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The purpose of this paper is attracting attention to the use of information by mosque speechmakers (MSs) in the Islamic and Arabic world, specifically in Upper Egypt.

This study used a survey, which was conducted from September to November 2019. A structured questionnaire was designed in Arabic and distributed to the mosques that were chosen as a sample to represent all the mosques of Upper Egypt. The researcher sampled 5% (n = 421) of the total of 8,421 mosques in Upper Egypt.

The findings showed the majority of the MSs in Upper Egypt are to be older (from 36 to 60 years, educated [mostly with BA degrees]), married and with an average monthly income over LE 3,500. Almost all MSs were strongly looking for information to make specific/general research, to make a religious lecture and be aware of contemporary events. The most frequently used sources of information by MSs were biographies, books, mass media, references and the Web. Most of the MSs had been using information heavily. The highest percentage of them spent from 7 to 12 h a week searching for information. MSs preferred the use of printed sources of information to those non-print sources. Mobile apps, followed by the Web and information databases were the most significant technological tools used by MSs. MSs’ efficiency level of using English was good and a reasonable number of them indicated that they were not good at speaking other languages, such as French. The home/personal library and the special library were the most important types of libraries used by MSs. The unaffected role of the library to access information, followed by the use of foreign languages to access some sources of information, as well as the use of technology, were the most significant problems faced by MSs when searching for information.

This paper investigates the topic of MSs’ use of and access to information. This topic, unfortunately, has limited previous research, particularly in the Arabic and Islamic environment.

This paper provides valuable insight into the information behavior of a very significant client group, namely, MSs.

Being one of the very few studies conducted on these beneficiaries of information in the Arab and Islamic environment, this study is considered a unique one among several studies conducted in the area of the information-seeking behavior, especially with such a significant group of information users/seekers in such influencing environment in the world. The findings of this study may help in a better understanding of the information-seeking behavior of the MSs.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the potential role of South Valley University (SVU) libraries’ manpower, collections, and services in the fight against terrorism in Upper Egypt.

A quantitative research methodology was used in the form of a survey, which was undertaken from June to July 2015. The survey instrument was a self-administered questionnaire. The target population comprised the academic library staff (n=127) working in SVU libraries who were contacted to answer the structured questionnaire, of whom 93 library staff responded and returned their valid questionnaires, representing 73.2 percent of the whole library staff in the SVU.

Demographically, two-thirds of the SVU library staff were males and a large number of them are aged between 26 and 40 years, and 79.6 percent have a bachelor’s degree. The speciality of two-thirds of SVU library staff was library science, of whom a large number were librarians with lengthy work experience. This study showed that printed materials were the most adequate collections in the SVU libraries. Other materials, such as CDs/DVDs, audiovisual materials, microfilm and microfiche, online resources and electronic materials, respectively, were inadequate at SVU libraries. Few of the services provided by SVU libraries were characterized as adequate services; some are inadequate and other services do not exist. The average of the facilities provided by SVU libraries was somewhat adequate. A large number of the library staff showed that facilities, such as the availability of the learning labs were, at least, adequate for their needs. Activities, such as holding social field trips, holding training workshops, and holding academic field trips were, at least, somewhat adequate to SVU libraries. Other activities were also described to be either inadequate, such as holding lectures, seminars, conferences, etc. and library orientation, or not applicable such as activities related to bibliographic instruction. This study revealed that SVU libraries had no significant role in fighting the phenomenon of terrorism in Upper Egypt. There is no a reliable relationship between the professional characteristics of the SVU library staff and the potential role that their libraries may play in the fight against this phenomenon. Because of the lack of SVU libraries’ collections, services, facilities, and activities, this study concluded that such a role could not be achieved. Almost all the library staff admitted that this severe lack has affected the provision of library patrons and members of the library community to use these collections and services, which help in countering the threat of terrorism. Despite the significance of all these problems faced by SVU libraries in the fight against terrorism, it was found that the inadequacy of the librarys’ open hours is significantly correlated with the professional characteristics of the library staff, particularly their job title and work experience.

This study investigates the potential role of SVU libraries’ manpower, collections, and services in the fight against terrorism in Upper Egypt. It covers none of the other universities or any type of other library. Any findings and conclusions resulting from this study are limited in scope to only the libraries of this university. The size, convenience and homogeneity of the sample may limit the generalizability of this study. The study was conducted with a survey approach, which was the most suitable research method technique to reach the community of the study. However, for further research, investigating more specific information about such or related topics, other methods/approaches should be used to investigate the potential role of the university library, as well as the other kinds of libraries, such as public and special libraries to combat terrorism.

This study provides valuable insight into the potential role the university library can have in the fight against terrorism in one of the most important countries hit recently by this brutal phenomenon. The study focuses on libraries of one of the regional universities called the SVU, located in the Southern part of Egypt that is called the Upper Egypt. This deep part of Egypt is one of the places most affected by barbaric terrorism. The study tries to explore how much these libraries are ready to combat this terrorism in terms of sizable, suitable, accessible, qualified, and relevant collections, as well as services, facilities and activities provided by these libraries.

This study is to be the first one of its kind conducted in the Arab world where Egypt is located and one of the very few studies conducted on this topic in the world. The importance of this study strongly emanates from its subject that has dominated the obsession of all Egyptians living inside and outside Egypt over the past five years.

This study aims to analyze to what extent distance education is feasible and efficient with the limited technological infrastructure in Egypt. The study answers this question from the perspective of households' preparedness level regarding possessing information and communication technologies (ICTs). In addition, it assesses whether the pattern of students' ICT ownership is influenced by disability- and socioeconomic-based inequality in education and whether the pattern of ICT ownership exacerbates such biases.

A three-stage probit model with double sample selection (PMDSS) was applied to estimate the factors likely to influence ICT possession, considering the selection process for school enrollment and education continuation. The authors utilized nationally representative data from the Egypt Labor Market Panel Survey 2018.

About 40% of students aged 12–25 did not have ICTs. Most socioeconomically poor households, particularly those living in Upper Egypt, were the least likely to obtain ICTs and rely on distance education. In addition, female students, particularly those with disabilities, had the lowest chance of benefitting from distance learning.

The persistent structural deprivation of school enrollment and educational progression has led to the positive selection of well-off children in education, which is extended to ICT possession and internet use. Without addressing these structural biases, the study suggests that distance education will likely exacerbate educational inequalities.

The study analyzed the extent to which Egyptian families were prepared in 2018 regarding ICT possessions for distance education for their children, particularly those with disabilities. Furthermore, it investigated whether access to distance learning was influenced by disability- and socioeconomic-based inequalities in education.

This study aims to evaluate effects of tax system reforms on tax obstacles to investment in Egypt and tax evasion. It also aims to analyze differences in burden of tax obstacles and extent of tax evasion among different types of enterprises after applying tax reforms.

The study uses data from Productivity and Investment Climate Surveys 2004 and 2008. A number of indices are constructed to measure incidence and severity of tax obstacles. Two indicators are constructed to estimate incidence and extent of tax evasion. The study adopts a descriptive analytical comparative approach to evaluate changes and differences in severity of tax obstacles, and their effects.

The results obtained show that tax reforms have resulted in a significant decrease in severity of tax obstacles. However, they are still major obstacles. The overall decrease hides differences in the burden of these obstacles. Reforms were not enough to address needs of small enterprises. The extent of tax evasion decreased. However, it is still a problem as tax obstacles are still major obstacles.

There is a need for more detailed data about problems enterprises face in each phase of interaction with tax administrators and managers’ suggested solutions.

The study evaluates the actual effects of a major economic reform, on the microeconomic level during an important period rather than exploring enterprises’ expectations. The results show that there is a need for more reforms targeting small enterprises.

This paper aims to investigate the role of demographics and sector type in determining consumer preferences of Islamic micro-credit products, namely, Musharka and Murabha, versus conventional micro-credit financing in Egypt.

This research is a quantitative study that uses surveys on 1,125 current micro-credit consumers in Cairo and Upper Egypt using multi-staged cluster sampling technique. Descriptive and inferential analyses were used to explain results.

The study revealed the potential of Musharka mode of financing among micro-credit borrowers in Egypt, specifically in the manufacturing sector, followed by the trade sector. Although previous researches showed correlations between income, age and other demographic factors with consumer financing choices, the current research indicated no significance for consumer demographics in determining preferences of Islamic micro-credit contracts in Egypt. However, the sector type showed high potential in determining consumer choices of Islamic micro-credit contracts.

This paper advances knowledge in the domain of consumer behavior, specifically in bottom of the pyramid and subsistence markets that are under researched.

The results highlighted are important for micro-finance institutions, NGOs and policy makers, as they delve deeper into the consumer preferences for Islamic financial products and attempt to present innovative solutions toward poverty eradication.

This research is one of the few attempts to study and explain consumer preferences toward Islamic micro-credit products in Egypt, and the role of sectors in determining consumer choices for specific Islamic micro-credit contracts.

Given the increased importance of food in tourists’ travel experience, the purpose of this paper is to explore the current and future potential of local food and foodways in marketing Egyptian destinations online.

The content of 20 Egyptian destination marketing organization (DMO) websites was subject to a content analysis. A checklist was developed based on literature analysis. The frequencies of information related to food culture and cuisine marketing were tallied, followed by a qualitative assessment of contents from the various websites. The results were further discussed with DMO representatives to provide contextualized insights as to the future potential of utilizing local food and food tourism initiatives as a component of DMOs website marketing in Egypt.

The study noted some initial efforts for Egyptian DMO websites to market food culture and gastronomic practices; however, the results suggest that the usage of food culture on Egyptian DMOs websites is still in its infancy. The study also highlights the challenges that need to be tackled as well as the resources required for food tourism development.

This study illustrates the need and potential capacity of Egyptian DMO websites to market food culture and local cuisines (including traditional foods and table manners). These results are expected to help Egyptian DMOs to strategically embrace local cuisine and food culture as a vehicle for destination marketing.

This case study provides insights for African and other developing economies in their destination marketing. The proposed framework and guidelines are intended to potentially serve as a framework for destination marketers and entrepreneurs to optimize the tourism potential of food culture.

This chapter applies the five drivers of productivity framework to regional microdata for Egypt and extends it by introducing an index of industrial clusters as an explanatory factor of the productivity performance of local private sector firms. Applying structural equation models, the geographic concentration of sectoral economic activity is found to have a positive and statistically significant effect on labor productivity. The transmission mechanism is conjectured to be the positive spillovers that are created, which local firms can tap into. In contrast, a higher concentration of skilled workers in an industrial sector in a region is associated with lower levels of labor productivity – a finding that suggests there may be structural deficiencies in the allocation of skilled workers. Regional policy should focus on net investments in gross capital formation throughout the country, for which the national and regional governments should improve how public investments are managed and the institutional framework – including the rule of law, bureaucracy and red tape, conflict of interest, transparency, and governance – so that private investment (both local and foreign) may substantially increase.

The paper aims at studying the effect of management practices on the extensive and intensive export margins of Egyptian manufacturing firms.

The study relies on the 2020/2021 Egyptian Industrial Firm Behavior Survey (EIFBS) which comprises 2,383 manufacturing firms representing small, medium, and large sized firms located in different regions of Egypt: Urban Governorates, Lower Egypt, and Upper Egypt. It constructs an overall management z score for each firm to estimate its effect on a firm’s probability of exporting and value of exports using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regressions.

Results indicate that good management is associated with a higher probability of firm exporting as well as higher export revenues conditional on exporting, robust to controlling for the level of domestic sales. These effects do not differ by firm ownership or type of sector, but rather by firm size, with managerial competence raising the probability of exporting more for large-sized firms. Additionally, good management is associated with higher firm productivity, innovation and worker training propensities which gives evidence that it is both an efficiency and a quality enhancer. Moreover, monitoring and targeting practices have significant positive effects on both margins, while incentives are only significant for the extensive margin.

Firms that aim at enhancing their export prospects and revenues should devote resources to review and upgrade their management systems to boost their product quality and production efficiency. Policy-wise, the government should create a competitive market environment that is open to both domestic and foreign firms’ entry to stimulate the adoption of better management practices.

The paper is the first to explore the link between firm management practices and export outcomes for a MENA country (Egypt). It makes use of a recent survey, the 2020/2021 Egyptian Industrial Firm Behavior Survey (EIFBS). The findings shed light on the importance of different management components (monitoring, targeting and incentives) in driving a manufacturing firm’s export performance.

The twenty-first century manifests two of the challenging issues about achieving Sustainable Local Economic Development (SLED) and turning to environmental sustainability through Green Job Creation (GJC). The study examines that not only are both challenges are urgent, but they are also intimately linked and will have to be addressed together. It also finds out that further factors like Managerial Effectiveness (ME) and Public Policy Effectiveness (PPE) affect GJC.

The study uses qualitative and quantitative methods by utilizing primary data collected through designing questionnaires answered by random executives and citizens of three governorates; Cairo, Alexandria and Beni-Suef. These governorates are chosen because they represent different Egyptian geographic areas, i.e. the capital of Egypt, lower and Upper Egypt, where there are numbers of industrial zones with many heavy polluting industrial activities that exist.

The study showed that there is a lack of effectiveness and efficiency in applying common international standards in GJC’s strategies in Cairo, Alexandria and Beni-Suef. Additionally, it is highly recommended that the three governorates enhance the exploitation of their economic resources. Quantitatively, the study showed a positive and statistically-significant connection between SLED and GJC, alongside with a positive and statistically-significant connection between ME and GJC.

The study provides empirical evidence about the main requirements in designing an efficient framework for achieving eco-friendly local economic activities and suggesting practical solutions to obstacles that face local strategies regarding the study’s variables.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-01-2020-0012

The purpose of this paper is to construct, for the first time, composite index for Egypt that measures the economic and social rights fulfillment (ESRF) based on socioeconomic surveys at the household/individual levels.

The paper highlights some of the statistical debatable issues about composite indices and focuses mainly on six of them. Those issues are indicators selection, handling missing data, identification of and dealing with outliers, scale of measurement, computing the margin of error, weights assigned for indicators and domains and aggregation method. Handling these problematic issues gave rise to a rigorous index.

The quality of economic and social rights fulfillment index (ESRFI) is judged by its bootstrap standard error. Based on these margin of errors, confidence intervals can be computed and rigorous comparisons across all disaggregation levels of the ESRFI can be made. The results shows that the overall index is accurate and representative in measuring the ESRF in Egypt. Comparisons between rural and urban regions indices show that the rural areas are always worse than the urban areas in all levels of dimensions, especially for the Right to Education and Adequate Housing.

The ESRFI is not very current because it is based on the 2010 Egyptian Household Conditions Observatory Survey (EHCOS), which is the latest published version of the survey with complete variables for the index data. When the next EHCOS becomes available, an updated ESRFI can be easily and quickly constructed.

The ESRFI could strengthen policy formulation that takes into account ESRF, especially by highlighting the situation in different regions and disaggregation levels.

The proposed ESRFI would strengthen policy formulation that takes into account ESRF, especially by highlighting the situation in different regions and different disaggregation levels.

The paper emphasizes the importance of recognizing and handling of the six problematic issues that arise when constructing composite indices. The paper presents the first ESRFI for Egypt and demonstrates the rigor of its construction.