“This paper’s purpose l is to determine whether certain firm-specific factors have an influence on the catering theory of dividend in the MENA region.” The catering theory of dividend related to the dividend policy by the different companies used in our paper to explain the decision by managers. The sample includes 600 non-financial firms listed stocks in the Stock Exchange of 6 countries from MENA region during the years 2010–2019. Catering theory explains why managers initiate (continue) to distribute dividends. A high dividend premium encourages managers to increase the level of dividend payment and explains why firms pay dividends or do not pay them thereafter. Investors should increase their demand for dividends to push managers to comply. Investors show their preference for dividend to self control, satisfaction and increase their profit. “This could be the catering incentive of the firm to decide to pay dividends”. Even although the result Investor preference for dividend is explained by different factors related to the firms characteristics from each firms is different from markets, it can be the evidence supporting the catering theory of dividend, not only in well-developed markets, but also in emerging markets such as our country.

Given the issues of urban-rural educational inequality and difficulties for children from poor families to succeed, this study explores the impact mechanism of internet usage on rural educational investment in China within the context of the digital divide. Using data from the 2019 China Household Finance Survey (CHFS), this study analyzed the educational investment decisions of 2064 rural households. Results indicate that in the Eastern region, a high level of educational investment is primarily influenced by the per capita income of the family, with social capital and internet usage also playing supportive roles. In the Northeastern region, the key factor is the diversity of internet usage, specifically using both a smartphone and a computer. In the Central region, factors such as the diversity of internet usage, subjective risk attitudes, the appropriate age of the household head, and per capita income of the family contribute to higher levels of educational investment. In the Western region, the dominant factors are the diversity of internet usage, subjective usage and per capita income of the family. These factors enhance expected returns on the high level of educational investment and boost farmers’ confidence. High internet usage rates significantly promote diverse and stable educational investment decisions, providing evidence for policymakers to bridge the urban-rural education gap.

Madura Island, with more than half of its population, are women encountering socio-economic problems, which eventually create high poverty and unemployment rates. However, the Madurese are also well-known for their resiliency and entrepreneurial characteristics. The effort to solve the issues by empowering the community, women in particular, has been taken seriously primarily by entrepreneurs who were born and raised in the community. Therefore, this research aims to gain insight into the current Madurese entrepreneur’s business pattern and their social concerns in order to propose a strategy to increase productivity as an effort to empower women’s communities. The methodology is qualitative research, which collects data using semi-structured interviews with representatives of the Madurese entrepreneurs in four areas of Madura Island. Their responses are then transcripted and coded for content analysis based on the designed themes. The result shows that they recognise and practise the social entrepreneurship (SE) pattern, although they do not understand the term. Subsequently, the technological application for business operations in general is still limited to the usage of digital technology (DT) for marketing and transaction activities, which helps increase business performance or productivity. Hence, the initiation of technosociopreneurship as a strategy to further develop SE activities with the hope of increasing productivity in empowering women’s communities is proposed. Further research development is advised using quantitative methods for generalisable findings.

This study investigates seismic risk and potential impacts of future earthquakes in the Sunda Strait region, known for its susceptibility to significant seismic events due to the subduction of the Indo-Australian Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate. The aim is to assess the likelihood of major earthquakes, estimate their impact, and propose strategies to mitigate associated risks. The research uses historical seismic data and probabilistic models to forecast earthquakes with magnitudes ranging from 6.0 to 8.2 Mw. The Gutenberg-Richter model helps project potential earthquake occurrences and their impacts. The findings suggest that the probability of a major earthquake could occur as early as 2026–2027, with a more significant event estimated to likely occur around 2031. Economic estimates for a 7.8–8.2 Mw earthquake suggest potential damage of up to USD 1.255 billion with significant loss of life. The study identifies key vulnerabilities, such as inadequate building foundations and ineffective disaster management infrastructure, which could worsen the impact of future seismic events. In conclusion, the research highlights the urgent need for comprehensive seismic risk mitigation strategies. Recommendations include reinforcing infrastructure to comply with seismic standards, implementing advanced early warning systems, and enhancing public education on earthquake preparedness. Additionally, government policies must address these issues by increasing funding for disaster management, enforcing building regulations, and incorporating traditional knowledge into construction practices. These measures are essential to reducing future earthquake impacts and improving community resilience.

The purpose of this study is to address the issue of low local participation in ecotourism management in Indonesia, specifically at the Malela Waterfall ecotourism site in Cicadas Village, Rongga District, West Bandung Regency, West Java, Indonesia. The research method is action research, which includes observation data gathering, in-depth interviews, and Focus Group Discussions. The findings of the study show that by carrying out the process of developing social infrastructure, namely development that prioritizes strengthening human resources in carrying out social service functions in ecotourism activities such as skill training of residents in the field of ecotourism, massive ecotourism outreach, and strengthening social communities—Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and youth organizations as ecotourism actors. This type of development serves to raise awareness and participation among local inhabitants in Malela Waterfall ecotourism in West Bandung Regency. This promotes harmony and mutually beneficial partnerships among all Malela Waterfall ecotourism stakeholders. Furthermore, increasing community participation benefits the well-being of residents in the tourist region.

This article analyzes the modes of organizing the political realm of society in Aceh, especially after the signing of the Helsinki MoU in 2005 by representatives of the Indonesian government and GAM as the two parties most interested in the social organization of Acehnese society. The post-conflict social and political phenomenon in Aceh is the fragmentation between democratic and customary institutions that can be directly observed by the public through their competition in local government elections. Former GAM leaders have chosen to revive Majelis Wali Nanggroe and Gampong as customary and cultural institutions to help the government organize the lives of Acehnese people post-conflict. This paper contends that the various relationships and networks of relationships present in institutional formations are understood and explained through the different rules and frameworks that define and regulate them. Data sources were collected through in-depth interviews with several key informants, such as former GAM members, DPRA members, university rectors, local Aceh mass media editors, and socio-political observers, field observations for eighteen days (5–22 August 2018), and literature studies. This qualitative research uses a new institutionalism approach that focuses on the dynamics of the social structure of Acehnese society, which was largely controlled by GAM before the Helsinki MoU and began to loosen after the elections and even formed fragmentation among former combatants in the struggle for leadership in local government institutions. This article finds that GAM elite divisions and conflicts after the conflict for official government positions occurred due to the absence of imagination of modes of organizing society that was able to connect structurally and functionally formal and informal institutions. Pragmatically, GAM leaders and negotiators tend to maintain identity politics as a resistance movement against the central government and at the same time, they continue to run governance in a special autonomy model that gives them a lot of constitutional, institutional and symbolic freedom.