Orientation: Indeed, the 4th industrial revolution (4IR) has redefined the world of work. A new set of skills needs to be defined and made available to organisations. Human resource management practices now operate in a complex, interconnected, unpredictable, and evolving environment. The question that one needs to answer is: how can HR align its functions to meet the demands of the fourth IR? It is prudent that human resource functions evolve quickly and adapt to changing demands. Research purpose: This paper seeks to unpack the changes that have been brought about by the 4IR and suggest ways in which HR professionals in Lesotho can align with this inevitable era of digitalisation. Motivation for the study: Due to the dynamics and transformations that have been brought about by the 4IR, this study was motivated by the need to understand the effects of the 4IR in small economies on the HR function and offer lessons to embrace change. Research approach: The research was qualitative in nature, and data was collected purposefully from journal articles, newspapers, and book chapters. Content analysis was used for the data analysis. Research findings: The effects of the 4IR through digitalisation disruptions have been felt across all corporate functions, and HR is no exception. It has had a massive influence on both the economy and the labour force and impacted employee roles in terms of health, mobility, working hours, personal life, and general administration. HR leaders play a critical role in ensuring that businesses are able to successfully adopt and deploy new technologies. Contributions: The research unpacks the effects of 4IR and gives practical lessons for HR professionals in Lesotho.

This systematic literature review examines the convergence of entrepreneurship and information technology between 2005 and 2024. It investigates how the emergence of information technologies such as social networks, smart devices, big data, and cloud computing have transformed business operations and entrepreneurial approaches. The study use technologies such as Bibliometrix to analyze academic literature and identify research trends, knowledge structures, and their evolutionary routes. During the specified time frame, a grand total of 292 articles were published by 777 writers. These publications have played a key role in redirecting academic focus from traditional entrepreneurship to the field of digital entrepreneurship and the applications of information technology. A thematic analysis uncovers a shift from theoretical investigation to practical implementations and multidisciplinary research, while a co-citation analysis highlights important contributors and influential works. This study emphasizes the crucial importance of information technology in influencing entrepreneurial behaviors and strategic business decisions. It also offers valuable insights for future research and entrepreneurial practice in the information age.

The Universal Child Immunization Village (UCI) is a community that has successfully achieved the goal of providing Complete Basic Immunization (CBI) to infants before they reach one year of age. Based on data from the 2018 Basic Health Research, Complete Basic Immunization (CBI) coverage reached 57.9%. In contrast, 32.9% of the population received incomplete immunizations, while a small portion, namely 9.2%, did not receive any immunizations at all. This research aims to understand the implementation of government regulations regarding immunization implementation in the working area of Tarempa Community Health Center, Anambas Islands Regency. In this study, the author uses a qualitative socio-legal method. The snowball sampling technique was used to collect research samples. The samples in this study are parents of infants in South Tarempa Village and East Coastal Village, healthcare workers in the working area of Tarempa Community Health Center, and the PPKB Department of Health who meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Out of 9 primary informants, the coverage of immunization implementation in the working area of Tarempa Community Health Center primarily did not meet the requirements with seven informants (77.8%) and met the criteria with two respondents (22.2%). The assessment of the role of healthcare workers as customers, communicators, motivators, facilitators, and counselors was positively evaluated based on good criteria. Parental refusal of immunization and the lack of regulations from local governments are inhibiting factors in implementing immunization programs.

This study aims to evaluate the influence of population dependency ratio on the economic growth of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan, the three members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). The study covers the time from 1960 to 2021. It also analyses in detail how population aging and the youth dependency ratio affects the development of certain sectors, including industry, services and agriculture. This study uses panel data to determine the influence of population dependency ratios on economic growth. To estimate this effect, we use the Pooled Mean Group/Autoregressive Distributed Lag (PMG/ARDL) technique. Based on the results obtained from the ARDL analysis indicate the presence of a long-term relationship among these variables. These discoveries align with prior empirical research conducted by Lee and Shin, Mamun et al., and Rostiana and Rodesbi. Furthermore, the findings suggest that an increase in the old age population dependency ratio positively influences economic growth within these nations. The long-term relationship findings pertaining to the old and young dependency ratio and economic growth corroborate the conclusions of Bawazir et al., who proposed that the old population dependency ratio exerts a favorable impact, while the young population has an adverse effect on economic growth. Originality: This research focused on the population dependency ratio, a pivotal demographic metric that gauges the proportion of individuals relying on support (including children and the elderly) compared to those of working age. This investigation particularly explores the interconnection between the population dependency ratio and sectoral development, an essential aspect given that various sectors make distinct contributions to economic advancement. Examining how population dynamics affect sectoral development yields valuable insights into the overall economic performance of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh.

Reusable bags have been introduced as an alternative to single-use plastic bags (SUPB). While beneficial, this alternative is economically and environmentally viable only if utilized multiple times. This study aims to identify the determinants influencing the use of reusable bags (RB) over single-use plastic bags (SUPB) within the framework of ecological impact reduction, employing the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The focus is on understanding how attitudes (AT), subjective norms (SN), and perceived behavioral control (PBC) collectively guide consumers towards adopting reusable bags as a pro-environmental choice. The focus is on understanding how attitudes (AT), subjective norms (SN), and perceived behavioral control (PBC) collectively guide consumers towards the adoption of reusable bags as a pro-environmental choice. Data were collected through a survey administered to 814 consumers in Lahore, employing both regression analysis and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to assess the impact of AT, SN, and PBC on reusable bag consumption (RBC). The TPB framework underpins the hypothesis that these three psychological factors significantly influence the decision to use RBs. Both regression and SEM analyses demonstrated that AT, SN, and PBC positively affect RBC, with significant estimates indicating the strength of each predictor. Specifically, PBC emerged as the strongest predictor of RBC (PBC2, β = 0.533, p < 0.001), highlighting the paramount importance of control perceptions in influencing bag use. This was followed by AT (β = 0.211, p < 0.001) and SN (β = 0.173, p < 0.001), confirming the hypothesized positive relationships. The congruence of findings from both analytical approaches underlines the robustness of these techniques in validating the TPB within the context of sustainable consumer behaviors. The investigation corroborates the TPB’s applicability in predicting RBC, with a clear hierarchy of influence among the model’s constructs. PBC’s prominence underscores the necessity of enhancing consumers’ control over using RBs to foster sustainable consumption patterns. Practical implications include the development of policies and marketing strategies that target the identified determinants, especially emphasizing the critical role of PBC, to promote broader adoption of RBs and contribute to significant reductions in plastic waste.