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The purpose of this paper is to analyse how entrepreneurial bricolage empowers smallholder commercial farming, from a family business perspective.

The study employed a multiple case study design to analyse entrepreneurial bricolage in smallholder commercial farming in Uganda. It used multiple data collection methods and applied content analytical tchniques to establish cross-case correlations, patterns and relationships to aid in theory development and testing.

The study shows that entrepreneurial bricolage empowers smallholder commercialization through resource reallocation, improvization and prioritization as interconnected, self-reinforcing bricolage processes in smallholder farming. It provides evidence of how smallholder farms may not enact institutional limits, and overcome constraints imposed by their resource environments. It further reveals that smallholder commercial farms can be construed as family businesses given the interconnected relationship between farming business, family and smallholder farm(er).

The study was conducted in smallholder farms hence results may be used cautiously in other sectors and economies where resource environments are not structurally defined. However, it provides lessons for family businesses in developed countries particularly the micro- and small businesses. It also renders smallholder farming as a lucrative area for family business research.

This study deepens our understanding of bricolage in smallholder farming and provides a springboard for scholarship in enhancing smallholder commercialization. It proposes a model for entrepreneurial bricolage in smallholder commercial farming.

The purpose of this study is to explore the interplay among self-organization, networks and sustainable innovations within microfinance institutions (MFIs) and to examine the extent to which organizational resilience plays a significant role in shaping these dynamics as a mediator.

This paper adopted a cross-sectional research design combined with analytical and descriptive approach to collect the data. Smart partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to construct the measurement model and structural equation model to test the mediating effect under this study.

The results revealed that organizational resilience is a significant mediator in the relationship between self-organization, networks and sustainable innovations among microfinance institutions in Uganda.

The data for this study were collected only from microfinance institutions in Uganda. Future studies may collect data from other formal financial institutions like commercial banks and credit institutions to test the mediating effect of organizational resilience. More still, the study adopted only a single approach of using a questionnaire. However, future research through interviews may be desirable. Likewise this study was cross-sectional in nature. Therefore, a longitudinal study may be useful in future while investigating the mediating role of organizational resilience traversing over a long time frame.

A possible implication is that microfinance institutions which desire to have sustainable innovative solutions for their business operations in disruptive circumstances may need to scrutinize their capacity to be resilient and self-organize.

Microfinance institutions play a great role to the underserved clients. Thus, for each to re-organize to be able to provide services that meet users’ needs, without physical products so as to ensure long-term financial and social welfare combined with the ability to bounce back and adapt in times of economic downturn to avoid mission adrift.

While most studies have been carried out on organizational resilience, this paper takes center stage and is the first to test the mediating role of organizational resilience in the relationship between self-organization, networks and sustainable innovations, especially in microfinance institutions in Uganda. This paper generates strong evidence and contributes to the powerful influence of organizational resilience in enhancing the level of sustainable innovations based on self-organization and networks.

Enterprise growth drives competitiveness, innovations, employment creation, income generation and social inclusion in societies. The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating effect of networking on the relationship between dynamic capabilities and enterprise growth of financial cooperatives.

This is a cross-sectional survey and quantitative study of 269 financial cooperatives based on structural equation modelling and bootstrapping techniques analysis.

The results reveal that dynamic capabilities are vital in promoting the growth of financial cooperatives. In addition, networking partially enhances the contribution of dynamic capabilities to the growth of financial cooperatives. Therefore, dynamic capabilities and networking play a key role in promoting the growth of financial cooperative enterprises.

This was a cross-sectional survey. It did not trace the changes in behavioural and attitudinal aspects of enterprise growth over time. A longitudinal approach is recommended.

It is imperative that managers of financial cooperatives enhance their coordination, learning and competitive response capabilities through consultation, exchange and sharing of information among staff and other stakeholders, to increase the membership, capital and income volumes, depicting growth of financial cooperatives.

This study provides an insight on the mediating effect of networking on the enterprise growth of financial cooperatives in developing countries founded on networks theoretical framework. Unlike previous studies that modelled direct relationship of enterprise growth.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating role of social capital in financial literacy and financial inclusion relationship in rural Uganda. The major aim is to establish the role of social capital in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion.

The paper adopts and uses MedGraph programme (Excel version 3.0), Sobel and Kenny and Baron tests to test the mediation effect of social capital in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion.

The results reveals that social capital is a significant mediator in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion of rural poor in Uganda. Financial literacy did not have a direct effect on financial inclusion, but through full mediation of social capital. Existence of social capital into the relationship boosts the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion by 61.6 per cent among rural poor households in Uganda. Thus, the finding suggests that with the absence of social capital, financial literacy may fail to enhance the level of financial inclusion among rural poor households in Uganda.

This study adopted only single research approach using a questionnaire. However, future research through interview may be of importance. Besides, for the purpose of triangulation, a study involving financial institutions’ staff may be viable. Moreover this study was limited by the fact that it was cross-sectional. Furthermore, a longitudinal study may be useful in future to investigate the mediating impact of social capital spanning over a long period of time.

Managers, policymakers and financial inclusion practitioners should advocate and embark on building social capital among rural communities, so as to improve on the level of financial inclusion.

While a large body of research has been carried out on financial literacy, this paper is the first to test the mediating role of social capital in the relationship between financial literacy and financial inclusion, especially in rural Uganda. This study generates evidence and contributes to the powerful influence of social capital in enhancing the level of financial inclusion based on financial literacy.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of innovation indicators: Internet usage, patent rights, innovation in exporting countries and innovation in the importing country on the export competitiveness of firms in the East African Community (EAC).

The study adopted the structural gravity model and the Poisson Pseudo Maximum Likelihood a nonlinear estimation method that was applied in STATA on balanced panel data from 2007 to 2018. Data were obtained from World Bank International Trade Center and World Bank development indicators.

Results show that innovation in the importing country, innovation in the exporting country and patent rights of exports are positive and significant predictors of export competitiveness in developing countries. While Internet usage is an insignificant predictor in the EAC.

There is a need to examine the complicated nature of the EAC economy to further this study's findings.

Exporting countries need to take deeper reforms as regards structural transformation to enable firms to integrate into the Global Value Chains (GVCs) to enable them to increase their productivity by reviewing the existing policies to match the changes in the market.

This study explains the complex dynamic interactions of technological innovation indicators in the EAC using quantitative data and that this interaction has an effect on the export competitiveness in import-oriented countries with less harmonization in their trade policies.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of export logistics components: shipment arrangements, timely delivery, customs quality, trade infrastructure, and tracking and tracing on export competitiveness of firms in the East African Community (EAC).

The study adopted the Structural Gravity Model and the Poisson pseudo-maximum likelihood (PPML). PPML a nonlinear estimation method was applied in STATA on a balanced panel data for the period of 2007–2018. Data were obtained from World Bank International Trade Centre (ITC), World Bank Logistics Performance Index (LPI) and World Bank development indicators.

Results show that timely delivery and tracking and tracing of exports are positive and significant predictors of export competitiveness in EAC countries. Conversely, shipment arrangements, customs quality and trade infrastructure have no influence on export competitiveness.

The results of this study show that export logistics components of shipment arrangements, customs quality and trade infrastructure do not matter at the present in improving export competitiveness in the EAC. There is a need to examine the intricate nature of the EAC economy to further this study's findings.

The EAC partner states should embrace deep integration by removing the behind the border trade barriers in addition to other trade restrictions, to create a common economic space among member states. This will further shrink the delivery time and the tracking and tracing of exports hence improving the competitiveness of EAC exports within the region and outside. Also, common and harmonized trade policies and regulations should be implemented through mutual recognition agreements where countries agree to recognize one another's conformity assessments.

This study explains the complex dynamic interactions of export logistics factors in the EAC using quantitative data and that this interaction has an effect on the export competitiveness in import-dominated countries with less harmonization in their trade policies.

This study examines the relationship between policyholders’ psychographic characteristics and demand decisions for life insurance products in Uganda.

The study is based on a cross-sectional survey. Using a purposive sampling method, 389 questionnaires were administered to life insurance policyholders in the four geographical regions of Uganda. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyze the primary data, specifically to test the relationships between the dependent and independent variables.

The findings indicate a positive and significant influence of psychographic characteristics on demand decisions for life insurance products. In addition, the analysis indicates that the two first-order constructs of psychographic characteristics, namely price consciousness and consumer innovativeness, are positive and significant predictors of demand decisions for life insurance products. In contrast, the third first-order construct religious salience, exhibits a negative and nonsignificant effect on demand decisions for life insurance products.

For insurance practitioners, to influence demand decisions, they should emphasize premium-related appeals in their marketing messages (price consciousness) ignore product decisions based on religious beliefs and norms (religious salience). They should also ensure that insurance products are highly trustable and experiential (consumer innovativeness). For insurance policymakers, it offers an in-depth understanding of customer psychographic characteristics, which can be used to identify exploitative information embedded in certain marketing campaigns targeting specific psychographic characteristics, for better regulation.

The study provides a basis for understanding lifestyle and personality characteristics (psychographics), which may influence demand decisions for life insurance products in a developing country like Uganda, where the insurance industry is at an early stage of development.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-06-2023-0440

This study aims to examine the effect of governance on the consumption of modern renewable energy in the East African Community (EAC), controlling for economic growth, trade openness and foreign direct investment (FDI).

The study relied on secondary data sourced from the World Development Indicators, World Governance Indicators and the International Energy Agency (IEA) for the EAC from 1996 to 2019. A panel Cross-Sectional Augmented Distributed Lag (CS-ARDL) model and second-generation panel data models were employed in the analysis.

The findings indicate that poor governance and inadequate FDI are significantly responsible for the low level of modern renewable energy consumption (MREC) in the EAC. On the other hand, trade openness significantly enhances MREC, while GDP per capita has no significant effect on MREC.

The consumption of modern renewable energy sources (excluding the traditional use of biomass) and its determinants, as most studies focus on renewable energy consumption as a whole. The study also employed the panel CS-ARDL model and second-generation panel data models.

This paper examines the relationship between behavioral biases, and demand decisions for life insurance products in Uganda.

Data were collected from 351 life insurance policyholders in Uganda. The authors used a cross-sectional survey by applying a structured questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was conducted and hypothesized relationships between the constructs were evaluated through the use of structural equation modeling.

Results indicate that, behavioral biases are significant predictors of life insurance demand among Ugandan policyholders. Also, the two behavioral bias variables (heuristic bias and prospect bias) are significant predictors of demand decisions for life insurance products.

These results are helpful for both insurers and regulators. For insurers, it is now evident that demand decisions for life insurance products are not fully rational. It is imperative for insurers to simplify life insurance product information (heuristics), integrate product education and widen dissemination of product information (prospect bias) to allow policyholders to come up with optimal demand decisions. While for insurance policymakers, the study provides an understanding of behavioral biases. With such insights, policymakers can identify exploitative and deceptive information that target policyholders to better guide life insurance documentation and product designs.

This study is the first to offer insights into behavioral biases' influence on demand decisions for life insurance products in a developing country like Uganda. By integrating prospects and expected utility theory, this study examines rationality and irrationality in demand decisions for life insurance products.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-03-2023-0201

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between cooperative practices of accountability, cooperative ownership, advanced communication and non-financial performance in savings and credit cooperative societies.

The study uses a cross-sectional research design and adopted a mixed methodological approach were hypotheses were statistically tested using structural equation modeling based on survey data (n = 220) and narratives from qualitative findings supported the quantitative findings from savings and credit cooperative societies.

The findings reveal that cooperative practices of accountability, cooperative ownership and advanced communication are significantly and positively associated with non-financial performance of savings and credit cooperative societies.

This study provides empirical evidence on the relationship between cooperative practices of accountability, cooperative ownership and advanced communication and non-financial performance in savings and credit cooperative societies in emerging economies like Uganda. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there is limited or no study that has used the construct of agency theory in explaining the relationship between cooperative practices and non-financial performance in savings and credit cooperative societies.