all the stakeholders of the programs, especially for adult students. The weaker foundational knowledge and insufficient online learning abilities of adult students particularly highlight the academic challenges they face. This study explores the academic challenges faced by adult learners in a Chinese vocational college’s LLL program. Focusing on ex-soldiers, unemployed individuals, migrant workers, and new professional farmers (aged 22–44), data were collected from 16 adult students via purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis revealed recurring thematic academic challenges. Additionally, the study found that adult student attributes (highest education level, age) significantly influenced the unique academic challenges they encountered. This research provides practical solutions to improve LLL programs and promote successful lifelong learning experiences for adult students.