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Advancing the economies in Asia toward meeting sustainable development goals (SDGs) needs an unprecedented investment in people, processes and the planet. The participation of the private sector is necessary to bridge the financing gap to attain this objective. Engaging the private sector can contribute significantly to attaining the 2030 agenda for SD. However, the financial markets in Asian economies are yet to realize this potential. In this context, this paper aims to discuss the state of finance for SD in Asia and identifies innovative financial instruments for attracting private investments for SDs in these economies.

This study relies on published articles, reports and policy documents on financing mechanisms for SD. The literature review covered journal data sources, reports from global institutions such as the UN, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and think-tanks operating in the field of climate change policies. Though the topic was specific to financial market instruments, a broader search was conducted to understand the different sources of sustainable finance available, particularly in Asia.

The investments that are required for meeting the SDGs remain underfunded. Though interest in sustainability is growing in the Asian economies, the financial markets are yet to transition to tap the growing interest in sustainable investing among global investors. This paper concludes that to raise capital from private investors the Asian economies should ensure information availability, reduce distortions and unblock regulatory obstacles. It would also need designing policies and introducing blended financing instruments combining private and public funds.

Though the study has grouped Asian economies, the financing strategy for SDGs should be developed at the country-level considering the domestic financial markets, local developmental stage, fiscal capacity and nationally determined contributions. Further research can focus on developing country-specific strategies for using innovative financial instruments.

Mobilizing funds for implementing the 2030 Agenda for SD is a major challenge for Asian economies. The paper is addressed to national policymakers in Asian economies for developing strategies to raise capital for SD through private participation. It provides opportunities for revisiting national approaches to sustainable finance in these economies.

The study attempts to understand the factors impacting the financial wellbeing of IT employees in India using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). It utilizes well-established survey instruments to assess the impact of financial literacy, financial behaviour and financial stress on financial wellbeing. The study also attempts to understand the role of demographic factors (age, gender, monthly income, job category and work experience) in determining financial wellbeing through multigroup analysis.

Structured equation modelling (SEM) is used to study the link between the determinants. The study also attempts to understand the role of demographic factors (age, gender, monthly income, job category and work experience) in determining financial wellbeing through multigroup analysis. Data used for the analysis covers 237 employees working in the IT sector.

While financial literacy and financial behaviour have a significant positive impact on financial wellbeing, financial stress has a significant negative impact. Financial behaviour and financial stress were found to have a mediating role in the relationship between financial literacy and financial wellbeing. The demographic variables significantly moderate the relationship between the factors leading to financial wellbeing.

The results show the need for financial wellbeing programs to focus on enhancing financial knowledge and improving financial planning. Further, it suggests offering customized financial wellbeing programs based on the employee's demographic characteristics rather than following a “one program, fits all” approach.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the inhibitive properties of black pepper extract (BPE) for aluminium in 1M hydrochloric acid (HCl) medium.

Gravimetric, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, galvanostatic polarization, scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray examinations (SEM-EDX) techniques were used to study the corrosion inhibitive study.

The gravimetric measurement indicates that inhibition efficiency shows direct proportional relation with concentration of inhibitor. The impedance results illustrates that there was a presence of protective layer of inhibitor adsorbed on the metal/solution interface. Polarization outcome showed that BPE is mixed type inhibitor. The existence of adherent layer of inhibitor on the Al surface was confirmed by SEM-EDX. Quantum chemical calculations were performed using the density functional theory at B3LYP/6-31G(d) level of theory to evaluate the activity of inhibitor molecules present in extract towards the corrosion inhibition of Al.

Due to the presence of large number of compounds in the extract, it becomes difficult to understand the most active compound responsible for inhibition. However, from gas chromatography mass spectrometry and quantum data, the approximation has been made that the major compound piperine present in the extract can be most probable component responsible for the inhibition activity. Further calculation of binding energy between Al and inhibitor molecules can be performed using Material Studio software.

The extract can be used in cleaning and etching solutions. It can be used to limit the loss of Al metal during etching process.

BPE can be used as a potential source of eco-friendly corrosion inhibitor for Al in HCl medium.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how a local trade union improves living conditions for women entrepreneurs in India and how its activities have evolved over time.

The authors conducted a longitudinal case study of the self-employed women’s association (SEWA) in India. Founded in 1972, this organization fosters and supports women’s entrepreneurship. The approach of this study combines qualitative face-to-face interviews and secondary data analysis.

The findings highlight the fact that SEWA, which combines the features of a trade union and a social movement, improves women’s conditions in several different ways. The study shows that the organization’s main role has evolved from creating a community to expanding it and finally to becoming an agent of societal change.

The study contributes to the literature by analyzing how locally grown organizations fight social exclusion and improve the conditions of deprived groups in emerging economies.

This paper aims to appraise the inhibitory effect of saponins extracted from Gongronema latifolium (SEGL) on mild steel in acid media. This is in a bid to conserve our environment and maintain the integrity of engineering structures and materials.

The corrosion inhibition of SEGL and ethanolic extracts of the leaves of G. latifolium (EEGL) on mild steel was studied by hydrogen evolution technique within a temperature range of 30-60°C in tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid solutions.

The extracts inhibit the corrosion of mild steel, and the inhibition efficiency depends on the concentration of the plant extract, temperature and the period of immersion. SEGL was comparatively more efficient than EEGL. Optimum values of the inhibition efficiency for both the EEGL and SEGL (93.7 and 96.5 per cent, respectively) were obtained at extract concentration of 10 g/L, whereas the least values were obtained at extract concentration of 0.5 g/L.

This paper provides new information on the possible application of isolated SEGL as an environmentally friendly corrosion inhibitor. The possible mechanism of the inhibitive action is also given.