European University of Lefke

ABSTRACT Africa faces an institutional trilemma in its pursuit of sustainable development: rapid digital expansion, rising entrepreneurial activity and persistent social–environmental fragilities coexist without delivering commensurate improvements in inclusive and green outcomes. This study investigates how digitalization and entrepreneurship jointly shape sustainable development in Africa and whether institutional quality reconciles this trilemma by enabling these forces to generate broad‐based socioeconomic and environmental gains. Using an unbalanced panel of 45 African countries over 2000–2023, the analysis integrates mediation, moderation, distributional heterogeneity, nonlinear threshold dynamics, temporal shifts and institutional‐regime subgroup robustness through advanced second‐generation estimators, including cross‐sectionally augmented autoregressive distributed lag, common correlated effects mean group, method of moments quantile regression and panel threshold regression. Three central findings emerge. First, digitalization significantly enhances inclusive growth and environmental efficiency, with entrepreneurship mediating a substantial share of these effects. Second, linear institutional moderation is weak; however, nonlinear enhancement effects and regime‐based subsample evidence demonstrate that digital and entrepreneurial gains materialize primarily after countries surpass a critical governance threshold. Third, distributional results show that digitalization delivers stronger benefits for lower‐performing economies, while institutional quality becomes increasingly decisive at higher performance levels and in more advanced digital phases. Overall, sustainable development in Africa depends not only on expanding digital access or promoting entrepreneurship but on strengthening governance capacity that aligns these forces toward inclusive and green transformation. The findings provide policy‐relevant insights for advancing SDGs 8, 9 and 13.

ABSTRACT Climate change is a serious issue that threatens environmental stability all around the world and puts more responsibility on the countries of the European Union (EU) to promote sustainable development goals. This paper examines the relationships between energy intensity, research and development (R&D) expenditure, industrialization, economic growth, and CO 2 emissions for EU countries from 1995 to 2022. The study uses novel panel econometric methods, such as the Method of Moment Quantile Regression (MMQR) and Dumitrescu and Hurlin causality tests, as well as other estimators to capture distributional heterogeneity and dynamic interdependencies among the variables, thereby enhancing robustness. The empirical results show that a high level of energy intensity increases CO 2 emissions across most quantiles, whereas R&D expenditure, industrialization, and economic growth reduce emissions, indicating that economic growth and environmental degradation move in opposite directions. Furthermore, one can find direct causal relationships in both directions between the main variables, indicating their interdependence in determining the environmental outcome. These findings indicate that the EU has been supported by structural change towards energy‐efficient, innovation‐driven economic activities in the mitigation of emissions. The study highlights the importance of strategic energy‐saving policies, continued investment in innovation, and environmentally responsive industrial policies to balance economic growth and environmental sustainability, thereby supporting the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 7, 8, and 13.

ABSTRACT Achieving balanced sustainable development remains a central global challenge, with repeated warnings from COP26 to COP28 revealing persistent imbalances across economic, environmental, and social pillars. This challenge is especially acute in the Global South, where rising human capital has not translated into corresponding environmental progress. This paper investigates whether digital capability serves as the activation mechanism that enables human capital to generate triple‐bottom‐line (TBL) sustainability. Drawing on a panel of 60 Global South economies from 2000 to 2022, we develop a capability‐activation framework in which human capital represents latent potential, digital capability functions as its operational catalyst, and institutions shape the magnitude of their combined effects. Using a multi‐layered econometric strategy—Fixed Effects with Driscoll–Kraay corrections, Common Correlated Effects Mean Group (CCEMG), Panel Threshold Regression (PTR), and Method of Moments Quantile Regression (MMQR)—the study identifies strong and asymmetric capability dynamics. Human capital consistently enhances economic and social sustainability but exerts no independent effect on environmental performance. Digital capability emerges as the strongest driver of environmental sustainability, and PTR reveals a clear digital threshold above which human capital begins to reduce carbon intensity. MMQR demonstrates that this activation mechanism intensifies at higher sustainability quantiles, while temporal and regional robustness checks confirm its stability across the pre‐ and post‐SDG eras and across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The findings highlight that for the Global South, progress toward balanced SDGs depends not on isolated investments in education or technology but on strategically sequenced, mutually reinforcing advances in human capital, digital capability, and institutional governance.

Abstract The world is becoming digitalized more than ever. However, questions and concerns remain about the sustainability of digitalization. This study introduces and empirically investigates the concept of “sustainable digitalization” within the context of G7 countries. For this purpose, we obtain the ECON-ESG quartet by adding economic (ECON) factors to the traditional triad of ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) factors used in sustainability. Therefore, for the first time, we combine and define the concepts of sustainability and digitalization and introduce “sustainable digitalization” as “ECON-ESG-Based Sustainable Digitalization.” We employed IV-GMM and panel quantile regressions between 2002 and 2020. The empirical findings from the IV-GMM indicate that social, governance, and ECON factors positively contribute to sustainable digitalization. Moreover, the panel quantile regression results show that ECON factors influence sustainable digitalization, while social and governance factors affect all quantiles. However, no significant connection is found between environmental factors and sustainable digitalization. The above results indicate that sustainable digitalization in G7 countries is primarily shaped by ECON-SG dynamics, with the environmental (E) pillar showing no significant role. In the general framework, regardless of the missing E above, this study’s newly proposed and introduced “ECON-ESG Based Sustainable Digitalization” approach can be considered a structured and measurable framework for future sustainable digitalization studies based on concrete ESG and ECON indicators. This approach will help us understand whether digitalization is based on and harmonized with ECON-ESG factors. The positive effects of ECON, S, and G on digitalization can be interpreted as an ECON-SG-based and harmonized digitalization, that is, sustainable digitalization, for G7 countries.

Prenatal exposure to potentially toxic elements (PTEs), including heavy metals and metalloids, poses a significant public health risk in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where environmental surveillance is limited. This study assessed maternal and foetal exposure to PTEs in maternal and umbilical cord blood samples (n = 32 each) collected at Ishaka Adventist Hospital, Uganda, an agricultural region with known environmental contamination. Concentrations of arsenic (As), lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn) were quantified using Microwave Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy; cadmium was undetected. Maternal samples had significantly higher mean concentrations than cord blood (p < 0.05), suggesting partial placental filtration. Nonetheless, maternal–foetal transfer ratios ranged from 10% (Zn) to 50.51% (Pb), indicating foetal exposure. Weighted Risk Score modelling revealed substantial maternal and foetal risks, primarily due to exposure to elevated levels of multiple metals (Pb, Ni, Cr and As). Spearman correlation and multivariate parsimonious regression analyses revealed significant associations between maternal and cord blood PTE concentrations and reported health issues. Notably, hypertension, respiratory allergies, gastrointestinal upsets, and gestational diabetes were correlated (singly or in combination) with higher maternal blood metal(loid) levels, passive smoking, geophagia, repeated use of mosquito coils, and use of biomass fuel (firewood), identifying these as potential environmental sources. Stratified Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis tests showed significantly higher Cr and Pb among mothers reporting geophagia, and significantly lower birth weight (LBW) among infants of older mothers and those practising geophagy. Similarly, cord blood metal(loid) levels were associated with LBW. Findings highlight substantial in utero exposure to a mixture of toxicants, with potential implications for adverse birth outcomes and long-term health effects, underscoring urgent maternal-child health interventions and environmental regulation in LMICs settings.

The European Green Deal (EGD) has set ambitious targets to make Europe climate-neutral by 2050, addressing urgent concerns related to sustainable development. It offers a project that uses green technologies to boost economic growth, lessen pollution, and promote sustainability in business and transportation. To achieve these goals, we employ Generalized Method of Moments to estimate a panel vector autoregressive model. The impact of eco-taxes, ICT commerce, and green technology on green development between 2000 and 2022 is then evaluated using impulse response functions (IRFs). The empirical study found that the sustainable development of EU-28 countries is impacted by shocks to eco-innovation, environmental levies, ICT commerce, economic growth, carbon emissions, green growth and renewable energy consumption. Green development is specifically aided by shocks to the ICT trade, eco-innovation, and renewable energy, whereas sustainable development is hindered by shocks to economic growth and ecotaxes. Furthermore, carbon-emission shocks boost green development for a short period before economic expansion raises emissions, thereby reducing green development. The ICT trade indirectly promotes green growth by lowering carbon emissions and increasing economic growth. Likewise, environmental taxes spur environmental innovation, thereby advancing green development. This significant study offers empirical insights into how ecotaxes, ICT trade, and green innovations can support the European Green Deal’s goals of reducing pollution, achieving climate neutrality, and fostering sustainable economic growth. It also provides a data-driven basis for policymaking that promotes sustainable development.

ABSTRACT Africa's sustainable socioeconomic development is increasingly challenged by institutional disparities, where weak governance undermines progress in human capital indicators such as life expectancy and educational attainment. Despite recognition of institutional quality's role in fostering transparency, accountability, and stability, existing research often overlooks its spatial spillover effects across interconnected African nations. This study aims to examine the direct and spillover impacts of institutional quality proxied by transparency (corruption perception), rule of law, and political stability on life expectancy and mean years of schooling in 42 African countries over the period 2012–2022. Employing spatial panel econometric models, including the Spatial Durbin Model (SDM), Spatial Autoregressive Model (SAR), and Spatial Error Model (SEM), the analysis controls for GDP per capita and population growth. The results reveal significant positive spatial autocorrelation in both outcomes (Moran's I: 0.536 for life expectancy; 0.469 for schooling). For life expectancy, institutional quality (particularly the rule of law) exhibits strong positive direct and spillover effects, amplified by regional GDP and population dynamics, indicating that governance improvements in one country enhance health outcomes in neighbors through policy diffusion and cross‐border cooperation. In contrast, educational attainment shows no significant spillovers, driven primarily by domestic GDP, population, and rule of law, highlighting fragmented regional education systems. These findings underscore institutional quality as a regional public good, offering nuanced insights for harnessing spatial interdependence in Africa's development agenda.

In the contemporary landscape, environmental degradation and climate change pose formidable challenges for developing economies like India, which has undergone rapid economic expansion over recent decades. This growth has contributed to elevated global greenhouse gas emissions and significant ecological concerns. The present study investigates the intricate interconnections among India's fiscal deficit, oil prices, technological innovations, human capital, urbanization, foreign direct investment (FDI), and carbon dioxide emissions. Utilizing time-series data from 1991 to 2023, the analysis employs advanced econometric approaches, including the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL), Non-linear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL), and Dynamic Autoregressive Distributed Lag (DARDL) models, to assess both short- and long-term dynamics among these variables. Recognizing that outcomes can vary across methodologies, this research integrates multiple techniques to comprehensively explore the economy-environment nexus in India, filling a critical void in existing literature. Evidence of cointegration confirms enduring relationships among the factors. Although the models yield varying effects for some variables, they uniformly underscore the roles of fiscal policies, technological progress, and urbanization in curbing environmental harm while fostering sustainable economic development. Robustness is ensured through diagnostic and stability assessments. These findings offer valuable guidance for Indian policymakers in crafting targeted interventions to improve environmental sustainability and bolster economic advancement.

Abstract South Asia is rapidly becoming a leading tourist hotspot and has played a significant role in the region’s growth. However, unexpected tourism and intensive energy-consuming development continue to pose increasing threats to environmental sustainability. This study examines the impacts of tourism, foreign direct investment, trade openness, and energy consumption on the environmental quality of six South Asian countries from 1995 to 2024, using the ecological footprint as a holistic measure of environmental sustainability. Using a panel quantile regression model, with the complement of augmented mean group, common correlated effects mean group, and system generalized method of moment estimation methods, the heterogeneous effects among the different countries and environmental conditions are captured. The results indicate that an increase of 1% in the intensity of tourism increases the ecological footprint by 0.12% at lower quantiles, confirming that the growth of tourism increases the environmental pressure on less sustainable economies. Trade openness and energy use also have a positive and significant impact on ecological footprints, indicating that both trade and energy consumption lead to environmental degradation. Conversely, foreign direct investment shows a negative correlation, meaning that it can minimize ecological stress. Therefore, the analysis underpins the urgency for these countries to embrace eco-tourism and green trade policies to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13, which emphasizes a sustainable environment.