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1 – 10 of 215The purpose of this study is to assess reasons behind experienced challenges by local government authorities (LGAs) in operating Women, Youth and People with Disabilities Fund…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to assess reasons behind experienced challenges by local government authorities (LGAs) in operating Women, Youth and People with Disabilities Fund (WYDF) in Tanzania. Specifically, it assesses the reasons behind failures to recover loan by LGAs and groups of Women, Youth and People with Disability (WYPWD).
Design/methodology/approach
The qualitative approach was recruited in this study involving Tunduru District Council as a case study. Data were collected through Interviews, Focus Group Discussion and Documentary Review. Interviews were administered to Community Development Officers (CDOs) while FGD to WYPWD groups. Reviewed documents include laws, regulations and publications on social development funds. Data were analyzed using content analysis approach and backed up by quotations during presentation.
Findings
Failures to recover loans from beneficiaries is attributed to weaknesses of both groups and LGAs. LGAs suffer from lack of capability to manage the fund, poor governance practices and misuse of public funds, and groups lack awareness of the fund's goals.
Research limitations/implications
Due to experienced challenges, efforts by groups and LGAs to reclaim loan have been unsuccessful, which has prevented the fund from achieving its goals.
Practical implications
The central government should concentrate on ongoing LGAs capacity building so that they can successfully handle the fund, it is advised for improvement. Again, LGAs should establish an information system linked with groups to track their projects implementation. Once more, groups should be informed about the purpose of creating the fund and the advantages of the loan to them and to local economic development (LED). Furthermore, groups need entrepreneurial abilities to be able to participate in businesses that they can manage. Moreover, organizations should receive ongoing education so that they may repay the loan voluntarily.
Social implications
Community awareness on the aims of the fund should be provided to impact LED.
Originality/value
Recommendations given can be applied by other developing countries struggling to uplift citizens economically through social development funds.
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Shubham Garg, Priyanka, Karam Pal Narwal and Sanjeev Kumar
The purpose of the current study is to examine the implications of the implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) on the revenue efficiency of the sub-national governments in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the current study is to examine the implications of the implementation of Goods and Service Tax (GST) on the revenue efficiency of the sub-national governments in India. Furthermore, the study aims to compare the revenue efficiency of the Indian states for the pre-GST and post-GST periods in India.
Design/methodology/approach
The study has used the annual revenue of value-added tax (VAT)/GST of the Indian states for the period ranging from 2012–2013 to 2020–2021 for the pre- and post-GST periods. The empirical results are based on the panel regression model for examining the implications of GST adoption on the Indian states.
Findings
The analysis shows that the implementation of GST in India has negatively impacted the revenue efficiency of the Indian states. Moreover, the results affirm that the contribution of the service sector to the state's Net State Domestic Product (NSDP), credit-deposit ratio (CDR) and outstanding net bank credit (ONBC) ratio of schedule commercial banks (SCBs) positively and states' dependency on central transfers (DCT) negatively impact the tax revenue efforts of the state governments. Furthermore, the GST adoption has a greater impact on the revenue efficiency of the minor states in comparison to major states which may widen the inter-state disparity gap as GST revenue constitutes a major share in the Own Tax Revenue (OTR) of the Indian states in aggregate.
Practical implications
The current study will act as a guide for government, policymakers and for the sitting of the fifteenth finance commission in India for future policy formulation on GST and compensation to the Indian states. Similarly, this study can be used as a base for conducting future studies on the implications of GST at the national, sub-national, and international levels.
Originality/value
Previous studies on the implications of GST are theoretical and conceptual. There is hardly any study at the national or sub-national level that has focused on the implications of GST on the revenue efficiency of the Indian states.
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James W. Douglas and Ringa Raudla
The purpose of this article is to challenge the balanced budget practices of U.S. state governments and offer alternatives that may lead to better fiscal, economic and policy…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this article is to challenge the balanced budget practices of U.S. state governments and offer alternatives that may lead to better fiscal, economic and policy outcomes. We contend that the norm of balance may be leading U.S. states to make fiscal decisions that result in less-than-ideal outcomes, especially during economic downturns.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a normative article. We examine the scholarly evidence regarding balanced budget practices to assess the appropriateness of balanced budget norms. We also examine the fiscal rules followed by Eurozone countries to draw potential lessons for U.S. states.
Findings
We conclude that state governments should move away from strict norms of budget balance and seek more flexible approaches. We suggest that instead of following strict rules and norms of balance, U.S. states should consider implementing escape clauses, debt and deficit ceilings, and fiscal councils. We also suggest that the Federal Reserve be open to lending directly to states during fiscal crises to ensure that states have access to affordable credit.
Originality/value
The balanced budget norm has become ingrained in U.S. state budgeting practices, so much so that public officials and scholars alike rarely question it. The novel contribution of our article is to question this practice in a systematic way and propose alternative approaches.
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Kazeem Oyedele Lamidi, Lusanda Beauty Juta and Vukosi Mathonsi
This paper aims to present relevant literature review to build up the case pertaining to the impact of traditional leadership in the demarcation of municipal boundaries in South…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present relevant literature review to build up the case pertaining to the impact of traditional leadership in the demarcation of municipal boundaries in South Africa. Municipal boundary demarcation remains a major contentious issue during the process of establishing municipalities. Little or no attention has been paid to the significance of traditional leadership in resolving issues around boundary demarcation between municipalities, hence this paper.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopted case study design. Data were collected from secondary sources and the contents were analyzed for this research purpose.
Findings
This paper put boundary in municipal context as a result of spatial reconfiguration process. It also discussed the impactful roles of traditional leadership as an institution involved in municipal (re)demarcation processes.
Research limitations/implications
This paper focusses on the contemporary roles that traditional leadership is at vantage position to play in the process of municipal boundary demarcation. Therefore, the paper concludes that traditional leadership could resolve issue of ethnicity as a causal factor mitigating the redemarcation of municipal boundaries.
Originality/value
It contributes to existing knowledge by providing information on the roles of traditional leadership that could complement the resolution of the ethnic complexities arising from municipal (re)demarcation processes.
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Michael Jackson Wakwabubi, Stephen Korutaro Nkundabanyanga, Laura Orobia and Twaha Kigongo Kaawaase
The purpose of this paper is to establish the mediating role of local government delivery system (here after delivery system) in the relationship between local governance…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to establish the mediating role of local government delivery system (here after delivery system) in the relationship between local governance (hereafter, governance) and financial distress of local governments in Uganda.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is correlational and cross-sectional. It uses a questionnaire survey on a sample of 109 local governments (districts) of Uganda. The data are analysed using SPSS, partial least squares structural equation modelling and Jose’s MedGraph.
Findings
Results indicate that government delivery system mediates the relationship between governance and financial distress. Delivery system in terms of capacity development and community participation causes positive variances in local government’s financial distress. Also, governance in terms of political clientelism significantly contributes to financial distress more than oversight mechanisms and audit quality. The study finds that delivery system causes more variance in financial distress than governance.
Originality/value
This study applies the new public management and network governance theory and tests the efficacy of delivery system and governance on financial distress in one-go and succeeded in explaining financial distress of local government using Uganda as the setting; the authors join previous scholars that root for multi-theoretical approaches. Also, this study’s design has allowed for the consideration of more than simply the main effects of governance and delivery systems by exploring the mediating role of delivery systems in the link between governance and financial distress. As such, the authors may now have a more accurate and detailed description of the relationships between governance, delivery system and local government financial distress.
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Shengfeng Lu, Sixia Chen, Yongtao Cang and Ziyao San
This study examines whether and how government fiscal pressure influences corporate charitable giving (CCG).
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines whether and how government fiscal pressure influences corporate charitable giving (CCG).
Design/methodology/approach
The authors exploit sub-national tax revenue sharing changes as exogenous variations to government’s fiscal pressure at the city level and then construct a quasi difference-in-differences (DiD) model to conduct the analysis based on a sample that consists of 14,168 firm-year observations in China during the period of 2003 to 2012.
Findings
The authors found that firms increase charitable donations when local governments face higher fiscal pressure. Such effects are more pronounced for firms that have stronger demand for political connectedness in the sample period. Furthermore, this study’s findings suggest that the timing strategy of donating helps firms to lower the effective tax rate and to build stronger political connections. In addition, donating firms outperform non-donating firms in terms of bank loan access and market reputation.
Originality/value
The authors contribute to at least three lines of literature: first, extend the understanding of timing strategies of corporate charitable behaviors; second, contribute to the literature studying the “crowd out” effect between government-provided charitable funds and private donations; finally, contribute to the emerging literature exploring the financial interests associated with corporate donation strategy (Claessens et al., 2008; Cull et al., 2015).
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M. Kabir Hassan, Muneer M. Alshater, Hasanul Banna and Md Rabiul Alam
World legends and the scientific community have taken the devastating impact of poverty issue seriously which has been reflected in the growing trend of research in this area…
Abstract
Purpose
World legends and the scientific community have taken the devastating impact of poverty issue seriously which has been reflected in the growing trend of research in this area. Hence, this paper aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis on poverty alleviation literature, discuss the various dimensions of poverty alleviation and deliver some ideas for future research.
Design/methodology/approach
This study deploys a combined quali-quantitative method familiar as meta-literature review on 454 articles collected from the Web of Science (WoS) database with Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) coverage over the period 1971–2020. Using Rstudio, VOSviewer and Excel, the collected data have been analysed from different lenses.
Findings
This study considers the most contributing scientific actors like authors, journals, topics, institutions and countries as parameters for analysing articles. Based on the analysis from various perspectives, it determines five main research streams upon which it provides some potential research directions to be considered in future research.
Research limitations/implications
This study solely relies on the articles available in the WoS database with index in SSCI. However, it excludes analysing thousands of articles on the same topic available in other platforms.
Originality/value
This study provides a retrospective on the scientific works and collective efforts of scholars germane to poverty alleviation from the highest ranked journals, which would help better understand the literature development and the intellectual structure of this field.
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Katsiaryna Bahamazava and Stanley Reznik
In the age of DarkNetMarkets proliferation, combatting money laundering has become even more complicated. Constantly evolving technologies add a new layer of difficulty to already…
Abstract
Purpose
In the age of DarkNetMarkets proliferation, combatting money laundering has become even more complicated. Constantly evolving technologies add a new layer of difficulty to already intricated schemes of hiding the cryptocurrency’s origin. Considering the latest development of cryptocurrency- and blockchain-related use cases, this study aims to scrutinize Italian and Russian antimoney laundering regulations to understand their preparedness for a new era of laundering possibilities.
Design/methodology/approach
One of the most recommended ways to buy and sell cryptocurrencies for illegal drug trade on DarkNet was discovered using machine learning, i.e. natural language processing and topic modeling. This study compares how current Italian and Russian laws address this technique.
Findings
Despite differences in cryptocurrency regulation, both the Italian Republic and the Russian Federation fall behind on preventing cryptolaundering.
Originality/value
The main contributions of this paper: consideration of noncustodial wallet projects and nonfungible token platforms through the lens of money laundering opportunities, comparison of Italian and Russian antimoney laundering regulations related to cryptocurrency, empirical analysis of the preferred method of trading/exchanging cryptocurrency for DarkNet illegal trade using machine learning techniques and the assessment of how Italian and Russian regulations address these money laundering methods.
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Recent USA police responses to civil rights demonstrations have drawn attention toward the 1033 Program – a military surplus transfer program from the Department of Defense (DOD…
Abstract
Purpose
Recent USA police responses to civil rights demonstrations have drawn attention toward the 1033 Program – a military surplus transfer program from the Department of Defense (DOD) to police agencies in the USA – as well as calls for dissolution or reform of the program. However, policy decisions have been sporadic and empirical literature examining the program have relied on public data, which contain information about equipment transfers, but does not show the frequency of agencies' use of this equipment – or contexts of use – once received.
Design/methodology/approach
This study presents the findings of a survey of a national sample of law enforcement agencies that used the program to obtain armored vehicles, rifles, and body armor and how these agencies used this equipment in 2019 and 2020. Correlations and binary logistic regression models are tested for 2019 to examine the racial threat hypothesis and additional predictors of equipment use.
Findings
A statistically significant correlation is found between perceived percentage of Black and other race residents and the frequency of armored vehicle deployment in 2019 and between the perceived percentage of other race residents and the percentage of special weapons and tactics (SWAT) officers wearing body armor. Perceived increases in drug crimes also significantly increase the likelihood of SWAT officers carrying military rifles, with increased odds of 402.3%.
Originality/value
This study is the first to examine contextual data surrounding law enforcement use of 1033 Program acquisitions with a national sample, assisting in providing greater accuracy in determining predictors and outcomes of the program's use.
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