Journal of Economic Development, Environment and People

IMPACT OF CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ON PROFITABILITY OF GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANIES IN NIGERIA: A STUDY OF SELECTED LISTED GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANIES

Ismaila Safiu; Abibat Shomuyiwa — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This study investigates the impact of claims settlement practices on the profitability of general insurance companies in Nigeria. The study employed an ex post facto research design with the use of twenty (20) years’ financial data from 2003 to 2022 from published annual financial reports of five (5) sampled listed non-life insurance companies carrying on insurance business in Nigeria. Hypothesizing the dependent and independent variables with the proxies ROA; and LR, ER; CR. Panel data methods were used with other supporting tests using E-views (version 10) data analysis tool. With a balanced data of 100 observation - five cross-sectional data of 20 years period, the results revealed a negative relationship between the proxies (ER, LR and CR) of the independent variable – Claims settlement practices, as they could only explain to a negligible extent, the changes that occurs in the dependent variable. Premised on the findings, it is recommended that general insurance firms settle genuine claims as prompt as possible while the maintain required underwriting standard to avoid problem of adverse selection engendering possibility of ruin.

Implementing e-Health initiatives in Zimbabwe’s public health sector

Alouis Chilunjika, Sharon R.T. Chilunjika, Dominique Uwizeyimana — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The Zimbabwean government has instigated various policies and strategies as part of e-government initiatives to provide members of the public with convenient access to health information and services. Efforts have been made to embrace ICTs in Zimbabwe’s public health sector. The performance of health institutions in Zimbabwe however continues to deteriorate at a time when the use of ICTs in health is gaining momentum in Africa. This paper therefore seeks to assess the implementation of the E-health strategy revealing the current state of e-health or digital technology systems in Zimbabwe’s public hospitals. The study adopted an exploratory research design. Participants in this study were selected using purposive sampling. Data were gathered through participant observations, in-depth interviews and documentary research. The study established that even though e-health is an indispensable tool in improving quality, timely and cost effective health care, its implementation in Zimbabwe has not been easy and it is still in its infancy stages. The study concluded that e-health is a reliable tool for promoting successful and effective public health service provision in Zimbabwe. The study therefore reflects and proposes elements necessary for the successful implementation of e-health in Zimbabwe’s public health sector.

The performance of the Romanian pension system from the perspective of sustainability, adequacy and equity

Luise Mladen — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

Ensuring financial security in old age is an important goal of all contemporary societies. Public pension systems have become a foundation of income security for the elderly in most countries, being one of the main pillars of the welfare state. An effective pension system is one that manages to achieve its objectives, namely combating poverty among the elderly and maintaining a decent standard of living in old age, under the conditions of ensuring intra- and intergenerational equity. In the context of an aging population, the major challenge for our societies is to ensure an adequate income for the elderly without putting excessive pressure on the younger generations. The aim of the paper is to achieve a multidimensional analysis of the performance of the pension system in Romania from the perspective of sustainability, adequacy and equity.

Investigating employee polychronicity, perceived leadership 4.0, and organizational support as predictors of organizational performance in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Era

Foluso Adekanmbi, Wilfred Ukpere — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

This paper examines the present 4IR’s predictive elements for sustaining organizational performance (OP) in the Nigerian banks. Therefore, in light of the existing 4IR, this article suggests strategies for improving and sustaining OP in the Nigerian banks. The report promoted a quantitative research method based on a survey study design. The findings indicated that, within the Nigerian banks in the 4IR, employees' polychronicity (EP), Leadership 4.0 (L4.0), and perceived organizational support (POS) significantly and jointly predicted the sustainability of OP. Thus, it is recommended that human resource professionals, organizational managers, and the Nigerian banking industry promote strategies for enhancing and maintaining organizational performance. These strategies include encouraging employees to adopt a polychronic mindset, increasing Leadership 4.0, and offering regular organizational support. Thus, this paper has recognized organizational support, Leadership 4.0, and employees’ polychronicity as significant influencers in predicting factors in sustaining organizational performance in the Nigerian banking business during the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

The Role Of Macroeconomics In The Post-Collapse Status Quo Between Leadership Periods In Indonesia Has Significant Implications, Especially From The Perspective Of Institutional Economics.

Wira Ganet Aribowo — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

The economic crisis is one of the triggers for economic crises in various countries from over time. It's not just the economic crisis, apart from that the more important thing is the collapse of the structure of society, the direction of the economy and politics in the future, in the status quo situation after the collapse between leadership periods in Indonesia, where government product regulations, including external institutions, cause uncontrolled public reactions to the transition situation.

This article discusses the situation in Indonesia from era to era, from a macro-economic, political and institutional perspective. So economics and politics are a forum for leaders to decide on strategic policies in leading the government during the transition period.

Accounting Profession in Iraq in light of Industry 4.0

Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

This study explores the challenges and advantages of adopting Industry 4.0 technology in Iraq's accounting profession. The research used questionnaires to gather data from accountants in various industries. The findings suggest that Iraqi accountants are not adequately prepared for Industry 4.0. The study identifies key challenges including digital integration, technical difficulties, lack of skills, cybersecurity concerns, limited budgets, and regulatory constraints. However, there are also potential benefits such as improved efficiency, expanded services, accurate reporting, real-time data analysis, collaboration, increased accessibility, and simplified auditing

Sustainability in the Consumption of Luxury Products: An Analysis of Social implications

Stefania-Cristina Roibu — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

This study aims to demonstrate whether consumers seek to raise their social status by
purchasing products sold at a high price. Also, the reason why customers of luxury companies
prefer to buy them despite competitors with a lower price on the market.
The purchase of premium products is influenced by the desire to change social status by expressing
one's personality and the need for inclusion in various interest groups.
Awareness of the fundamental reasons on which decisions are made to purchase goods can be
used both for marketing strategies and as a strategy for the long-term economic and social
sustainability of a company on the market.

The Interplay of Attitudes and Effectiveness: A Study on Financial Education among Young People in the Republic of Serbia

Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

This paper describes the current state of young people's attitude towards the world of finance and their need for financial education. Today, financial education is already practiced in many European countries, but this is not the case in the Republic of Serbia. However, research shows that financial literacy is one of the necessary skills for young people in the 21st century. The research results were presented on a sample of 175 people (exploratory research) aged between 18 and 35 from Serbia. The attitude of the respondents towards finances was presented, their financial habits were examined, and the results were presented using the method of descriptive statistics. Financial literacy plays a crucial role in promoting sustainable development and green finance by empowering individuals to make informed decisions that contribute to economic stability and growth.

Corporate Social Responsibility 2.0

Gerrit Van der Waldt, Niel Rooi, Doret Botha — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

The South African business fraternity is expected to contribute to and foster the government’s social transformation agenda. This contribution should be directed by businesses’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) intentions and organizational arrangements. However, companies’ efforts in this regard are being increasingly criticized due to the absence of a socio-transformative agenda. In other words, CSR praxis is perceived to be inadequately positioned in businesses to act as a core strategic function aimed at benefiting society. The purpose of this article is to outline the perceived failures of conventional CSR praxis and to propose a framework for businesses to adopt a socio-transformative CSR paradigm. A generic qualitative research design, utilizing document analysis and a literature survey, was followed in this study. The findings indicate that businesses do indeed need to adopt a socio-transformative business model to comply with national and international driving forces for change. Recommendations are proposed to guide businesses towards such a transformative management approach utilizing the principles of McKinsey 7-S model for business readiness and Kotter’s 8-step change management model. The study encourages corporations and firms to adopt a socio-transformative paradigm by utilizing established business readiness and change management models.

DEMYSTIFYING DEMAND MANAGEMENT TO ENHANCE SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT PERFORMANCE IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN PUBLIC SECTOR

Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad, H Zitha — Sun, 31 Mar 2024 00:00:00 +0200

One of the phenomena brought about by the genesis of supply chain management (SCM) in the South African public procurement sector arena is demand management (DM). If properly implemented, departments may be able to plan their procurement activities and has the potential to convert a procurement office from a mere reactive function into a fit for purpose office which will be responsive to the needs of its stakeholders in a more efficient and effective manner. Despite its glorious intensions, many government departments are still grappling with the implementation of DM function. The guiding question is: what are the obstacles preventing demand management functions from being implemented successfully?

To find answers, the study applies a qualitative research approach, and information is obtained from literature review. Conceptual analysis is considered to analyse the data. The study aims to demystify the concept and provide a practitioner’s perspective regarding the implementation of DM. The motivation of the study is that the findings may assist procurement officials on how to implement DM effectively serving the needs of SCM. It may also serve as springboard in the body of knowledge, thus being used as a point of reference and continue to illuminate public discourse in the public sector procurement environment.

Revolutionising Organisational Safety and Health Management in the Nigerian Manufacturing Industry via Active Employee Involvement

Bolatiwa Adunni Olokede, Wilfred Ukpere — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

The concerns with the increasing rate of preventable accidents occurrences in Nigeria's manufacturing sector required a renewed focus on occupational safety and health (OSH). Specifically, despite the number of interventions and the amount of spending on interventions, the effects have remained minimal. Also, despite the efforts of researchers and their suggestions, little or no impact has been noticed as OSH continues to be inadequate. These problems call for a fresh approach and consultation with the individuals who will be utilising these solutions most directly (the workers) to address these issues at their core. This paper is part of a large mixed-method study designed to explore how to improve the efficacy of OSH in Nigeria. However, this present paper reports part of the initial phase as it examines the perception of blue-collar workers in the Nigerian industry to understand how well the existing measures have satisfied their safety needs from the standpoint of available human resource management practices (HRM practices). Hence, this work uses a cross-sectional research design to gather data from both registered and non-registered workplaces located in cities in three Nigerian states, totalling 633 required participants. A mix of simple random and convenience sampling techniques was applied to select the expected samples. SPSS software version 26 was used to analyse the 641 responses. The blue-collar workers constituted the unit of analysis for this phase. The findings indicated that there are diverse opinions among Nigerian manufacturing blue-collar workers regarding the accessibility and applicability of the HR practices under investigation. Based on the findings, recommendations for improving OSH practices in the manufacturing industry is suggested with the hope of maximising employee involvement in strengthening the efficacy of OSH interventions in Nigerian manufacturing workplaces.

The Impact of Heating Systems on Society and Nature

Daniel Gabriel Dinu, Larisa Mihoreanu, Andreea Stoian Karadeli — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

The paper assesses the importance of the models used to determine the efficiency and the environmental impact of the heating products like heating pumps (HP). An appropriate model of evaluation may help identifying the presence of greenhouse gases and reducing their influence. The paper's novelty resides in the way the hidden sides linked to greenhouse gases' presence, are identified, and eliminated.

The research methodology considers an environmental model linked both to the Global Emission Model for Integrated Systems on energy efficiency indicators and to the break-even analysis for greenhouse gases. The model gives hints on reducing the high costs to upgrade the living conditions in residential buildings. The results illustrate the environmental and societal impact and the social potential and highlight the technical implications for such operating systems. They incite optimizing the Heat Hybrid Pumps' design within decentralized energy systems to strengthen energy networks' flexibility and the environmental convenience. The research straightens out the understanding of heat pumps mechanisms, delineates the efficiency of their increasing use through the block-chain technology outlining its future potential for people and society's health and benefit.

Assesinng Sustainable Development Goal 11 in South African Context

Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad — Sat, 30 Dec 2023 00:00:00 +0200

South Africa underwent apartheid, a system of racial segregation, during which the country's governance agendas did not offer too much emphasis on environmental issues. The policies implemented during that time were lacking the environment-inclusiveness, and thus regrettably remained unsuccessful in promoting sustainable development. This article aims to review the current state of SDG 11, which focuses on sustainable cities and communities, in South African context. This research is a qualitative analysis of secondary data obtained through reviewing literature. The data was analyzed using conceptual analysis. The literature review shows that the democratic governance in a post-apartheid era implemented some policies that now regulate various aspects of SDG 11 in the country-specific context. Some of the significant ones are the Housing Act (No. 107 of 1997); Water Services Act (No. 108 of 1997); National Environmental Management: Waste Act (No. 59 of 2008); Municipal Systems Act (No. 32 of 2000); Breaking New Ground, 2004; and the National Housing Code, 2009. However, despite these legislative frameworks, there are challenges that still hamper the effective achievement of SDG 11. The findings therefore explore these challenges that include insufficient skills, inadequate funding, and inadequate training to develop technical competence, among others. The study provides recommendations for addressing these issues and improving the situation.

Skills-First Approach in the Context of the Twin Transition

Daniela PASNICU — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

Skills, reskilling and higher qualifications have become increasingly important in the labor market as a result of the labor shortage faced by economic agents. This labor shortage is due to the effects of the twin ecological and digital transitions, demographic aging and the speed with which skill requirements in the labor market are changing and will trigger significant changes in the labor market. The aim of the paper is to understand the changes on the labor market in the context of the acceleration of twin transitions and how the skills-first approach could improve this transition in Romania. After reviewing the specialized literature and presenting the theoretical framework, the evolution of the Beveridge Curve in the period 2008-2022 and the social impact of the twin transition will be analyzed. The results underline the maintenance of the low capacity of the economy to create new jobs, as well as the large number of people without a job in the period 2020-2022. The top skill required on the labor market is the use of digital tools and top occupations in this skill are of ICT professionals, researchers, engineers.

The Effect of Gross Domestic Product, Energy Consumption and Forest Area on Carbon Dioxide Emissions in ASEAN-5

Isni Syafhira Adha , Azwardi — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

Due to human activity-related carbon dioxide emissions, the earth's temperature has increased, resulting in climate change and global warming. The anomaly of climate change, which raises the global average temperature, has shown that environmental damage is genuine. In five ASEAN nations—Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and the Philippines—between 2001 and 2020, this study will examine the impact of GDP, energy use, and forest area on carbon dioxide emissions. This study's methodology combined quantitative descriptive analysis with panel data regression analysis. The findings indicate that forest area and gross domestic product have a negative and considerable impact on carbon dioxide emissions. Consequently, carbon dioxide emissions are positively and significantly impacted by energy usage.

The Effects of Transactional Barriers on the Effectiveness of a Firm’s Competitive Strategy

Osiebuni Obu, Wilfred Ukpere — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

Extant literature has shown that firms’ decisions can exert a bearing on the effectiveness of their competitive strategy. This paper seeks to extend this body of literature by demonstrating how and under what circumstances a firm’s decision about transactional barriers, which it can impose on its customers, can impact the degree to which it can effectively deploy its competitive strategy in realizing its maximum possible profits. The study’s main findings demonstrate that at equilibrium, the size of the set transactional barrier is on average inversely related to the effectiveness of the firm’s competitive strategy, holding constant the consumers' income and other factors. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the firm’s competitive strategy in attaining the firm’s optimal profits is jointly and individually enervated by the price elasticity of the firm’s product demand and the size of the transactional barrier that it imposes on its customers. Additionally, the effectiveness of the firm’s competitive strategy tends to be maximized as the size of the transactional barrier tends to be zero. Therefore, the findings in this paper suggest that under the assumptions of the model in this paper, the optimal size of a transactional barrier to be imposed by a firm, in the service industry, should be zero.

Architectural Design and its Impact on PMR Accesibility in Higher Education Institutions

Imane Benkechkache, Mehdi Kaghouche — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

This paper discusses the accessibility of people with reduced mobility (PMR) within public higher education institutions. Several researchers have approached this issue from different angles. They have identified several rights for PMRs, including the fundamental right to education, as recognized by the United Nations.

Accessibility is defined as the ease of movement within the environment, achieved through the removal of architectural and technological barriers in public buildings. This study aims to show the impact of the architectural spatial configuration of the university on the social behavior of PMR accessing education.

To achieve this goal and answer the research problem, a combination of two scientific research methods was used: a qualitative-quantitative method based on sociological surveys and observation, and a second method based on "spatial syntax," a morphological approach that reveals the close relationship between human beings and their built environment. The study was conducted at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism at Salah Boubnider University in Constantine.

The study concludes that architectural design has a direct impact on the behavior of PMRs and their appropriation of space within the faculty. Designers need to consider measures and design techniques that facilitate access for this social category to higher education institutions in the development of architectural projects.

Developing women entrepreneurs through guided and funded business start-ups in South Africa

Someleze Jali, Robertson Tengeh, Frank Makoza — Sat, 30 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0300

South African women own a modest share of businesses while being the majority of the population. Increasing the number of female entrepreneurs in South Africa is expected to reduce poverty and unemployment, empower women, ensure equity, and strengthen the economy. This article examined the development of women entrepreneurs in Cape Town through guided and funded business start-ups. Data were collected using a qualitative technique based on purposive sampling through semi-structured interviews with 17 participants. An interpretive paradigm and an explorative design were employed. The data was analysed using the ATLAS.ti software. According to the participants, many women-owned business start-ups are neither funded nor guided. The findings revealed that many women entrepreneurs do not support one another in business start-ups in Cape Town. Moreover, minimal effort is put into interventions by both government and the private sector to abate gender discrimination and eliminate the exclusion of women entrepreneurs. There are instances of gender bias that impede the development of women entrepreneurs. The findings confirm that the development of women entrepreneur-focused funding for start-ups has received scant attention in Cape Town. Many women entrepreneurs still do not receive developmental support. Among the proposed interventions to improve women entrepreneurship, start-up funding and guidance are platforms that encourage informal businesses to become formal and penetrate formal financial networks. This paper argues for lending models best suited for women entrepreneurs in South Africa.

Does primary and secondary education contribute to short and long-term economic growth in South Africa

Martha Matashu — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0300

The human capital school of thought considers education in primary and secondary education as the foundation for the development of human capital that promotes economic growth. Persuaded by an empiricist paradigm this study used an Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing analysis was conducted to examine the short and long run relationship between education and economic growth in South Africa. Economic growth, primary and secondary education data from 2002 to 2018 was used. The diagnostic tests revealed that variables are integrated at order level 1. The cointegration of the examined variables is confirmed by an ARDL bound test. Error Correction Model test found that, primary school, government expenditure on primary education has a significant relationship with economic growth in the short term but has no contribution in the long term. Drawing on the insignificant contribution of both primary and secondary education in the long it can be concluded that these education phases appear not to matter for economic growth in South Africa. This study thus recommends that primary and secondary school education should be restructured to align the curriculum with potentially productive sectors to improve its potential contribution to economic growth.

The Effect of Transformational Leadership Style on the Sustainable Performance of manufacturing Industry in Iraq: The mediating role of Social Responsibility

Raghad Mohammed — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0300

This study aimed to examine the mediating role of social responsibility on the relationship between transformational leadership Style and the sustainable performance of manufacturing industry in Iraq. To achieve this objectives the study used descriptive analytical approach through develop questionnaire to collect data from the sample which consists (357) managers who work in manufacturing industry in Iraq. A total of (340) suitable questionnaire were retrieved for statistical analysis, the study used Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software (SPSS. 25) and Structure Equation Model (SEM) to analyses the collecting data and test the hypothesis. The study results showed that, there is impact of transformational leadership Style on the sustainable performance of manufacturing industry in Iraq, there is impact of transformational leadership Style on the social responsibility of manufacturing industry in Iraq, there is impact of social responsibility on the sustainable performance of manufacturing industry in Iraq, and there is mediating role of social responsibility on the relationship between transformational leadership Style and the sustainable performance of manufacturing industry in Iraq. In light of these findings the study recommended that In order to be more general, the next research has to involve obtaining data from other organizations in another sector in Iraq.

Unemployment Reduction Targets to Realise NationalL Development Plan Vision 2030

Phenyo Blom, Mohammed Jahed, Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0300

One of the main and most dynamic challenges confronting South Africa is the high unemployment rate, which has been increasing more rapidly than the country’s economic growth. The unemployment rate is increasing every year, supplemented with financial crisis as the South African economy is experiencing a drastic recession and jobs are getting lost. In 2012, the National Planning Commission (NPC) implemented a new long-term strategy, the National Development Plan Vision 2030 (NDP), which is set over an 18-year period (2012 to 2030). The NDP was introduced to meet the government’s objectives, which include economic growth, reducing triple challenges (unemployment, poverty and inequality) and improving service delivery. The main aim of the research is thus to assess the progress of the unemployment reduction targets set by the NDP, as well as recommend strategies that can be implemented to attain the unemployment reduction target and reduce unemployment to (under) 6%. The study employed a qualitative research method and a case study research design. Through literature review, information was compiled through studying budget reviews, the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), press releases from international capital markets (International Monetary Fund and World Bank), official government documents, academic/scholarly newspapers, and relevant legislation. The finding explore that many factors hinder or impede the government from achieving its objectives, such as slow economic growth, the impact of Covid-19 on the labour market, skills gap and mismatch, the education system in South Africa and a severe lack of entrepreneurship. The article makes policy recommendations for improvement.

A Framework For Overcoming M-commerce Adoption Barriers In Angola

Robertson Khan Tengeh, Mateus Vicente Justino , Michael Twum-Darko — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the global economy, with brick-and-mortar businesses particularly hard-hit. In Angola, the lockdown imposed in response to the pandemic forced many companies to close their doors, leading to widespread job losses and economic hardship. However, the pandemic also presented an opportunity for businesses that could adopt m-commerce or other alternative sales channels. This study aims to understand the factors that have impeded the adoption of m-commerce by brick-and-mortar retail SMEs in Angola during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study also proposes a conceptual framework for overcoming the m-commerce adoption barriers that these SMEs have encountered. The study was conducted using a mixed-method approach, with data collected from 306 retail business managers/owners and professionals through a structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The study's findings suggest that the factors impeding m-commerce adoption were the lack of experience in using m-commerce, skills to configure forward and backward distribution systems, personnel with IT skills; the cost of m-commerce infrastructure; and the lack of support from the external environment. The study concludes by proposing a framework/strategy for stimulating the adoption of m-commerce in Angola. This strategy includes providing training and support to businesses on using m-commerce, developing a supportive regulatory environment, and investing in m-commerce infrastructure.

Benefits and Challenges of Implementing Green Initiatives at Public Universities in South Africa

Christo Bisschoff, Lelo Tshivshe — Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0300

This article explores the benefits and challenges of implementing green initiatives at South African Universities. The study's objectives are to identify the benefits and to find ways to overcome the challenges preventing green initiative implementation. In a mixed-method approach, eight senior personnel at prominent South African universities were interviewed to identify specific green initiatives and suitable measuring criteria. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was distributed online to other university managers and senior staff. A total of 144 personnel members completed the questionnaire. The results show that the data are reliable (α=0.843), adequate (KMO=0.641), and significant (p≤0.05 at the 95% confidence level. The respondents perceive the barriers to implementing green initiatives at public universities to be significant (≥4.5) and indicate that universities are progressing excellently with implementing some green initiatives (for example, by eliminating paper usage, electronic signing of documents, LED lighting, and paperless IT system applications) (≥4.5). The benefits of green implementation are also significant (≥4.5). Exploratory factor analysis identified three factors each for barriers, implementation, and benefits, explaining a cumulative variance of 56.1%, 82.2% and 54.8%, respectively. Public universities' management can operationalise the results in their green initiatives implementation strategies.

The impact of leadership styles on the social responsibility of industrial companies in Romania

Raghad Mohammed, Carmen Eugenia Costea — Sun, 02 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0300

This study aimed to examine the impact of leadership styles on the social responsibility of industrial companies in Romani. To achieve this objectives the study used descriptive analytical approach through develop questionnaire to collect data from the sample which consists (357) managers who work in industrial companies in Romani. A total of (340) suitable questionnaire were retrieved for statistical analysis, the study used Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software (SPSS. 25) to analyses the collecting data and test the hypothesis. The study results showed that, there is impact of Authoritative leadership on social responsibility of industrial companies in Romania, there is impact of Democratic leadership on social responsibility of industrial companies in Romania, there is impact of Facilitative leadership on social responsibility of industrial companies in Romania, and there is no impact of Situational leadership on social responsibility of industrial companies in Romania. In light of these findings the study recommended the need to pay attention to the quality of leaders who are appointed in industrial companies in Romania due to the clear impact of the quality of leadership at the level of social responsibility practices of companies.

Benefits and Challenges to Implement Public-Private Partnerships in Water Infrastructure Development in Zimbabwe

Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad, Mr — Sun, 02 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0300

The rationale of the study was built on the water infrastructure challenges in Zimbabwe and the challenges in government policies and capacity that demand the participation of public private partnerships (PPPs) in the development of water infrastructure in Zimbabwe. The study adopted the qualitative research approach, and the information is compiled through literature review. Through conceptual and document analysis of information, the study also recognised that there are challenges in the existing PPP arrangements in Zimbabwe that require improvement for their absolute contribution to the management of water resources in the country. The data generated by this study were used to understand the complexities and contestations in Zimbabwe and enrich the body of knowledge and literature about water-related PPPs. Effective PPPs for improved urban water infrastructure cannot be achieved by chance. Effective PPPs require deliberate efforts and comprehensive reforms. The study, therefore, posits that with an environment conducive to operating PPPs, in addition to proper planning and meticulous implementation, Zimbabwe has a high chance of successfully implementing such partnerships for improved urban water infrastructure.

Glaserian Grounded Theory and Straussian Grounded Theory: Two Standard Qualitative Research Approaches in Social Science

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan, Devajit Mohajan — Sun, 02 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0300

Grounded theory (GT) has appeared as a popular research approach in many branches of social science that acts for the well-being of the society. It is an inductive methodology, and focuses on the discovery of theory from data. Overtimes original grounded theory of Barney Galland Glaser (1930-2022) and Anselm Leonard Strauss (1916-1996) has evolved, and two grounded theory variants: Glaserian grounded theory and Straussian grounded theory have been emerged as qualitative approaches. When a novice qualitative researcher starts data collection on grounded theory; s/he cannot identify the differences between the two approaches. In this paper some of the key differences and similarities of the two methods are illustrated. So that, a confused researcher can easily selects the desired grounded theory for his/her research version. In this study an attempt has been taken to continue the grounded theory research smoothly when the novice researchers face uncertainty during the research procedure.

The Role Of Institutional Quality, Foreign Direct Investment, And Country Size On Trade Openness In The ASEAN-6 Region

Wahyu Aji Wijaya, Azwardi, Abdul Bashir — Sun, 02 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0300

The current development of globalization has led to a very fundamental transformation in the economic system. the phenomenon of globalization cannot be avoided by any country, moreover countries that previously isolated it from the outside world cannot be avoided either. Therefore any country will still be affected by globalization, so that it will create international trade that is increasingly spreading from every country. This study aims to analyze the role of institutional quality through government effectiveness and regulatory quality, foreign direct investment, and country size on trade openness in the ASEAN-6 region during the 2002-2021 period using panel data analysis techniques. in using the panel data technique based on the best testing through the Chow test and the Hausman test that the best model used in this study is the Fixed Effect Model (FEM) which shows the variables of government effectiveness and investment directly have a positive and significant effect on trade openness. while the quality of regulations and country size have a negative and significant effect on trade openness in the Asean Region.

Sensitivity Analysis for Utility Maximization: A Study on Lagrange Multipliers and Commodity Coupons

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan, Devajit Mohajan — Sun, 02 Apr 2023 00:00:00 +0300

In this study sensitivity analysis among Lagrange multipliers and commodity coupons are discussed with detail mathematical analysis. In economics, utility maximization method is essential for the increasing of the sustainable production and profit maximization. Two types of constraints, such as budget constraint, and coupon constraint are used to operate sensitivity analysis; consequently, two Lagrange multipliers are applied for the detail mathematical analysis.

Competitive Intelligence and Academic Entrepreneurship as Innovative Vectors of a Resilient, Business-Oriented Education

Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

Purpose – The present paper substantiates that the concepts of competitive intelligence and academic entrepreneurship are genuinely connected to the modern society and, through their perpetual and versatile evolution, have an important role in moving the development on the right way.

Design/methodology/approach – Their evolutive is completed by a comparative analysis as appropriate method to point out similarities and differences and identify the way their application may serve innovation as a tool for those activating in the related domains of education, within our highly dynamic world.

Findings – The development of the concepts is meant to link and accelerate the technological and operational innovation to a highly competitive academic environment, business-oriented, as a contribution to its wide potential for profit.

Originality/value – The correlation between the two concepts provides an innovative tool able to serve as a platform helping the competitive intelligence, as design and functions, for any academic entrepreneurship business-oriented.

Microfoundations of Organizational Growth: Consequences for Entry Strategies and Financing of New Ventures

Osiebuni Collins Obu, Wilfred Ukpere — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

An enormous number of firms fail to deliver economically profitable growth in output even though they may have strong managerial teams and adequate capital. In this paper, we provide new empirical evidence to demonstrate a few fundamental factors that can account for the ability of a firm to achieve economically sustainable scaling. In a bid to achieve that, we surveyed and discussed the prevailing theories that have established various grounds for organizational growth. On the basis of these theories, we hypothesized about the likely microfoundations for organizational growth. We went further to test these hypotheses using empirical data for all publicly-listed Nordic firms over a lengthy span of time, specifically ranging from 1990 to 2020. To implement the test, we established an econometric model, which is predicated on variables that we argued are capable of serving as a proxy for the microfoundations identified. It is our submission that effective and sustainable attainment of growth in output requires a new entrant to develop strategies that are centered on innovative products, as well as target highly concentrated industries, which are characterized by large markets, while financing such economic activities using equity capital as against debt capital.

Carnarvon based SARAO staff and students perceptions of the NRF|SARAO’s Human Capacity Development in the Northern Cape, South Africa

Naslynne D.P Andreas, Anton Binneman, Sophie Nguepi Kasse — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

The Karoo Region in the Northern Cape Province, South Africa was identified as a site to establish a large section of the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) which will feature the world’s largest Radio telescope, a project being spearheaded by the NRF|SARAO through the construction of The MeerKAT Radio telescope that will be integrated in the SKA. Owing to the documented shortage of skilled workforce particularly in the field linked to the SKA project, the NRF|SARAO has a role to play in developing skills in the Northern Region in line with the Skills Development Act No. 97 of 1998 to promote productivity and national development. This study explores the human capacity development (HCD) programs offered by the NRF|SARAO and surveyed 17 participants to document their perceptions towards the HCD programs. Respondents acknowledged the HCD programs being offered by the NRF|SARAO to train them and become involved in the SKA project. Various hindrances that affects the success of the HCD programs were raised which have to do with both the respondents themselves and their perceptions, as well as the standards that are set by the NRF|SARAO which at times hinder the potential candidates to take up the programs. Respondents’ had varied views towards the effectiveness of the NRF|SARAO programs which varied between highly effective to not effective at all.

Assesing Economic Policies in Zimbabwe

Dr. Marian Mutenga, Shikha Vyas-Doorgapersad — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

There are various economic policies implemented in Zimbabwe to improve the socio-economic standards of the nation. The current article only focuses on the Growth with Equity Policy. The article assesses that the pre-independence policies in Zimbabwe were biased towards enrichment of the minority colonial regime. In Zimbabwe when it gained independence, a number of economic policies were put into place with an emphasis on equity-based socioeconomic growth. In order to correct historical inequities and promote social justice and inclusion for all Zimbabweans, it was also intended to offer parity and balance. Nevertheless, despite the Zimbabwean government's implementation of several economic measures since 1980, the country's economic status deteriorated and is continuing deteriorating as a result of adverse economic indicators.There ought to be something that has not yet been identified that has led to some Zimbabwean policies being abandoned soon after conception or midway through their life span, while others seem to have achieved less than expected. The findings are critical for the Government of Zimbabwe to advise the stakeholders accordingly on the principal factors that need to be done that will ultimately lead to the attainment of the desired goals. The study recommends areas which might need change management.

Franchising as a strategy for job creation in the clothing sector: A case study of Walvis Bay

Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

The franchise business model enjoys much support in both developed and developing countries. It is considered by many as a key contributor to economic growth and is also perceived as a vital vehicle for job creation. Unemployment rates in Namibia are currently a cause for concern and approaches are needed to stimulate job creation. This study reports on perceptions of franchising as a job creation strategy within the Walvis Bay area. The study employed a mixed method research design and used a survey questionnaire and semi-structured interviews to collect data. A total sample of n=110 completed the questionnaire, while n=6 participants were interviewed. The study results indicate a rapid growth and awareness of the franchise model in the food sector, while less growth was evident in the clothing sector. The franchise model was however, seen as a key avenue for stimulating economic growth and viable job creation strategy. Stronger incentivization is recommended, specifically in the areas of tax exemptions, export processing zones, introduction of specific franchise legislation and more expansive monetary and fiscal policies.

THE ROLE of WORKERS’ PARTICIPATION on WORKERS’ WELLBEING, WORKPLACE WELLNESS and SAFETY at SELECTED RESEARCH INSTITUTES in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria

Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0300

Severe consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic reinforced the importance of occupational health and safety. Associated economic disruptions and the entrenchment of institutional dynamics that are at variance with workers’ interests have placed additional pressures on workplace wellness and safety measures. The connection between organisational productivity and worker safety and wellness requires worker participation to institutionalise wellness and safety measures at work. This paper examines the role of workers’ participation in shaping the wellbeing of workers around workplace safety and wellness at two research institutes in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria. A case study design was employed as a research strategy for the study. The justification to adopt this design hinges on its capacity to enhance empirical enquiry on workers’ participation in decisions that affect them as far as workplace wellness and safety are concerned at the case institutes. The samples were selected through a combination of cluster and random sampling methods. A total of 302 questionnaires were distributed at the two research institutions; however, only 265 were returned and found to be appropriate to use in the study. Despite the significance of workplace health and safety awareness, training, education, and regulations, the study showed that employees have not been given the attention that they deserve to shape the programme.

ECONOMIC INTERACTIONS ON THE CONSEQUENCES OF TRANSACTION COSTS

Anton Atno Parluhutan Sinaga, Sunday Ade Sitorus — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0300

Transaction costs arise because of contracts between one party and another, between one institution and another, between individuals and institutions and so on. The purpose of this study aims to determine the concept of costs in economic transactions in modern economic transactions. By using a research method, namely library research. The results of this study are current conditions showing that the concept of economic transaction costs is something real and is practiced in economic activities. The fact proves that economic transaction costs are an inseparable part of economic activity, besides that economic transaction costs cannot be avoided in economic activity. Anyone who carries out economic activities must be faced with economic transaction costs.

FEMINISM and FEMINIST GROUNDED THEORY: A Comprehensive Research Analysis

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The purpose of this paper is to flourish the grounded theory (GT) methodology in qualitative research from the feminist viewpoint. Since the mid-1990s feminist researches on grounded theory have been started and researchers have been using this approach for the research on the basis of practical experiences. The nursing researchers, for the first time, draw on feminist principles in grounded theory for the better serving of the interests of women in healthcare. Feminist grounded theory (FGT) is the evolved form of the original grounded theory of Glaser and Strauss. Feminist research is a related area of social research and always thinks welfare of the women, especially those who are under estimated in the male dominated society. In every country some professions, such as nursing, home economics, nutrition, etc. are women dominated. Feminist grounded theory methodology research is well-fitted in these areas. In the 21^st century, feminist grounded theory is appropriate, effective, and highly resourceful. In the past, women’s voices and views are frequently ignored in many cases, such as in academics and policy making. At present, feminist research is a growing field in research arena that creates concerns about the rights of women, and provides knowledge to bring them in light. This study exercises feminism and the structure of feminist nature of the grounded theory to change subordination of women and to reduce social inequality in all stages. The aim of this paper is to discuss and analyze feminist epistemologies and to highlight necessity of feminist grounded theory in the society.

A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH TO NATURAL LANGUAGE

Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0300

This article does not aim to erase the border, rather vague, between natural and artificial languages, but to offer the researcher in the field of language analysis a useful tool for their logical generation and interpretation. After processing the available literature and setting the theoretical framework, a case study was conducted concerning the application of the functional approach in natural languages, and the obtained results indicate the following conclusion: The only difference between functional and natural language is that the condition of interrupting recursive calls may be external to the calling auto function in the case of natural language. Basically, once the message is understood or transmitted, it leaves the loop, this aspect being part of the communication protocol between people

THE KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY AT CROSSROADS: THE ROAD MAP AND INCUBATING ROLE OF THE COMPETITIVE INTELLIGENCE, DIGITALISATION AND NEUROSCIENCES

Daniel Gabriel Dinu, Andreea Stoian-Karadeli, Adrian Doroiman, Larisa Mihoreanu — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The today human being is part of the technological and scientific development dominated by information as a both raw material and base of knowledge.

The easy and open accesses to information thrust forward the frontiers of development and communication, enlarge the development's paths and generate amazing changes, faster than ever happened. The way that data bases increase its volume becomes the most actual and complex problem.

The ability to extract and process the knowledge and the speed of its processing represent unknown and provocative challenges for business profit and the intelligent society success. Their extraction from the informational noise and the ability to react and rapidly communicate are also important to be accurately customized and harmonised with the social elements.

This paper demonstrates the usefulness of neuroscience, neuro-technologies and cognitive computing in finding innovative and customized solutions for solving complex problems in business.

The conclusion of our study is that, in order to have an advanced and competitive European Union, it is absolutely necessary to develop innovative solutions for Competitive Intelligence that would include the fundamental elements of neuro-technologies and advanced Artificial Intelligence as Cognitive Business profitable keys.

Mathematical Analysis of SEIR Model to Prevent COVID-19 Pandemic

Devajit MOHAJAN, Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 00:00:00 +0200

This paper is to analyze Susceptible-Exposed-Infectious-Recovered (SEIR) COVID-19 pandemic model. In this article, a modified SEIR model is constructed and discusses various aspects of it with mathematical analysis to study the dynamic behavior of this model. Spread of this disease through immigration can be represented by the SEIR model. COVID-19 is a highly infectious disease that spread through talking, sneezing, coughing, and touching. In this model, there is an incubation period during the spread of the disease. During the gestation period, a patient is attacked by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus and shows symptoms of COVID-19, but does not spread of the disease. The horizontal transmission of COVID-19 worldwide can be represented and explained by SEIR model. Maximal control of the pandemic disease COVID-19 can be possible by the optimum vaccination policies. The study also investigates the equilibrium of the disease. In the study a Lyapunov function is created to analyze the global stability of the disease-free equilibrium. The generation matrix method is analyzed to obtain the basic reproduction number and has discussed the global stability for COVID-19 spreading.

K-12 MODERN SCHOOLS IN SERBIA: EXPLORATORY RESEARCH REGARDING TEACHERS GENUINE KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTION OF AI-BASED OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES IN EDUCATION

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

LINK Educational Alliance (LEA is an educational group based in the Republic of Serbia which involves privately owned providers of formal and informal education, the format for the development of Educational Technologies services and Business support for their business. The exploratory research was conducted among K-12 teachers among a total population of 152 and a sample of 77 respondents (50.66%) to provide information about the perception of the teachers towards implementation of the Artificial intelligence-based solutions and the opportunities and challenges that artificial intelligence (AI) will bring into their daily activities, as well as their genuine knowledge about AI. For data analysis, we used SmartPLs Software version 3.0, making inferential and variable association analyses. The teaching process, based on the opinion of K-12 teachers regarding activities that might be automatised through AI implementation in the educational process, supported by their level of awareness and knowledge about AI. For example, AI offers opportunities to automate specific strategies and activities, which would achieve better organisation of teachers' working time and productivity and increase the share of time that teachers spend "directly interacting with students" is the central hypothesis whose validity is tested. The aim of this study is to provide adequate model for testing AI attitudes in K-12 level of education in Republic of Serbia, among teachers in elementary and secondary schools.

CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS IN THE GERMAN BANKING SECTOR

Lana Löffler — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The last financial market crisis, which affected the whole world in 2008, brought about major changes. As a result of this crisis, customers have become more suspicious and since then the banks have been constantly being prescribed new regulations and controls for supervision. History shows that crises repeat themselves, so that companies always had to adapt to the times and changing requirements. Due to the rapid change in the financial services offered, national borders are being overcome. The boundaries of conventional market segments are eliminated and new products are created. The challenge for the money industry is growing with new providers, like Fintechs, and products and throughout all those changes customers adapt their expectations and their satisfaction might be affected.

TRADITIONAL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM: AN EXPOSITION in AFRICAN CONTEXT

Etim O. Frank, Wilfred Ukpere — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The study set out to affirm that Traditional Public Administration existed in pre-colonial Africa, specifically Nigeria. These pre-colonial administrative systems performed all the functions that is currently being executed by modern public administrative system, such as designing the best strategies for efficient delivery and the attainment of public goods. The case-study approach was adopted, in which old Oyo, Benin, Kanem Borno and Oron Kingdom amongst others were comprehensively evaluated. This approach unveiled the structures and processes through which the aforementioned empires and Kingdoms were effectively governed. The focus of this paper was to identify and analyze the structure and processes, which amounted to public administration in these empires that performed the roles which are currently being performed by modern public administration. The findings revealed that old Oyo, Benin, Kanem Borno and Oron Kingdom had standard processes for the implementation of what constituted public polices in these social entities. The successes of the administrative system accounted for the long duration of these pre-colonial states and in many cases the colonial masters relied on them, for the administration of the territories they conquered. A case in point was the ‘indirect rule’ system in Nigeria and other West Africa States, which aided the continuation of the colonial administration. The role performance in the traditional system might have been fused, however the functions of public administration were effectively carried out in these pre-colonial social entities. This exposition might have accounted for the long years of existence of these empires until internal contradictions, colonial conquests and rules resulted in their collapsed. The study through the use of qualitative data affirmed the existence of traditional public administration in Africa and Nigeria in particular. This indeed was one of the notable ‘primitive gloriana’ (glory of the primitive past) of pre-colonial Africa and Nigeria in particular, that cannot be wished away by Eurocentric scholars.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION’S MEDIATION ROLE ON THE IMPACT OF GLOBALISATION ON THE PROLETARIANS IN ZIMBABWE

Cleopas Fore, Wilfred Ukpere — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

Globalisation debate in recent years is characterised with trade literature, growth and formation of multinational companies, the internationalisation motive, market liberalisation and the impact of these on nation states’ labour markets (Giddens, 2004). Zimbabwe as a nation is not exempted from the impact of globalisation on its labour relations. Literature review identified that to curb the adverse effects of globalisation, Zimbabwe adopted the use of affirmative action policies, which were received with mixed feelings of criticisms and appreciations. This article sought to understand the impact of globalisation on affirmative action and establish the extent to which affirmative action policies ameliorate the negative effects of globalisation. A qualitative paradigm was adopted. Data was gathered through the use of interviews and participants memoirs. Results were analysed by usingf both Nvivo 10 and manual coding. Results showed that either globalisation has an impact on affirmative action through inspiring the promulgation of policies or labour legislation that eradicates discrimination, or it can stifle some policies that deter globalisation. The article recommended that to ensure fairer globalisation there is need to use affirmative action policies to ameliorate discriminations occasioned by globalisation on Zimbabwe’s employment relations. Affirmative action policies need to be properly discussed and shared by all social partners to increase the chance of success in their implementation. With openness and shared goals, affirmative action policies and laws can help to achieve fairer globalisation.

EASE of USE, CONVENIENCE, TRUST, and INTENTION to USE MOBILE BANKING

Sun, 09 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Technological developments, especially in the banking world, can provide services to their customers, especially in terms of using digital banking services. Digital banking services have changed the way and method of banking operations. Customers and banks use digital banking as a technology-based service delivery channel to increase customer satisfaction. This study aims to apply the technology acceptance model (TAM) to investigate the intention to use mobile banking among millennials. The analytical technique used in this study uses SPSS version 24 software. The survey results indicate that ease of use, convenience, and trust have a significant positive effect on customer interest in using mobile banking.

POVERTY REDUCTION in CENTRAL JAVA PROVINCE INDONESIA THROUGH THE TOURISM SECTOR

Irwan Agus, Sidik Priadana, K Karno, Indah Purnama Sari — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

This research studies the influence of the tourism sector GRDP on poverty in Central Java Province. The research uses quantitative methods with linear regression techniques using time series data. The data for this research is secondary data that spans 15 years, starting from 2005 to 2019, which is represented in semester data. The total sample used is 30 samples. After the Classical Assumption Test was performed then the data analyzed using Cobb-Douglas linear regression model with Ordinary Least Square (OLS) technique. The research results showed that Tourism Sector GRDP had a significant negative effect on poverty. Based on that tourism sector can be one of the most potential approaches to be developed for alleviating poverty in Central Java Province.

SOCIAL ECONOMIC VARIABLES INFLUENCE on HDI with DATA PANELS REGRESSION in KLASSEN CLUSTER at EAST JAVA PROVINCE

Indah Purnama Sari, Heru Subiyantoro, Sugiyanto Saleh, Sugiyanto Saleh — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

This study analyzes the effect of socio-economic variables on HDI in East Java. Secondary data sources come from the Statistics Central Bureau of East Java Province. The research method used is cluster analysis and panel data regression. The sample quantity is 228 from panel data. The results showed that in a large panel of East Java gini ratio, population density, crime, and gender empowerment had a significant effect on HDI, while unemployment and economic growth had no significant effect on the HDI. In quadrant I, unemployment, economic growth, gini ratio, and population density have a significant effect on HDI, while crime and gender empowerment have no significant effect on the HDI. In quadrant IV, gini ratio, crime, and gender empowerment have a significant effect on HDI, while unemployment, economic growth and population density have no significant effect on the HDI. Simultaneously, all independent variables have a significant effect on the dependent variable HDI, and this applies to all panels.

ENERGY POVERTY ALLEVIATION – A STEP FOR SUSTAINABLE ENERGY TRANSITION

Georgi Nikolov Georgiev — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The paper investigates the issue of fuel poverty and its presence in the Bulgarian context. The focus of the analysis is on the potential for alleviation and – in the long term – elimination of energy poverty through the implementation of measures for energy efficient retrofit of residential multi-story apartment housing. An effective strategy tackling this topic at local scale is a key prerequisite for the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with particular relevance for SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy and SDG 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities. Achieving the optimal ratio of saved energy versus financial resources is the key to renovating housing at scale sustainably and efficiently. Energy poverty as a phenomenon is linked to the combined effect of three main factors - low household income, high energy costs and low energy efficiency of housing. There is a broad scientific consensus that this phenomenon has a serious negative impact on the quality of life and citizens’ health and wellbeing. Furthermore, energy poverty contributes to a huge waste of energy and also affects the physical dimension of the sustainable development of the built environment. Therefore, energy poverty exacerbates deficits and discrepancies for territorial economies and communities.

Eliminating the problem of “fuel poverty” is often considered to be impossible without the support of the affected households through subsidies. Subsidies invested in energy-efficient housing reconstruction result in immediate savings in housing heating costs, which in turn leads to a tangible reduction in the “fuel poverty” experienced by residents of reconstructed housing. Energy efficient housing reconstruction (retrofit) is the fastest and most efficient (in terms of public resources) way to combat energy poverty. The financial resources required to enable these activities could also be obtained or complemented through financial engineering schemes with third party involvement.

SHORT AND LONG TERM ANALYSIS OF FOREIGN EXCHANGE RATES BASED ON INCOME LEVELS

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The study aimed to determine the effect of foreign exchange demand and supply on exchange rates in four groups of countries based on per capita income levels from 1989-2018 using the ARDL panel method. The results showed remittances had a significant effect on exchange rates in panel A (low income countries), panel B (lower middle income countries), panel D (high income countries), while on panel C (upper middle income countries) remittances had no significant effect. Export and import variables have a significant effect on panels B, C, and D, and are not significant on panelS A. Meanwhile inflation variables have a significant effect on all types of panels.

IMPLEMENTATION OF “Freedom to Learn – Independent Campus (MBKM)” PROGRAM AT MUARA GEMBONG

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0300

The aims of this study is to analysis the grand strategy to creat Muara Gembong as The Implementation o f"Merdeka Learning – Independent Campus (MBKM)”. The sources of the study are secondary data originating from books and publications related to "Merdeka Learning – Independent Campus (MBKM)” programs. In writing this paper, the author uses a qualitative research method using a library approach. Qualitative research is a particular tradition in social science that is fundamentally dependent on observing humans in their own area and relating to these people in their language and in their terminology. While the library approach is a study that uses data analysis based on written materials. Library materials in the form of published notes, books, magazines, newspapers, manuscripts, journals or articles. Hope that the results of the study become a influence for next research related to the development of "Merdeka Learning – Independent Campus (MBKM)” programs.

SPECULATIVE HYPOTHESES ON POLITICAL DIRECTION OF TOURISM LAW IN INDONESIA; COMMUNITY BASE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT

dhian tyas untari — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

Tourism is one sector with a fairly high development potential, even the tourism sector makes a large contribution to GDP and GRDP. According to the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 10 of 2009 concerning Tourism and the Regulation of the Minister of Home Affairs Number 33 of 2009 concerning Guidelines for Ecotourism Development in the Regions, it is stated the importance of community participation in tourism development. Based on this, this study aims to; 1). Studying the political direction of tourism law in Indonesia, 2). Mapping the internal and external environment for Community Base Tourism (CBT) development, and 3). Develop speculative hypotheses related to the CBT development strategy. The sources of the study are secondary data originating from books and publications related to Tourism Law Politics and CBT Development. Strategic Management matrix; EFAS/IFAS and Garnd Matrix used in this study. Hope that the results of the study become a influence for next research related to the development of CBT in the perspective of Political Law.

THE IMPACT of GLOBALISATION on EMPLOYMENT STATUTE RELATED to EMPLOYERS in ZIMBABWE

Cleopas Fore, Wilfred Ukpere — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

Globalisation led to the reduction of barriers between countries and intensified international interdependency such that developments unfolding in a faraway country now affect the rest of the world in economic, political and social aspects (Giddens, 1990). The Zimbabwean labour market and its national labour legislation have not been spared from the impact of globalisation. Zimbabwean labour legislation had had several amendments from its inception in 1985 to date. The amendments done at each epoch had caused a serious outcry from both labour and business with the main accusations arising from unions who claimed that the effects of globalisation and the government’s desire to lure foreign direct investment (FDI) led to a serious bias towards employers. It is against this background that this article’s objective is to interrogate the impact of globalisation on labour legislation for employers. The article adopted a qualitative paradigm and made use of interviews and participants' memoirs to understand this phenomenon. Results were analysed thematically by use of both Nvivo 10 and manual coding. Results showed that globalisation has an impact on labour legislation for employers. Foreign direct investment and special economic zones were identified as drivers of globalisation responsible for positive impact on labour legislation for employers by influencing deregulation of unfriendly employment laws, instituting flexible contract of employment, easy termination of contracts of employment, and giving immunity from dictates of the labour laws for employers operating in special economic zones. The positives of globalisation for employers resulted in direct negatives for employees. The article recommends that employers need to put into context both globalisation dynamics and dictates of the labour legislation to ensure employee dignity and fair globalisation

CONSUMERS’ PERCEPTION of THE COST of CREDIT DEFAULT in THE VEHICLE FINANCE INDUSTRY in SOUTH AFRICA

Nomaphelo Soga, Lawrence Obokoh, Darlington P. Onojaefe, Wilfred Isioma Ukpere — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

The risk that a borrower may not fulfill his/her borrowing obligation presents the credit owner (lender) a default risk management opportunity to maximize the risk-adjusted rate of return and to maintain minimum exposure to default associated cost. This paper investigated respondents’ perception of the cost of credit default and examines requirements for default risk management (DRM) in the vehicle finance industry in South Africa. It is noted that with an increased level of consumer indebtedness, unstable economy, high unemployment, opportunistic risks like health pandemics, vehicle financing faces a higher probability of default from borrowers. This descriptive investigation utilized a quantitative approach using a survey method to collect data from 381 purposive randomly selected respondents who are vehicle finance customers in South Africa, Cape Town specifically. Data collection took place in the Western Cape over a nine-month period, utilizing personal interviews, and emails to administer questionnaires to vehicle finances’ customers as data collection instruments. Responses received were codified and quantitative data were analysed using the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS version 25) The paper found mixed and variable respondents’ perceptions of the cost of credit default. In conclusion, it is perceived that South Africa's debt would become more costly with credit default. It can be recommended that a default risk management intervention be applied to manage credit default risk within the context of the unified credit assessment policy in South Africa.

FOOD INSECURITY and MALNUTRITION of AFRICA: A COMBINED ATTEMPT CAN REDUCE THEM

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Thu, 31 Mar 2022 00:00:00 +0300

In the 21^st century Africa is in the top levels of hunger and malnutrition in the world that is unharmonious with the vision of the African Union. Hunger and malnutrition is a common matter in almost all African countries and recently it is appeared to be increasing in most of the countries of the continent. Security of food and nutrition is a fundamental right of every people. But many people of Africa are deprived from this right. About one-third of African children is undersized in their growth and suffers from various physical and mental complexities. The UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 aims to end all forms of hunger and malnutrition globally by 2030, but Africa is off track. It is estimated that about 200 million people of Africa are undernourished. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the African food and nutrition security system in the long-term. The pandemic has thrown the continent in serious uncertainty to the implementation of the SDG 2. Food production of this continent should be increased with the proportional to the increased populations. This study tries to discuss the food and nutrition situation of Africa and provides a constructive guideline to overcome it.

DETERMINATION of FINANCIAL LITERACY LEVEL: A STUDY on HITIT UNIVERSITY FACULTY of ECONOMICS and ADMINISTRATIVE SCIENCES STUDENTS

Selcuk Kendirli, Muhammet Selcuk Kaya, Aykut Isleyen — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

Financial literacy is the level of financial knowledge, attitude and behavior that enables individuals to manage their income, expenses and assets in a way that does not cause financial problems both today and in the future. As individuals' financial literacy levels increase, unnecessary consumption and waste of resources will decrease and the efficiency of investments will increase. Increasing the level of financial literacy will ensure a more balanced formation of asset prices in financial markets and prevent the formation of price bubbles in the markets. Today, financial markets around the world are almost integrated, financial transactions have become possible quickly through portable electronic devices. In this environment, the difference in welfare between individuals and societies with financial literacy and individuals and societies without financial literacy has increased more than in any other period in history. In this study, it is aimed to measure the financial literacy level of the students of Hitit University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences located in the province of Çorum. The data of the study were obtained from a questionnaire with the participation of 400 students studying in 5 different departments. By using the percentages of the correct answers given to the questions, success scores were created on the basis of departments. With the help of the T-test and ANOVA tests, the relationship between students' financial literacy and whether they use department, gender, class and credit card was determined. As a result of the study, it was determined that there are significant relationships between the departments and classes in which students study and their financial literacy, and no significant relationships were found between their credit card and internet banking usage and gender and financial literacy.

HOW POLITICAL and SOCIAL ATTITUDE COULD HELP to FULLY ADOPT THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY CONCEPTS FOR NATIONAL BENEFIT? A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

This comparative study shows the way in which concepts like circular economy, innovation and competitiveness are understood, accepted and implemented in Romania and Serbia, countries with similar preoccupations for the European Union's recommendations and destiny.

It is showed that the similar results obtained outline the lack of continuity in applying the resilient strategy for general development and the strategic role of investments as a pillar of modernisation. To build a resilient and modern society requires fundamental and complex changes in the political decision-makers' attitude and people's civic behaviour, linked on the circular economy principles, the need for substantial investments in top innovative research, high-tech products and adequate public policies of general interest.

MARKETING MIX STRATEGY DETERMINANTS AND SOCIAL MEDIA IN VETERINARY-BASED BUSINESS: EXPERIENCE FROM SERBIA

Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

The paper is dedicated to testing the entrepreneurial idea of founding a service micro company in the field of veterinary medicine - Animal Care. The starting point is the theoretical aspect of marketing mix services observed through the prism of a specific company in the field of agribusiness. For the needs of the research, secondary sources were used and a survey was conducted which gave the results of the influence of the elements of marketing mix services on marketing communication towards the users of the company Animal Care. It was determined that the effects of promotion, especially in the field of digital marketing, directly affect the increase in sales of products and services, and thus the satisfaction of consumers & users in veterinary services. The results of the research provided answers to research questions and helped the entrepreneur to understand that selected elements of the marketing mix help in the promotion of products and services of Animal Care companies. Respondents showed interest in using the services of the Animal Care company with the help of the Animal Care android application and website as a selected distribution channel, but also for the promotion of new services and offers of the company.

VERTICAL INTEGRATION in AGRO-INDUSTRY: ECO-FRIENDLY GAMBIER PRODUCTS

Hamira Hamira, Bernadette Robiani, Mukhlis Mukhlis — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

Textile dyeing on fabrics and clothing causes environmental pollution and health problems. There is an innovation of natural coloring using gambier in the Gambo Muba fabric industry and the garment industry in Indonesia. Gambier farmers supply natural dye raw materials. Then through the supply chain of the Gambo Muba fabric industry and the garment industry, it causes vertical integration in the gambier agro-industry. This study uses primary data from 39 vertically integrated companies in the gambier agro-industry, including the gambier rubber industry, the Gambo Muba fabric industry, and the garment industry. The data was then analyzed using descriptive qualitative. This study analyzes the relationship between vertically integrated industries, including the transaction costs between them, their impact of vertical integration on added value, and their profitability. Vertically integrated industries have low transaction costs. The impact of vertical integration on the gambier agro-industry adds to the chain of economic activities that can increase added value and profits. The impact of vertical integration can reduce transaction costs, especially the supplier coordination cost component, distributor cost component, inter-company lobbying costs components. The benefits of vertical integration in the gambier agro-industry are increasing high added value, profit levels, decreasing environmental pollution, and agro-industry sustainability.

THE EFFECT of PROMOTION on IMPULSIVE BUYING with LIFESTYLE as a MODERATION VARIABLE on FASHION PRODUCTS in ONLINE SHOP SHOPEE

Dhian Tyas Untari, Iin Widyastuty — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of this study was to explain the effect of promotion on impulsive buyers and to explain that people with high lifestyles often make impulse purchases. Sampling using incidental sampling technique, the number of respondents as many as 100 respondents. The data collection method used is the observation method and the questionnaire method. Analysis of the data used is multiple linear regression analysis with moderating variables using the SPSS program. The results of the study prove that promotion has a direct effect on impulse buying and it is not proven that people with a high life style are more likely to make impulsive purchases.

UTILITY MAXIMIZATION OF BANGLADESHI CONSUMERS WITHIN THEIR BUDGET: A MATHEMATICAL PROCEDURE

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

A consumer is considered as a person or a group of people who uses purchased goods, products, or services only for personal use, and not for manufacturing or resale. Consumers usually purchase valuable and useful commodities or goods by spending all or partial of their income. The property of a commodity that enables it to satisfy human wants is called utility. Producers must be conscious to increase the utility among the consumers. This study has considered the maximization of utility problem of consumers of Bangladesh subject to two constraints; namely, budget constraint and coupon constraint. Consequently, in the study two Lagrange multipliers are used and interpreted these with mathematical analysis. Prediction of consumer behavior will help both producers and consumers to take decision of their future economic productions and consumptions, respectively. This article is ornamented with sufficient theorems and economic analyses. So that all the readers find interest when go through the economic analysis of utility maximization.

EVALUATION OF THE ACTIVE LABOR MARKET POLICIES IN THE REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA

Velinka Tomić — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

This paper discusses the methods of evaluating active labor market policy. In addition, an important aspect of the analysis, conducted in this paper, concerns the assessment of the relative success of these measures in the case of the Republic of Srpska. The statistical analysis evaluated the success of three choosen projects implemented in the Republic of Srpska. A major problem in evaluating the effectiveness of individual measures is inadequate IT support. The unemployed persons are not monitored for all the characteristics that play a significant role in determining the target groups for particular measures. The measures are primarily intended for young people and categories related to the recent war conflicts in the former Yugoslavia. The relative assessment of the success of individual measures has confirmed that these measures are not greatly influenced by raising general employment, but these programs, at least to some extent, alleviate the problem of unemployment and improve the position of the hard-to-employ categories of the unemployed persons.

TRENDS ANALYSIS IN GIG ECONOMY

Dragan Milosevic, Dejan Ilic, Jovanka Popovic — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

This paper aims to research the main characteristics and trends of the freelancer’s market in temporary and occasional jobs in the Digital economy. The research was conducted by analyzing the content of reports of companies that hire freelancers, consulting companies and blogs of experts. The Digital economy is one of the results of the widespread application of information and communication technologies (ICT) that have influenced the transformation of the business model. Widespread application of ICT increased the flexibility of the work environment from the perspective of the place and time of work, as well as the way of engagement of the workforce. The application of ICT has expanded the scope and range of services available in today's market of temporary and occasional jobs. Contemporary companies in the Digital economy are increasingly focusing on their core competencies, leaving other jobs to external associates. The Gig economy refers to the engagement of labour in temporary and occasional jobs. Of the total number of employees in the USA during 2020, 36% worked as freelancers. Freelancers, during 2020, generated total revenue of US$ 1.2 trillion. Also, it is important to point out that a certain percentage of freelancers, currently, realize additional jobs in this way, but that there is a noticeable increase in the number of freelancers who accept this model of employment as the only way of permanent employment. Also, further growth in the number of freelancers in the world is predicted.

PLANTAIN THEORY AND THE ATTAINMENT OF SDGs 2030 BY AFRICAN STATES: AN EXPOSITION

Etim O. Frank, Wilfred Ukpere — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Agenda 2030 is the Sustainable Development Goals with 17 indicators. Like its predecessors, Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),with only eight goals yet African states could not achieve half of the eight goals then and may not get close to a quarter of the SDGs because of the pathologies of development which are legendary in Africa. This study evaluated the feasibility of using the Plantain tree crop, in which many African countries have global comparative advantage as a means to attaining seven or 41.17 per cent of the 17 goals, against one-fit-all approach often applied to such development agenda. The method of study was descriptive which through its procedure revealed, that these countries were not putting this crop and its properties to optimum usage. This approach was complemented by observations and triangulation by library researches on the various usages of plantain tree. The technique included informal interviews of traditional medicine practitioners on the ailments cured through the use of plantain properties. The tactic of the study further revealed that the life-span of plantain is about 20 years, hence it can feed the present and future generation, it withstands every climatic condition, and the fruit could be eaten ripe, unripe, as chips, as plantain four and paste use in pharmaceutical industries for drugs making. Every part of the plantain tree is use by alternative medicine practitioners. It resolved that the countries that have global comparative advantage with plantain, could harness all the economic and medicinal advantages to achieve the SDGs by 2030 without having to borrow, being already heavily indebted nations. Political will and leadership and investments are some of the requirements needed to achieve the goals pursue herein. This affirmed the efficacy of Plantain theory as mechanism to achieving some per cent of the SDGs by some African States.

SUSTAINING PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING AMONGST MARRIED CAREER WOMEN: PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS, SOCIAL SUPPORT, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, AND FAMILY CONFLICT RESOLUTION AS INFLUENCERS

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The current paper aims to examine the influencing factors in sustaining psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria. Hence, this paper plans to propose ways of increasing and sustaining psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria. The paper espoused a quantitative research approach based on a survey research design. The results showed that psychological distress, social support, domestic violence, and family conflict resolution significantly jointly and independently influence the sustenance of psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria. The results show that family conflict resolution is a noteworthy moderator of the negative influence of psychological distress and domestic violence in sustaining psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria. Besides, the outcomes indicate that religion significantly influences psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria. Therefore, developmental psychologists, organizational managers, human resources practitioners, counselors, and religious organizations should encourage ways of reducing psychological distress, by increasing social support, reducing domestic violence, and achieving consistent conflict resolution within families, as a way to sustain psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Nigeria. Thus, this paper has recognized psychological distress, social support, domestic violence, family conflict resolution, and demographic factors (for instance, religion) as significant influencers in sustaining psychological wellbeing amongst married career women in Ibadan, Nigeria.

MEDIATING EFFECT OF ORGANIZATION LEARNING ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STRATEGIC CHANGE, KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP: Case of Indonesian Islamic Banks

Muhammad Richo Rianto, Farida Jasfar, Willy Arafah — Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract

Purpose - This study aims to know influence the mediation of organization learning on strategic change, knowledge management and transformational leadership and performance of Indonesian Islamic Banks

Design / methodology / approach - This study uses quantitative research with a purposive sampling technique with a population of 14 Indonesian islamic banks. The targeted unit of analysis is the Islamic banks manager. There were 239 questionnaires returned and 11 of them did not meet the requirements, so only 228 were used in this study. This study uses SmartPLS 3 to test the hypothesis.

Findings - This research shows that strategic change, knowledge management and transformational leadership affect organization learning. This study also shows that strategic change, transformational leadership knowledge management and organization learning have an effect on firm performance. Apart from that, the mediating role of the learning organizations also provides consistent results.

Research limitation / implications - Islamic banks managers must be able to identify the importance of change for the company, because of the big risks. Supporting knowledge and leadership skills in companies makes Islamic banking better competitive. These three variables become better if the company uses a learning organization because the company will change more quickly and achieve better performance with previous experience.

Originality / value - Similar research is usually carried out in manufacturing and service companies and is carried out in developed countries (Europe, America and Africa). The focus of this research is the development of strategic change supported by knowledge management and transformational leadership on performance mediated by learning organizations. This research was also conducted for the first time in Asia with the object of Islamic banks in Jakarta - Indonesia.

Keyword - Strategic change, Knowledge management, Transformational leadership, Organization learning, Firm performance, Islamic Banks, Jakarta - Indonesia

Paper Type - Research paper

ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION, POVERTY AND STUNTING IN INDONESIA

Dwi Darma Puspita Sari — Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The high population growth is not followed by the growth of infrastructure procurement, which causes the phenomenon of excess demand for clean water and sanitation facilities and infrastructure and also currently Environmental Sanitation in Indonesia is still high, poverty is also high so the behavior of hygiene and sanitation poor food, causing infectious diseases accompanied by disorders such as decreased appetite and vomiting. This condition can reduce the nutritional status of children under five and have negative implications for the progress of child growth (stunting). The purpose of this study is to see the relationship between environmental sanitation, poverty and stunting in 34 provinces in Indonesia for the period 2015-2017. The data used is secondary data during 2015-2017 in 34 provinces in Indonesia. method This uses the analytical approach used is the Granger causality and VAR panel data and spatially uses classic typology. Results: spatially it shows that Indonesia is classified as low stunting and low environmental sanitation (Quadrant III), while in terms of stunting and poverty, it is classified as high stunting and high poverty (Quadrant I)

Keywords: Environmental Sanitation, Poverty, Stunting, Hygiene, Nutrition

QUALITY DETERMINANT OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION FOR PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES

Meirina Alkhoiriah Eka Putri — Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The aim of this study is to determine the impact on the quality of accounting information of organizational culture, organizational commitment, internal control, the quality of accounting information systems, and leadership style. This study used primary data and a purposive sampling method to analyze a sample of 202 individuals who are involved in college finance. The research method used is a quantitative analysis with the use of multiple regression methods. The results are: (1) Organizational culture, internal control, and the quality of accounting information systems all have a positive and significant impact on the quality of accounting information; (2) organizational commitment and leadership style both have a positive but insignificant impact on the quality of accounting information systems.

Keywords: Organizational culture, organizational commitment, internal control, Accounting Information Systems, leadership style, Accounting Information

CHILD POVERTY IN SUMATRA IN 2017 AND 2019: THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL OVERLAPPING DEPRIVATION ANALYSIS (MODA) APPROACH

Iffah Atqa, Azwardi Azwardi, Sukanto Sukanto — Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Introduction. Poverty is more multidimensional, but monetary-based method measures are merely one-dimensional. The multidimensional approach is more reliable for describing and analyzing children poverty. This study only focused on ten provinces in Sumatra out of 34 provinces in Indonesia. There are five major dimensions of indicators which are housing, facilities, food and nutrition, education, child protection and health.

Purposes. This study used Multidimensional Overlapping Deprivation Analysis (MODA) Approach on Alkire-Foster Method as a measuring tool for analyzing children poverty in Sumatra in 2017 and 2019.

Results The number of 0-4 year-old-deprived children is decreasing for most dimensions in 2019, compared to 2017, except child protection dimension and the number of 5-17 years-old-deprived children is decreasing for most dimensions, except health dimension. 2) The condition of Child Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) becomes better in 2019. 3) Education is the most contributed dimension to child multi-dimensional poverty in Sumatra for 2017, while health dimension for 2019. 4) North Sumatra is the first highest score of Child MPI, headcount ratio, and intensity of poverty. 5) Bengkulu and Lampung are the provinces in 2017 and 2019 experiencing both monetary poverty and child multidimensional poverty above the Indonesia’s poverty rate and Child MPI in Sumatra.

COST CUTTING MEASURES AT COOPERATIVE BANKS IN GERMANY AS A RESULT OF DIGITALIZATION AND THEIR CONSEQUENCES

Carsten GIEBE, Kevin Schulz — Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The banking market in Germany is facing big challenges due to digitalization. The digital transformation is significantly influenced by technological progress and the low-interest phase. The article deals with the group of cooperative banks, which consists of many individual cooperative credit institutions. Cooperative banks are credit institutions whose objective, according to their statutes, is the economic promotion of their members through joint business operations. The traditional classical business model is traditionally based on personal customer contact. More mergers are to be expected in the banking sector in the coming years. The process of branch closures and staff reductions is also inevitable. Although the role of branches is up for discussion, they are increasingly falling victim to increased cost pressures. These changes have an impact on many aspects of how bank customers demand, evaluate and ultimately purchase financial services. In recent years, it has become clear that banks lack a clear strategy. The aim should be that the strategy does not focus exclusively on cost cutting, such as branch closures and staff reductions. The main purpose of this research is to investigate whether these cost cutting measures in cooperative banks are operationally justified in relation to the available operating profit, cost income ratio and return on equity. The results of this article may be relevant for researchers dealing with the Digital Transformation in the banking sector in Germany.

GERMANY IS AHEAD TO IMPLEMENT SUSTAINABLE CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0300

This study tries to discuss aspects of application of circular economy (CE) in Germany. Since the start of the First Industrial Revolution (start in 1760), more than 260 years ago, there becomes enormous development in global linear economy (LE) on the basis of ‘take, make and dispose’. Modern various technologies, such as automobiles, electricity, telephones, mobile phones, transistors, airplanes, computers, and the internet have brought enormous change in production and consumption. But unsustainable side effects of LE are; loss of biodiversity, deforestation, environment pollution, climate change, etc. On the other hand, CE represents a sustainable economy. It keeps resources and materials, as long as, possible. The purpose of this study is to show the importance and beneficial effects of a realized CE on the economic, environmental and social sectors for the success of global sustainable development and the contribution of CE in Germany. Germany is the first country in the world that tries to implement CE by using technologies of waste and resource management.

Quality and reflecting of financial position: an enterprises model through logistic regression and natural logarithm

Enkeleda Lulaj — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The present study entitled "Quality and reflecting of financial position: an enterprises model through logistic regression and natural logarithm", determines the confirmatory effects of PRF analysis, to assess the position or condition of enterprises in the market. The business environment for enterprises shows the diversity of economic activity, but in one form or another they are interconnected, and their main purpose more specifically of the finance and accounting department, is to compile statements and financial reports (PRF) with reliable data where through them the enterprise looks at its financial position and orientation for better decision-making. The data of this research was based on primary and secondary data, such as interviews conducted in 100 enterprises and analysis of published PRFs. To achieve the purpose of the research from the interview and data, three categories of PRFs were used for testing the study hypothesis. Results from data processing in SPSS & R program, through tests and techniques within logistic regression and natural logarithm clearly show that there is an important relationship between the dependent variable and the independent ones and that large enterprises have a better financial position than small enterprises and the bankruptcy of small enterprises is greater

The Determinants of Income Equality in Bangka Belitung Province

Nesha Redita, Bernadette Robiani, Anna Yulianita — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The income distribution phenomenon in Bangka Belitung Islands Province during the 2007-2018 period became the basis for analyzing the determining variables of income distribution including the industrial sector, the agricultural sector, the trade sector, and the industrial labor productivity. We measured the income distribution indicator from the Gini coefficient value used the Panel Data Regression approach to determine the effect of these variables on the Gini coefficient in all regencies/cities in the Bangka Belitung Islands Province. The results showed that the determinant of the income distribution was the agricultural sector. Further findings prove that the agricultural, industrial, and trade sectors improved income distribution.

Keywords: Income Inequality, industrial sector, agricultural sector, industrial labor productivity

Role of Bangabandhu in expanding higher education and Bangladesh today

Hafiz T.A. Khan — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The study attempts to evaluate the role of Bangabandu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Founding Father of Bangladesh, in his initial plan on higher education and to produce adequate human resources to rebuild the country since independence. Secondary sources of information are used to evaluate his role in higher education expansion in Bangladesh. It has been revealed that the economic growth and development seen in Bangladesh today was largely impacted by his education plan.

Global COVID-19 Pandemic: Prevention and Protection Techniques

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2). It has been identified as the causative agent of the viral pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan, China, at the end of 2019. It has a high human to human transmission capability and primarily targets the human respiratory system. Healthcare providers to common people are in high risks of the contamination of this fatal disease. It spreads person to person through respiratory droplets that produced during talking, coughing and sneezing. It is associated with severe and fatal respiratory disease in humans. At present it becomes great global public health concern. On 11 March 2020, the WHO declared the global COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has entered in a very dangerous phase in April and May 2020, and the severity is increasing day by day. On 26 July 2020, about 216 countries and territories are infected worldwide; total global infections become more than 16.3 million and total recovered about 9.9 million with total deaths 648,477. The disease have not abolished even in the 2021. On 09 February 2021, the disease spread up to 223 countries and territories globally; total confirmed deaths become 2,337,368, total confirmed cases 107,037,441, with total recovery 78,913,746. The paper discusses the social, economic, and health impacts in the world’s poorest countries due to COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. The study also presents the current economic situation of the world and analyses the potential consequences on global economy. An attempt has been taken here to create consciousness among the common people to reduce the fatality of this killer disease. From the beginning of 2021, COVID-19 vaccines are distributed worldwide and all nations are united to abolish the virus completely.

A CGE analysis of the impact of climate change on sustainable development: the case of High Plateaux region, Algeria

Touitou Mohammed — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 00:00:00 +0300

The aim of the paper is to assess the impact of climate change on sustainable development in the case of the High Plateaux region of Algeria. A baseline “climate change” scenario and an “adaptation” scenario were assessed as part of our work. The methodological approach implemented is broken down into three interconnected evaluation phases, pre-modelling phase, modelling phase and post-modelling phase. The work has shown that these complex ex-ante evaluation approaches are adaptable and applicable in the context of Algeria. Our findings indicate that climate change would have a significant impact on economic aggregates on a regional scale. It also highlighted that the calculation of a single index of the impact of environmental policies on the sustainability of arid regions confirms the hypothesis of gaining sustainability by working towards a strategy of adaptation to climate change.

The Scientific Research on motivation for learning as an important element of social and economic sciences in the context of sphere of security and defense

Elitsa PETROVA — Wed, 30 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

This article gives a brief overview of a study conducted on motivation for learning as an important element of social and economic sciences in the context of the sphere of security and defense. The research is an important scientific work of the author and was developed in the period 2012-2018. At present, its results have been approved, considered appropriate and acceptable, and are applied at the National Military University in Bulgaria.

Business Environment and Start-Up in Indonesia:Empirical Evidence from Province-level Data

Alghifari Mahdi Igamo, Agung Raneo Putra, Nur Khamisah, Arika Kurniawan — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of this study is to analyze the Effect of the Business Environment on Start-up in Indonesia. This study specifically examines the effect of Gross Regional Domestic Product, Per Capita Expenditure, Unemployment Rate, Total Population, Computer Users and Individual Internet Users which are used as business environment indicators on the existence of startup businesses in 17 Indonesian Provinces during the 2013-2018 period using panel data regression analysis tools to prove that GRDP, Total Population, Computer Users and Internet Users have a positive and significant effect on the existence of start-up businesses in Indonesia. Meanwhile, expenditure per capita and the unemployment rate have a negative effect on the existence of start-up businesses in Indonesia

Quantitative Research: A Successful Investigation in Natural and Social Sciences

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Research is the framework used for the planning, implementation, and analysis of a study. The proper choice of a suitable research methodology can provide an effective and successful original research. A researcher can reach his/her expected goal by following any kind of research methodology. Quantitative research methodology is preferred by many researchers. This article presents and analyzes the design of quantitative research. It also discusses the proper use and the components of quantitative research methodology. It is used to quantify attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and other defined variables and generalize results from a larger sample population by the way of generating numerical data. The purpose of this study is to provide some important fundamental concepts of quantitative research to the common readers for the development of their future projects, articles and/or theses. An attempt has been taken here to study the aspects of the quantitative research methodology in some detail.

Difference in Funding Decision Based on the Growth Potential of the Company in Indonesia

Darmawan Darmawan, Edrich Molla — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of the study, The research objective was to To find out the differences in funding decisions between companies that have high growth potential and companies that have low growth potential. Research is a quantitative study. Mean difference test is preceded by Common Factor Analysis to analyze which factors in the Investment Opportunity Set can represent the growth ratio of the company so that it can be used to separate companies with high and low growth potential. Furthermore, the analysis is carried out with a regression model to determine the difference in funding decisions on the growth potential of different companies. The results showed that The consumer goods industry and mining sector sectors that have not proven to be significant are the differences in funding decisions between companies that have the potential to grow high and those with low growth potential. In other sectors, it is evident that there are significant differences in funding decisions between companies that have the potential to grow high and those with low growth potential.

Inflation volatility as a phenomenon monetary-fiscal combination in Indonesia

Eli Marnia Henira, Raja Masbar, Chenny Seftarita — Wed, 30 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Inflation is generally seen as a monetary phenomenon whose effective control is through the management of the money supply, interest rates, and exchange rates. Another opinion views inflation as a fiscal phenomenon that is controlled through the effectiveness of tax revenues and state expenditures and avoiding a budget deficit that triggers an increase in government external debt. This study aims to examine and analyze the volatility of inflation as a phenomenon monetary-fiscal combination in Indonesia. The analysis was carried out descriptively and quantitatively through the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) Model using secondary time series data from the 1st quarter of 2009 to the 2nd quarter of 2020. The results showed the dominance of the positive influence of interest rates from the monetary side and foreign debt from the fiscal side, as well as the ineffective role of tax revenue in reducing inflation in Indonesia. Bank Indonesia needs to streamline policies related to interest rate management in regulating the money supply. The government needs to make efforts to increase the effectiveness of tax revenues and state spending to minimize its foreign debt.

Toward Sustainable Power Supply and Consumption of an Emerging Economy (Nigeria)

Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Electricity supply offers significant and immense benefits to human society, and it is instrumental in driving economic growth, increased standard of living and technological developments. Its sustainable supply and consumption is related to many ecological discussions, and thus, present emphasis on renewable sources, such as solar and hydro. In Nigeria, however, challenges associated with electricity generation, transmission, distribution and consumption have not been adequately tackled. Poor electricity supply has adversely impacted the economy resulting to poor production, higher prices of goods and services, closure of industries, and loss of competitive advantage of Nigerian businesses. Conversely, energy-inefficient and non-conservation consumption behaviour of Nigerian electricity consumers contributes to the electricity demand - demand gap. Energy-efficiency and conservation is a sustainable tool for efficient power system. The paper show that the use of mostly post-paid and unmetered billing system is implicated in energy-inefficient consumption. The paper advocates for deployment of pre-paid meters to every electricity consumer; fiscal management, enforcement of energy saving policies such as use of compact fluorescent lamps (CFL); and emphasis on renewable energy (hydro and solar) sources, for electricity generation.

EVALUATION OF FINANCIAL PERFORMANCES OF SME’S LISTED IN THE BIST SME INDUSTRIAL INDEX BY USING TOPSIS MULTICRITERIA DECISION MAKING METHOD

Selcuk Kendirli, Muhammet Selcuk Kaya, Mustafa Bilgin — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0300

In this study, the financial performances of SMEs listed in the BIST SME Industrial Index are evaluated by using TOPSIS multicriteria decision-making method. The data of the study acquired from annual financial statements that reported between the 2016-2018 period. Financial performance ranks of SMEs are determined for each year and thus comparative financial performances of SMEs are detected.

BIST SME Industrial Index is an index that includes stocks of industrial SMEs traded in BIST Stars, BIST Main, and BIST Emerging Companies markets. SMEs have great importance for the Turkish economy, with their dynamizing roles and with their crucial roles in regional development and job creation. According to the Turkey Statistical Institute data, Turkish SMEs constitute 99.8 % of all enterprises in Turkey. At the same time, Turkish SMEs provide 72.7% of total employment, 62% of total sales, and 58% of the total investments of the Turkish Economy.

Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is one of the multicriteria decision-making methods that commonly used in the evaluation of financial performances of firms. The TOPSIS method is based on two main points: the positive ideal solution and the negative ideal solution. With the help of the TOPSIS method, the distances positive ideal solutions and negative ideal solutions of all options are calculated. Options are ranked according to their proximity to the positive ideal solution and their distance to the negative ideal solution.

Circular Economy can Provide a Sustainable Global Society

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Since start of the Industrial Revolution about 260 years ago, the negative effects from the traditional linear economy (LE) become threat to the stability of the economies and natural ecosystems. Strength of climate change, reduction of environment pollution and integrity of ecosystems are essential issues for survival of the global humanity. According to LE resources for production are easily available and unlimited, and after use wastes are disposable. The circular economy (CE) is an alternative to the LE where the resources may be used for as long as possible. It tries to capture the value of existing products and materials, and decreases the use of primary materials in industries. The CE is a part of environmental economics and beneficial to the society. It keeps products, components, and materials at their highest utility and maximum value at all times. At present CE is one of the most focused terms among environmental economic scientists. The aim of this study is the implementation of the sustainable development strategies and the transition from LE towards CE.

Workplace Subjective Alienation and Individuals’ well-being

Karam Adibifar, Melissa Monson — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0300

There are many sociological studies that have consistently demonstrated the importance of workplace alienation and its association with human health. However, nearly all research has focused on the objective dimension of alienation, overlooking the significance and in-depth understanding of subjective or covert forms of alienation. The purpose of this study is to explore the role and impact of subjective alienation on the mental and physical well-being of individuals, utilizing secondary analysis of data. The spillover effect of this type of alienation in relation to workplace behavior can significantly impact many aspects of people’s lives. Generally, alienation is the feeling of being disconnected and often occurs in the presence of, or presumed differentiation in social status. It lies in discrepancy and contradiction between subjective emotion and objective sensation; it is an inauthentic human relationship. This study finds that as a subtle form of bullying, covert alienation can produce significant levels of stress, which has countless consequences including emotional, financial, and physical problems. The findings also suggest that a lack of support in helping an alienated individual results in further alienation, leading to deviant behavior. Overall, this study may be helpful to organizations in recognizing maladaptive behaviors that might cause workplace alienation. Moreover, this study can be additional avenue to literature reviews, specifically in the area of subjective alienation.

Implementing Regulation regarding Minority Rights in Romania Special Overview of the Legal Frame of Romanian Law and Constitution

Flavia Ghencea, Mihnea Claudiu Drumea — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

The general concept of non-territorial autonomy is analyzed in the specialized doctrine from various perspectives - considered, in fact, as its attributes – such as, cultural, linguistic, educational, traditional and religious perspectives- all considering the identity of the minority group that lives in a majority community.
The present paper, part of a larger research, proposes, on the one hand, an analysis of the legal framework regarding non-territorial autonomy in Romania - from the perspective of the regulations regarding the establishment, organization and functioning of the authorities with their role in the elections and the administrative structures at a local level and, whilst considering the role played by the minority groups in this framework. According to the recently adopted New Administrative Code with big impact on minorities’ lives, another purpose of this research is to track how they are applied to the provisions on the linguistic rights of the national minorities included in Local Public Administrative Regulation. The objectives of this research will be, to use the data obtained in national reports and secondly, to making recommendations on the most efficient way in which the legislative norms regarding the protection of minorities can be applied, focusing on costs, human and financial resources

An Overview on Romanian Strategies regarding Roma Minority Concerning Education and Employment

Laura Patache, Octav Negurita — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

According to the Council of Europe, Roma population in Romania is about 8.6% representing the largest minority group, exceeding the Hungarian ones. Demographic trends make the problem of the Roma minority even more stringent, through the fact that the population is aging despite of Roma’s positive natural increase. Romanian Government elaborated a Strategy to improve conditions for the Roma, which is permanently updated according to political commitment at the international level, based on the following guiding principles: consensuality, social utility, sectorial division, decentralization in execution, legislative compatibility, identity differentiation, and equality. The education is the key to a better access to the labor market and in last two decades authorities have taken several actions concerning Roma social inclusion, but the results are not the ones expected. It is a fact that, especially in case of children, low life’s level, marginalized communities, rural area, culture and traditions may generate socially exclusion and inequality. The study aims to make an overview of the Romanian governmental policies regarding the improvement of the situation of the Roma minority, especially regarding education and employment. The results of the study could be useful for a better correlation of social policies with impact on living of Roma.

EFFECT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON AGRICULTURAL OUTPUT IN ETHIOPIA

Adamu Mulu Ketema, Kasahun Dubale Negeso — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Currently climate change is known as the major environmental problem the world face. Its effect is openly reduces agricultural output in particular and economic growth in general. The aim of the study was to examine the long run and short run effect of climate change on agricultural output in Ethiopia over a period of 1980-2016. The ARDL approach to co integration was applied to examine the long run and short run effect of climate change on agricultural output. ADF test was used for Unit root test. The finding of bound test shows that there is stable long run relationship between RAGDP, labour force, Mean annual rainfall, Average temperature, agriculture land, and fertilizer input import. The estimated long run model reveals that climate changes have an important effect on agricultural output which is the main contributor of overall GDP of the country. The coefficient of error correction term is -0.738 suggesting about 73.8% percent annual adjustment towards long run equilibrium. The estimate coefficients of short run show that mean annual rainfall have significant effect but average temperature is insignificant effect on output. In the long run both main variable of interest have significant effect on agricultural output with a positive effect from mean annual rainfall and negative effect from average temperature. To reduce the effect of climate change the study recommends government and stakeholders needs to create a specific policies to reduce the effect of climate change especially focus on technological innovation that avert effect of increase in temperature that would result increase on the output and adopting technology at macro and micro level..

Investigating the Role of Excellent Model in the Competitive Market with Impact on The Economy

Rahil Asadi — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Nowadays, gaining competitive advantage depends on the organization’s capability to moving towards excellence and superiority in various dimensions. Creating competition with ethical principles means that, with scientific methods and strategic planning step towards strengthening the organization performance in the competitive market. There are many ways to gain the competitive market advantage and all that need to be appropriate and accordance with the cultural, political, human and structural conditions. Between all ways, one of the solutions that is more culturally, humane, and structurally appropriate to the organizational and the local business environment, and in practice, some organizations have proven it to be as a high-value or excellent and standard model, can name a model of E.F.Q.M (EUROPEAN, FOUNDATION, QUALITY, MANAGEMENT).

Research methodology – This paper focuses on a conceptual analysis of the relations among establishing an excellence model in the organization and gaining competitive advantage. Here the EFQM excellence model is considered as a suitable framework for achieving the competitive advantage in the market for the organization. The revision of academic literature and logical analysis are the main methodological tools.

Findings – The study shows that establishing competitive advantage foundations and excellence model in the organization and then evaluate and assessing them based on the components mentioned here, can achieve competitive advantage for the organization in the global scale, and in this sense, it is possible to define relationships and impact between each component of excellent model and those coming from the model on the competitive advantage.

Knowledge Management and the Governmental Organisations

Rahil Asadi, Larisa Mihoreanu, Vasilica Georgiana Radu — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract.

Nowadays, the concept of Knowledge Management is gradually being recognized in governmental establishments which are seeking to deploy their own knowledge management system and make the most of their existing knowledge in policymaking, by creating and maintaining a competitive advantage in the domestic and international environment.

For an organisation, the intellectual assets and individual knowledge are as important as the other physical and financial assets. Knowledge is a primary resource featured to provide a competitive advantage to any organization that recognises and incorporates it efficiently in its processes.

This article aims to review the value of knowledge management, the pillars by describing its cycle and highlighting its importance for governmental organisations. The obstacles and difficulties of implementing and deploying knowledge management in government organisations with suggested solutions that are also discussed.

In conclusion, recommendations for decision makers are presented to enhance the efficiency of the knowledge management implementation and scale up the gain of a lasting competitive advantage within national and international environments.

Combining the characteristics of sustainability, frugal innovations and washing machines in the industrial nations – A literature-based analysis of the common features for future sustainable developments

Sandra Schneider — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Sustainability is an internationally discussed topic in the development of products and services. Frugal innovations aim to conserve resources in the manufacture and use of such products and services. It can therefore be assumed that the areas of sustainability and frugal innovation overlap. This work is intended to show the connection between sustainability, frugal innovations and household appliances in the form of washing machines in industrialized countries. For the analysis, the characteristics of frugal innovations are compared with the requirements of washing machines in industrial nations and then the parallels to the social development goals (SDG) are determined as characteristics for sustainability. The existing literature will be reviewed for evaluation. The aim of the work is to show the connection and give an indication of the sustainable development of an everyday product as a frugal innovation in the industrialized countries.

Perceptions regarding the quality of life among beneficiaries of home and residential care services

Mihaela Ghenta, ANiela Matei Matei, Luise Mladen-Macovei, Elen-Silvana Bobarnat — Tue, 31 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +0300

The article aims to present the results of a qualitative research conducted among elderly persons (aged 65 years and more) who receive home and residential care in Romania. The research objectives were to collect perceptions with regard to the overall appreciation of the quality of life and the way the quality of services received influence elderly’s image with regard to their own life. The scarcity of data on quality of life of dependent older persons recommended the use of qualitative methods. Data collection included ten semi-structured interviews with beneficiaries of social and healthcare services. Findings show that the quality of life is a multidimensional concept, very often related to the health status, the level of autonomy, the social contacts, and the existence of a social support network. The results have implications for public policy makers, and supplement the knowledge with regard to the quality of life in older age.

The Geographic Determinants of Economic Growth and the Increasing Albania-Kosovo Trade Relations

Valbona Mehmeti — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

For the last few years, the trade volume between Albania and Kosovo has increased considerably, clearly showing that, on top of many other factors, the geographic determinants of economic growth and development must never be underestimated. On the other hand, the ever-closer economic integration of Albania and Kosovo is only natural and should not be considered as a cause for political rifts in the Western Balkans. The paper will go through the various documents and agreements adopted by Tirana and Pristina to promote mutual trade relations, and it will refer to an abundance of data indicating the improving trade relations. Subsequently, the paper will shed light on the patterns of economic behavior that Albania and Kosovo show, a behavior which can be better comprehended under the framework of geographic determinants of economic growth and development, such as location, resources, food productivity, population and population growth, regionalization, culture, etc.

The Effect of Progressive Tax, Number of Vehicles and Tax Arrears on Revenue Transfer of Motor Vehicle Title Fee in South Sumatra Province

Putri Vialeta, Didik Susetyo, Anna Yulianita — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The purpose of this study is to analyze the Effect of Progressive Taxes. Number of Vehicles and Tax Arrears on Revenue Transfer Fees for Motorized Vehicles at UPT Regional Revenue Agency of South Sumatra Province. In this writing the type of data used is panel data. The sample in this study was 16 District / City UPTs for 2017 - 2018. The analysis technique used was Ordinary Least Squared (OLS) using the Eviews 8. The estimation results of the regression equation showed that simultaneously progressive taxes, the number of vehicles and arrears had a positive effect and significant to the acceptance of Transfer of Motor Vehicle Title Fee, which can be seen from the probability value F of 0.000000 <0.05 (α = 5%).

FOREWORD

Manuela Epure — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0200

What is needed to create a more sustainable world for us and for future generations? This is a question araised more often than ten years ago, just because of the concern about humankind's future is blurry, environmental issues become an urgency due to the visible consequences: floods, bushfires without precedent like recent Australian tragedy. The population and governments can no longer ignore these signs and immediate actions are required.

The United Nations Sustainable Goals (SDGs) lay out how to eradicate poverty, advance environmental sustainability and provide decent housing, clean water and health care and education to those disadvantaged ones. All UN member states committed to take appropriate measures to make SDGs achievable as soon as possible. However, all beautiful ideals need finance to become a reality. UN estimates about $6 trillion a year to properly address all 17 SDGs, but this amount far exceeds the traditional sources that can be attracted. Therefore, global finance people think that the entire global capitalist system should get involved and contribute. At the core of this idea is the understanding that when businesses apply their expertise to solve problems, create profit and progress can go together for a better society, business and environment. Companies must consider their long-term financial sustainability in light of these global challenges and maintain a healthy environment and workforce. As an example, in SUA the Environmental Business Initiative, the funds to be deployed are $445 billion between 2007 to 2030 to support the transition to a low-carbon sustainable economy. The general public is asking businesses to take sustainability always into consideration in all their decisions. In one study, 81 percent of Millenials said companies must have a major role in driving SDGs[1]. Also, growing evidence shows a correlation between sustainability practices and better financial performance, higher productivity and lower risks[2]. It seems if businesses can deliver profitability, shareholder return than they could support the SDs most relevant to their businesses. Simple as that.

[1] https://www.goldstandard.org/sites/default/files/documents/sdg_report_optimized.pdf

[2] https://www.spglobal.com/en/research-insights/articles/the-esg-advantage-exploring-links-to-corporate-financial-performance

Techno-economic study of BIPV in typical Sahara region in Algeria

Khadidja Khencha, Ratiba Wided Biara, Hocine Belmili — Tue, 24 Dec 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Building in urban areas in the Sahara region is confronted with two main issues: (i) the climate change and (ii) the energy consumption. In order to deal with the latest issues, experts want to focus all their efforts on the use of renewable energy, and most particularly solar energy that is widely available at the Sahara. In this work, we have carried out a comprehensive survey related to benefits, techniques, and criteria affecting the energy efficiency of using BIPV and its advantages over glazing. To be clearer, we have selected as a case of study of a contemporary building covered by standard glazing and replaced by BIPV located in a Sahara region in Algeria. Moreover, the point of view of urban architectural, and energy economy, have been well investigated. Where the necessary time period was calculated to recover the total amounts of expenses for BIPV technology in the event that it is installed on the roof and then in the event that this technology is installed in the facades. As a result, using BIPV in this specific region of a hot climate has to be a dominant idea to reduce both energy consumption and economical

Effect of macroeconomic, demographic and governance factors on income inequality of selected sub-Saharan Africa Countries

Dagim Tadesse Bekele — Fri, 27 Dec 2019 00:00:00 +0200

This research tried to look effect of macroeconomic, demographic and governance factors on income inequality in 34 sub-Saharan Africa countries by using unbalance panel data spanning from 2010 to 2017. Two step System GMM estimation was conducted for the econometrics analysis of Dynamic Panel Data model. The finding revealed income inequality has dynamic nature. Also Kuznets’ hypothesis is worked in these countries: where economic growth is found to have significant increasing effect on income inequality in short run while in the long run its’ effect is significant and decreasing. Population growth is the other variable which is found to have increasing effect on income inequality. Differently, FDI and low perception of corruption decrease income inequality. Therefore, much focus will have to be given to achieve sustainable development objective, promoting FDI and controlling of corruption. Also managing the population growth is important.

Regular Banking System versus Shadow Banking System. A Comparative Assessment of Evidence from Romania

Claudia Gabriela Baicu — Tue, 01 Oct 2019 00:00:00 +0300

This study is determined by several factors that includes: (1) increasing interest in the shadow banking system as a result of the consequences of the global financial crisis; (2) the links between the traditional banking system and the shadow banking system with regard to the impact on financial stability; (3) low interest rates on bank deposits in recent years that might drive the development of the shadow banking system and (4) the lack of extensive literature on similar studies regarding Romania. The period analyzed is 2008-2018, beginning with the year when the effects of the global financial crisis were felt in Romania and the macroeconomic conditions deteriorated. The results reveal that the shadow banking in Romania is small compared to the regular banking system that dominates the Romanian financial system. The European Union financial sector greatly impacts both the banking sector and the shadow banking system. The entities and the activities composing the shadow banking system are not complex and the links between the two financial sectors raise greater risks to shadow banking entities than to regular banks.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Fri, 27 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Globalization shapes our lives in a great extent: we work from 9 to 5, having our co-workers located in different countries, we eat food coming from various location all over the world, we use communication devices made in some Asian countries, and we share happy or sad moments with “friends” that we have never seen before. Internet connectivity becomes more and more an indispensable Is this about global citizenship, the sense of belonging to the global community is more powerful than citizenship itself.

Recently, the DHL Global Connectedness Index [1] reveals that the world ended 2017 more globalized than ever, despite the predictions and the Brexit and Trump shock waves. The year 2018 brought new obstacles, such as tariff tiffs, the global business competition is still on track. The executives must think to build their business in new coordinates that might overcome today’s turbulences. More than ever, successful business decisions should rely on accurate perceptions of the environment, and a clear-eyed view of how globalization measures are trending. The Netherlands is the world’s most globally connected country. Singapore leads on the size of its international flows relative to domestic activity, while the United Kingdom has the most global distribution of flows around the world. Countries that integrate more deeply into international flows tend to enjoy faster economic growth and even the top-ranked countries have untapped opportunities to strengthen their global connectedness.....

[1] Altman, S., Ghemawat, P. Bastian Ph. – DHL Global Connectedness Index 2018: The State of Globalization in a Fragile World

Engagement of older persons in cultural activities: importance and barriers

Mihaela Ghenta, Elen-Silvana Bobarnat — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The aim of this article is to present the importance of cultural activities for older person, as well as of the barriers related to engagement in such activities. Cultural activities involvement is recognized as a way to promote the social participation of older persons and thus it contributes to a better social inclusion of these persons. The first part of the paper points the importance of cultural activities among older Romanians, while the last part of the article presents the factors that limit a more engagement in such activities for people of age 65 years and over

Ecotourism; Implementation of Security Management Concepts

Dhian Tyas Untari — Tue, 03 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +0200

The following paper is an essay book review, examines and links the concept of ecotourism and the concept of security management. It is hoped that this essay will become a new topic for academics and practitioners.

Liquidity Risk Management in Islamic Banking: Comparative Analysis with SUR Methodology for Turkey

Necla Ilter Kucukcolak, Figen Buyukakin, Recep Ali Kucukcolak — Tue, 01 Oct 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Participating banks, emerged as a complementary element in the Turkish financial system since mid-1980s, are continuously increasing their value added to the Turkish banking sector. Therefore, determining whether participation banks and conventional banks differ in liquidity structure and liquidity risk management makes it possible to assess future growth performance of these banks.

The aim of this study is to determine factors effecting liquidity risk in Turkish Islamic banking sector. Method used for this purpose is the Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SUR). The result of study indicates that liquidity risk is significantly affected from credit base and funds collected and; increase in them will increase the liquidity risk. Based on our findings, it is possible to estimate factors effecting participation banks liquidity structure and will be a significant input for asset-liability management. This is noteworthy to have robust Islamic banking sector in Turkey and to manage risk they face accurately.

IMPACT OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION, GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURES IN EDUCATION AND HEALTH SECTORS ON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT IN INDONESIA

Mulia Simatupang — Sun, 28 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0300

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this paper in to assess the impact of financial inclusion and government expenditures in education and health sectors in order to increase human development index. Government expenditures has important role to support economic growth and welfare for its people. Fiscal policy expenditures in education and health sectors are kind of significant government policy to increase human development. It is believed that financial inclusion has also important role to reduce poverty and indirectly increase human development index. Financial inclusion has positive impacts to human development index component along with government expenditures in education and health sector. In the years ahead, The Government should prioritize and increase budget in order to increase human resources quality in Indonesia.

Sustainable Environment for Elderly People

Georgi Nikolov Georgiev — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The paper is focused on extremely important issue of an aging population and the related need to explore, develop and extend prospective forms of sustainable environment for the elderly. Having in mind the persisting grow of ageing population the task is getting extremely large economic and social effect. Prospective trends in development of manmade environment for elderly people and their relevance to the Bulgarian situation are investigated. The relevance was considered from several points of view – economic, climatic, socio-cultural etc. Selected diploma projects of architecture students from NBU are outlined as good practice examples.

Indicators of Entrepreneurial Behavior and Attitudes for Entrepreneurs of Slovenia and Croatia, in 2018/2019

Milena Ilic, Marko Ranković, Lazar Janić, Branislav Mitić — Tue, 24 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Abstract. Following the theoretical presentation of entrepreneurship, that is, the determinants that determine the success of entrepreneurial ventures extracted from various scientific studies and research, the paper defines through research the indicators of entrepreneurial behavior and attitudes using the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2018/2019 Global Report database.

Using the methods of comparison, induction and deduction, an analysis of indicators of Entrepreneurial Behavior and Attitudes for Slovenia and Croatia was conducted.

How to lead with digital media effectively? A literature-based analysis of media in a E-leadership context

Michael Hans Gino Kraft — Thu, 03 Oct 2019 00:00:00 +0300

In many companies and industries, the use of digital media is an essential prerequisite for leaders to communicate and collaborate with employees in spatially separated situations. From this point of view, leaders must use electronic media such as e-mail, telephone conferences and virtual platforms effectively for organizational purposes. Under this premise, this paper summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the use of digital media in the context of E-leadership. The main purpose of the research is to uncover the different relevance of electronic media in the light of virtual team leadership. Therefore, this research represents a literature analysis of E-leadership media in virtual context. The review took place between April 2019 and June 2019. The paper provides first indications of the different relevance of electronic media for the leadership of virtual teams and identifies difficulties in the implementation and prioritization of electronic media. The study confirms and proves that, in addition to conceptual challenges in the area of E-leadership, the effective use of electronic media such as social media instruments can also be optimized by a better awareness of the use of media among leaders and employees.

Analysis of the Main Employment Trends at EU and Romanian Levels

Daniela Pasnicu, Catalin Ghinararu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Lately, the European Union has made progress in the labor market, especially in terms of employment, except in the economic crisis. The purpose of the article is to highlight the main labor market trends at European Union level, with an emphasis on employment as well as differences between Member States in the context of current challenges, namely long-term demographic trends and technological change. In this respect, two EU Member States, namely Romania and the UK, were also taken into account in order to highlight the differences between advanced and less advanced economies in terms of employment opportunities and the integration of vulnerable people on the labor market. The analysis, which emphasizes demographic change and employment, can serve as a basis for knowledge for the design of national policy instruments by emphasizing deficits, surpluses or equilibria. Trends are analysed dynamically over the 2007-2017 period, based on EUROSTAT data. The challenge for decision-makers is to increase labor force participation and to ensure that every citizen has the chance to make full use of his productive potential.

Critical Success Factors in IT Project Management. Case study on IT Banking Front-end IT System Project in Serbia

Milena Ilic, Marko Rankovic, Miroslav Stojčić, Edita Kastratovic — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The success of project management in organizations depends on the context, that is, on type of organization, type of projects they implement, the environment and the conditions for the realization of projects. What matters to the textual issues of project success is due to a number of factors - type of project, importance for organization, resources, and the like. Insufficient number of organizations successfully managed to implement project manager procedures, while others met with a large number of problems, the resistance of employees first of all, ignorance, lack of resources, bad time management and other issues.

Organizations must have an incremental approach to the development and implementation of their project management methodologies, especially when it comes to implementing information technology project, that involve a great deal of human-work, innovation and usually cost a lot, development takes a long time, they are based on the knowledge of new technologies, and their success depends on the people who develop them, and those who will use those IT products and services.

This is a great challenge for management in terms of use of information technology, budget and planning, involvement of the project team and establishment of support from the environment.

Many IT projects are not implemented successfully because of poor application of project management procedures, lack of stakeholder support, absence of project sponsor etc.

Giving a Chance to the Green Energy to Save our Planet Future

Layth Hazim Majid — Thu, 18 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The present paper focuses on analysing the effects of using green energy on achieving sustainable development.

The competitive advantages and emphasised here and sustained to push finding farther ways to transform the world into a green planet as it was at its beginnings.

Under smart strategies implemented reasonably the green energy encourages smart investments and builds a better world for people and companies benefit.

Opinions and Perceptions of Bank Managers on the Quality of Provisions of Internet Banking Services

Luiza Emanuela Bucur, Natalia Manea, Dumitru Goldbach — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Following the accession of Romania to the European Union, the services sector has made important progress. Currently, this sector exceeds 50% of Romania's GDP. Banking has an important role in the economy by making financial intermediation, attracting deposits and placing credits. The increase in the number of banks on the Romanian market has led to intensification of competition and especially the awareness of the quality of online banking services offered. Therefore, the bank management has to take into account not only the” quality desired or achieved by the bank”, but also the quality perceived by the customer.

In this paper we will start with an introduction of bank sector, then the we will present the methodology of research.

The design of interview guide is the next step and in the main part of the paper is the analyses of data obtained and interpretation of results.

The Chief Digital Officer – Savior for the Digitalization in German Banks?

Carsten Giebe — Mon, 08 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Digitalization is changing processes in the German banking market. This fact means significant challenges for companies. Many German banks could miss the connection in the age of digital transformation. According to a study, the management consultancy McKinsey even expects the return on equity to decline. And if the change that digitalization offers, is not properly implemented. According to the study, German banks are forced to digitalize processes due to low yields, as new players in the market (Fintechs) could shed up to 40 percent of their sales and up to percent of profits. The situation of how to deal with Digitalization correctly is much discussed. Organizationally, a lot was promoted under management aspects, and the industry is talking about the necessity of installing a so called Chief Digital Officer (CDO) next to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) / Head of IT. Is this a valuable solution?

The Effect of Perception on the Benefits of Tax toward the Discipline of Paying Taxes in Jakarta

Wening Estiningsih, Juni Mashita, Sidik Lestiyono — Fri, 05 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Perception of the benefits received by the community as compensation for paying taxes is one of the factors that influence the discipline of society in paying taxes. Thus the purpose of this study is to examine more deeply the effect of perceptions on the benefits received from paying taxes on discipline in paying taxes in Jakarta. The population in this study were individual taxpayers who work as lecturers on two campuses located in Jakarta. The number of respondents involved in the study was 56 people. The analysis method used is descriptive statistics. The results of the study show that the perception of the benefits of paying taxes will affect the willingness of the community (especially taxpayers) to pay taxes on time. So that in increasing the discipline of society, especially taxpayers, the Government needs to provide concrete examples of development that directly impact and can be felt by the community.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Migration is a normal social phenomenon; people are leaving their home countries for many reasons, economic wealth-being, life-threatening conditions, social change, or political persecutions. The refugee crisis in Europe makes us rethink how new incoming cohorts of people can be supported not only for humanitarian reseasons but also to ensure them a long-term integration and become economic and social contributors to the receiving countries.

From an economic point of view, migration is beneficial due to the incoming labor force brought into the receiving countries, filling the gaps existing in some industries across Europe. Migration inside EU, from a member state to another is normal, free movement of workers is encouraged and support by specific measures. Migration flows coming from outside EU, have created new challenges form member states: how many immigrants can be received in each country? A great debate aroused around the calculation of cota of incoming migrants to be acceptable. In 2018, 634.700 people applied for international protection and lodged in the EU, a 10% decrease compared with 2017, the main countries of origin were Syria, Afganistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and Iran. The first five receiving countries are Germany (222.560 refugees), Italy(128.850 refugees), France (99.360 refugees), Greece (58.650 refugees), United Kingdom (33.780 refugees)[1].

Another Acknowledgement on the American Strategy on the War in Iraq

Raghad Raeed Mohamed — Wed, 12 Jun 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The main objective of this article is to describe and evaluate some of the central elements of the US strategy in Iraq, from the beginning of the war to the present. In this case, the term "strategy" refers mainly to the political-military actions directly related to the wider context of the war on terrorism. But the American strategy also involves secondary concerns: those that force the US, as a world power, to have constant commitments and implications in the evolution of the international system.

As a result, the US strategy is not just about how the US manages military, anti-terrorist, regional stabilization and nation-building operations in Iraq, but also about how Washington defines its priorities, its political and military actions, and allocates resources not just to achieve the central objectives, but also to solve various side problems of the international scene.

When talking about the current situation in Iraq, the starting point of the discussion must be the legitimacy of the US military intervention in 2003. From a strictly legal perspective, as from a strictly moral perspective, the US intervention in Iraq seems not to be legitimate enough. In order to establish a theoretical basis for the US intervention in Iraq, we must analyze the situation through the perspective of realism, as a theory of international relations, and we must recall some of Morgenthau's basic ideas.

The Power of Mentoring and Digitization as Processes of Strengthening the Human Resource Departments' Activity

Hamid Hazim Majid — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Human resources (HR) represent the core of any organization. The way the human resources activities are understood, managed, standardised and mentored is vital for the survival, development and success of any organization in market competitions. In the digitization era HR and HR departments activities contribute to the safety and efficiency of the company, sharing part of assets, investment and profits.

The professionals working in the HR department (HRD) are undergoing a profound transformation of mentality and technological change as main challenges of finding specialists and retaining employees.

There present research studies the way the coming years will influence the company top management and staffs’ activities so that the profit and market share not to be diminished or lost

The Health Sector - From Desideratum to Real Reform

Larisa Mihoreanu — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The paper states the necessity to implement a new model of management in the health sector, based on a new concept, of synergetic satisfaction having an institutional relation between patient and medical entity in its centre.

The present doctoral research finds its roots in the interdisciplinary approach linked to Health industry and market, as profitable businesses. The purpose encounters the anchor into a new concept, of synergetic satisfaction having the patient in its centre. The measurement centre resides in the societal performances’ rules linked to the real needs of a health status afterthought.

Several constituents of the classical healthcare principles receive, exquisitely, shaped clarifications under the state, public and private health of public recognition.

As the principles of humanism depict the governments’ obligation to guarantee their citizens fundamental rights to access health services, the international dimension of activities seed new designed health objectives. Hence the research maps a new model sustaining that the health management systems, differently recognized, can assume regular nudgers to better drive the understanding of the reality, close to financial interests and realistic resources. The implementation of the innovative and realistic reform would diminish the national burden, make people embrace the responsibility of active citizenship letting them to get involved in any process that protect the right development of a country and its citizens, far from partisan interests, only for their own future and comfort in life.

The Sustainable Links of Development between Leadership and Organizational Cultures

Rahil Asadi, Dumitru Stefanescu — Wed, 26 Jun 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Leadership performances develops closely connected to the institutional behaviour and societal culture given the permanent trends to implement changes to update standards according to existing norms and rigors existing in any company. The styles adopted in managing or leading the activities influences the tasks’ achievement, the future path to take and the way success is understood, accepted, shared and disseminated. Nowadays, companies face compulsory the influences of more cultures, given the temptation of delocalisation, the curiosity of working with immigrants, the advantages provided in different situations of accepting a higher exposure of leader to different sides of performance, different dimensions of market and financial profits, new behaviours in managing the employees. Starting from this idea, the purpose of this study is to identify and enquire into the hidden dimensions of organizational culture and how the leadership style impacts the strategic developing and let effective relations spring out.

The research is built on a survey based on designed questioner applied to 550 leaders and employees, members of the operation and Maintenance Company of MAPNA (Q&M) in Iran. Data collected refers to MLQ leadership style and Denison's Organizational Culture Questionnaire, and the responses received were analysed with SPSS and Smart Plus software. The findings reveal that the relationship between the leadership style and the organizational culture are strongly linked to each other. Therefore, those leaders able to change and accept to use a transformational style will assist the company to move forward faster that those who adopt and keep the transactional style as the single one to prove important.

How Globalization Influences the Developing Countries’ Human Resources Strategic Policy

Rahil Asadi, Gabriel Octavian Marin — Thu, 04 Jul 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Development of human resources is one of the key issues of today's economics and management scholars. Starting from the basic concepts of human resources – definition, trends of development, related indicators the present research evolves under three components: education, life expectancy and gross domestic product per capita. Figures that sustains our demarche flow according to the ranking data in terms of globalization index and The United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), calculated with the STATGRAF statistical software. We used the Spearman correlation coefficient and correlated the intensity between the two variables (R=76%), to show the close relationship between the Globalization Index and Human Resource Development. Taking such conclusions into consideration could make more successful the advances in the field of human resources.

Rohingya-The Stateless Community Becoming the Lost Generation

Mahbubur Rahman, Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Tue, 14 May 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The Rohingya is a Muslim ethnic minority group in Rakhine State of Myanmar.It is now established but controversial fact that the Rohingya is a stateless population of the world who has found shelter across vast swathes of Asia mainly in Bangladesh, and also in India, Pakistan, Thailand and Malaysia. But a majority of Rohingyas are living in various camps of Bangladesh with statelessness identity. Recently, the UN warns that the Rohingya children who are living in various camps of Bangladesh would be the lost generations of the world. This article discusses the aspects of “stateless community” and “lost generation” of the world’s most persecuted people-the Rohingya.

The Hideouts of the Vaccination Process

Alexandru Mihai Stefanescu, Alexandra Rodica Stefanescu — Wed, 01 May 2019 00:00:00 +0300

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the degree of information and the population opinion regarding the vaccination process. The paper aims to evaluate both the reasons of decreasing the vaccination degree and the sources of wrong information on this topic to better identify between mistakes and correct knowledge.

Vaccines are biological products prepared following specifical tehcniques to improve the body's immunity against particula, given conditions. The lives of millions of children from 188 countries who received different vaccines (diptero-tetanus-pertussis, measles, polio) were saved in the world along the time (WHO, 2017). In Romania, the antidifteric vaccination introduced in 1960 made disappear the disease in 1990. No case of diphtheria has been confirmed so far.

Unfortunately, in 2016, the vaccine coverage has fallen below 90% (CNSCBT, 2017) because of either parents' refusal and the failure in attending a family doctor.

Therefore, today, the society is facing a serious situation caused by: a) insufficient and erroneous information of parents expressing their opposition to vaccination and b) manipulation of organizations against vaccination.

FOREWORD

Manuela Epure — Thu, 28 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Digital transformation is shaping our lives continuously. The current economic trends confirm the shift to the digital economy and society. Significant changes occurred at micro and macro levels, new financial and commercial models emerged due to the digital platforms and ecosystems.

Digital platforms and ecosystems are created, managed and governed to support the private entrepreneurial initiatives. For the private sector, digital platforms come with the promise of exponential economic growth, scale through the network effects and no assets needed. Recent research shows that emerging digital ecosystems will score $60 trillion in revenue by 2025, which represents more than 30% of the global corporate revenue, and for the moment, only 3% of companies have adopted an active platform strategy....

Development of the Property Marketing Strategy; Case Study at Risma Jihan Akbar Housing Developer, Bekasi - West Java

Dina Kurnia Sari, Dhian Tyas Untari, M Fadhli Nursal — Thu, 11 Apr 2019 00:00:00 +0300

Bekasi is one of the buffer zones that has a fairly high population density, population density will be followed by high demand for property / houses. Based on this background, the research aims to develop a property marketing strategy with a case study on Risma Jihan Akbar (RJA). Mix method was used in this study, by involving consumers and management of RJA as respondents. Processing data using the EFAS/IFAS and Grand Strategy Matrix. The results of the study show that RJA is currently quite good in its marketing strategy, however, the very narrow segmentation causes RJA to be less well known to the public.

A Triple Layer Model to Manage Romania's Health Risks and Educational Consequences

Elena-Iuliana Paşcu-Gabără, Larisa Mihoreanu — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0200

This article explores the relationship between education and health from the perspective of revised literature and suggests an exercise combining the scientific theory with applied knowledge to achieve health progress reflected in health indices improvement for individuals and community. The relation between aggregate health condition, food and nutrition receives, through education, a new shape implying a three-way causality analysis to highlight the role of each entity exerting significant influences in the others’ good functioning.

Three important issues are considered for the new and comprehensive definition: a) high level of education implies specific health benefits; b) health affects the level of education of the population; and c) living conditions, especially the childhood, affect both the population’s education and the aggregate health of the whole nation.

This paper develops the new model to easier identify health risks, from the individuals’ attitude and their behavior in society, throughout life, within the institutional contexts.

The conclusion shows that individuals and their personal traits are built, shaped and solidified within the first social frame (family), being permanently affected by surroundings. Subsequently, the influence of the community - through consolidation or disruptive factors - emphasized by political decisions, public establishments and their policies or other institutions – generates different social and cultural contexts whose aggregate consequences will be lasting and influence the national future.

Enlarging the Application of the Food Security Index at European Union Regions

Larisa Mihoreanu, Laura Mariana Cismas, Laura Maria Danila Jianu — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The food security remains a major priority and a typical issue that requires immediate international solutions. Recent studies reveal the increasing complexity of food security issues focusing on the necessity to address formal actions and solve the dramatic situations. New tools are always welcome to facilitate solutions’ implementation.

In September 2015, the United Nations Assembly adopted the 2030 Agenda of Sustainable Development among the goals of which the followings are fundamental: no poverty, zero hunger, good health and well-being, clean water and climate action. The European Union joined the Program, expressing the full commitment to its implementation. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the number of undernourished people reached in 2017 about 821 million peoples, representing an increase from about 804 million peoples in 2016. The 2018 statistics of FAO state that 22% of children under-five are affected by malnutrition, while over 38 million children in the same age group are overweight.

Beyond the premises, as a novelty, we contribute at the food security knowledge by calculating a regional index at European and Romanian levels to better outline the realities and provide the decision-makers with a new tool to find better solutions.

Knowledge Sharing among Employees in Organizations

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Knowledge is considered as the basis for developing sustained long-term competitive advantage for every organization. In the 21^st century every organization becomes knowledge based for the sustainable development. Knowledge sharing is an important instrument that turns individual knowledge into group organizational knowledge. It is one of the main knowledge processes in a present dynamic and competitive era for the development of organizations. The knowledge sharing practice plays a remarkable role in the development and innovation in many areas of organizations. In this paper an attempt has been taken to discuss techniques, barriers and benefits of knowledge sharing in organizations.

Short Term Portfolio Investment and BI Rate: Do They Determine the Stabilization of Rupiah Exchange Rate in Indonesia?

Chenny Seftarita, Fitriyani Fitriyani, Cut Zakia Rizki, Diana Sapha, Abd. Jamal — Thu, 14 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0200

This study aims to investigate the influence of short-term portfolio investments and BI interest rate on fluctuation of rupiah exchange rate in Indonesia. The data used is quarterly data from 2010 to 2016 collected from Indonesia Central Bank. Using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) method, the result showed that rupiah exchange rate was strongly influenced by shocks in the private debt securities, joint stock price index, and BI Rate, both in the long run and short run. Moreover, it is found that there was a short-run and long-run balance relationship between Short Term Portfolio Investments and BI rate against the rupiah exchange rate. Thus, it is recommended that in order to stabilize the exchange rate, it is necessary to maintain the stability of short-term portfolio investments.

Digitalization of Bulgarian Cultural Heritage

Georgi Nikolov Georgiev — Thu, 14 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The research of historical heritage is related to creation, storage and distribution of visual information about them. With the development of digital technologies, the three-dimensional scanning and visual regeneration of buildings of cultural heritage combined with 3D virtual reconstruction is becoming increasingly important tool for understanding and reconstructing the past. Instead of expensive laser scanning, cheaper photogrammetric methods for creating and processing of spatial (3D) images of historical and architectural monuments are finding a growing application. The article analyses the opportunities for use of different ICT tools, including inexpensive digital imaging options for preservation and exhibiting of large and diverse Bulgarian cultural heritage.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

Digital transformation, occurred in the past recent years, impacts many areas: from economics to society and reveal new opportunities, today when half of the world’s population is connected to the Internet but less than half trust that technology will make their lives better[1].

“Over half of the global population is connected to the internet and has growing access to the sum total of human knowledge at their fingertips. The internet will increasingly bring about ever more transformational changes for human civilization. However, some of these changes will also bring unpredictable costs. We are just now beginning to better understand this ‘Faustian bargain’ ” says Al Gore, co-founder and chairman of Generation Investment Management.

[1] World Economic Forum – Our Shared Digital Future: Building an Inclusive, Trustworthy and Sustainable Digital Society, p.3

Ethical Universities of Integrity and Ethics Management in the Romanian University Environment

Elena Gurgu, Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Wed, 19 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

The paper shows that, at the present moment, the University is an institution whose goals, valid for each of its members, include development and professional affirmation, the evolution of knowledge and research in the conditions of respect for the rule of law and human rights. The University respects the dignity of each of its members and promotes academic integrity on ethical principles. Its members are committed to contributing to the democratic development and prosperity of society. The values and principles that universities promote in particular, and whose actual achievement is sought to ensure, are: academic freedom, personal autonomy, justice and equity, merit, professionalism, honesty and intellectual integrity, transparency, respect and tolerance, responsibility, goodwill and care. The management of ethics in the academic environment is the coordination of all elements related to the moral life of a university. "Institutionalization of ethics" in academia is a new reality for which we must be prepared. I believe that , the last decades have insistently imposed on public awareness the importance of taking into account the ethical dimension of the life of universities. Ethical codes, ethics committees, ethical audits, ethical education of staff, techniques to create an institutional culture of a moral nature have all become increasingly widespread.

Household budget: Impacts of incomes on consumption

Danilo Đikanović — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

This research is undertaken to explain the relation between several types of income and total personal consumption. Based on research method used, which is descriptive and regression analyses, the high influence of incomes on consumption is proven. Through various statistical results it is shown in which extent the correlation is relevant and how it is concluded that the chosen variables are sufficient enough to explain the variation of the level of consumption through time. The main goal of this research is to discover what lies behind consumption and to understand the households as main consumption units on the market. Gained results are based on data analysis, in which the independent variables are ''Income from pension insurance'', ''Income from property'', ''Income from small business'' and ''Wages and salaries'', while the dependent variable is ''Personal consumption''. After testing all assumptions of linear regression and conducting the entire analysis, it is concluded that every independent variable is good in explaining the value of the dependent variable ''Personal consumption''. The statistical unit on which the analysis is based is a household, so statistics shown in this research are useful for understanding the essence of a budget in household economies.

Analysis of foreign direct investment as a comparison of macroeconomic factors in seven countries Asean 5, China and Japan during period 1996-2015

Wira Ganet Aribowo — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of this research is to analyse the Determination of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) As a Comparison of Macroeconomic Factors in Asean 5, China and Japan. Besides, this research also analyses the influence of macroeconomic factors due to the strength of the influence of macroeconomic factors to the shock.

This research uses the secondary data during the period of 1996-2015 by using the Panel Data model. The variabel which is used here is the macroeconomic factor (Broad Money, Economic Development, labor force, exchange rate, industry, transport service) that has an affect on Foreign Direct Investment in Asean 5, China and Japan.

The gap of this research is to connect the macroeconomic factor (Broad Money, Economic Development, labor force, exchange rate, industry, transport service) that has an affect on Foreign Direct Investment. The result of the research shows that the macroeconomic factors have positive effect in ASEAN 5 countries, China and Japan as Home Country, as well as Host Country. Meanwhile, the FDI has a negative impact from one of the macroeconomic factors that is ‘exchange rate’. The policy implication of this research is to suggest the monetary authority, government or private, to supervise the direct investment flow that enters the host countries.

Mountain law and climate change

Viorica Jelev — Wed, 19 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

This paper presents 22 indicators used to put into evidence the actual global warming trends. The indicators are the outputs of a detailed research activities performed by scientists from all over the world. These 22 indicators were divided into eight separate categories: atmosphere and climate; glaciers, snow and ice; marine systems; terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity; water; agriculture; economy; human health. Some specific mountain area aspects are relieved with Mountai Low in Romania.

Sharia Banking Credit Crunch during Global Crisis

Eko Wiratno, Lukman Hakim, Akhmad Daerobi — Thu, 13 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

This research was conducted examining factors which influences financial crunch as seen from the perspective of financing supply and demand sharia bank in Indonesia from January 2003 - June 2015. The secondary data were obtained from Statistics Indonesia (BPS), Bank Indonesia (BI) and Financial Services Authority (OJK). This research conducted with Two Stage Least Square (TSLS) approached.

The results showed that financial crunch did not occured in sharia banking in Indonesia from January 2003-June 2015, Third Party Fund (DPK) negatively and significantly influences sharia banking financing supply, Non-Performing Financing (NPF) positively and non-significantly influences sharia banking financing supply, Profit Sharing Rate (TBH) positively and significantly influences sharia banking financing supply, Bank Indonesia Wadiah Certificate (SWBI) positively and non-significantly influences sharia banking financing supply, Bank Indonesia Certificate (SBI) positively and significantly influences sharia banking financing demand and Gross Domestic Product (PDB) positively and significantly influences sharia banking financing demand.

Employee performance analysis to increase profitability; Case study at PT XYZ, BEKASI-WEST JAVA

Budi Satria, Nur Amega Setiawati — Thu, 13 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of this study was to analyze the performance of PT XYS employees engaged in ceramics. Seeing strong business competition, the development of human resources is very important in increasing the productivity of the company. The research was conducted in three divisions namely Plant, Accounting and Finance and Marketing. The results showed that the achievement of the objectives of each Division was quite good / high, especially the Plant division. This is because the SOP that is applied is almost completely implemented, besides that the supervision system is run properly so that it can create a comfortable working atmosphere for employees.

DIAN (Dimentional Analysis); To Analyzing Patterns Polarization of Perception, Motivation and Preferences to Develop The Ecotourism Betawi Traditional Culinary

Dhian Tyas Untari — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 00:00:00 +0200

DIAN is a modification of MDS (Multidimensional Analysis), CA (Correspondence Analysis) and IPA (Important Performance Analysis). The DIAN model is formed to provide information (mapping) of GAP that occurs between stakeholders in the concept of regional development. In this paper, the implementation of DIAN will be explained in describing the GAP that occurs between Culturist, Government, Entrepreneurs and Communities to develop the Ecotourism of Betawi Traditional Culinary. The DIAN model has been patented in the Ministry of Law and Human Rights of the Republic of Indonesia and the purpose of this paper is to publish the DIAN Model more broadly. This study can be a new model in enriching knowledge and regional development

Common Mistakes in Social Media. A Case Study on a Non-Profit Company

Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea), Elena Gurgu — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

This article is an idea about the new social media seen as a phenomenon of socializing on the Internet, specific to the last years. We believe that this phenomenon influences the daily activity of each person, carried out within the institutionalized or free time. Social media have become the channel of direct communication between companies and consumers, and that is why companies need to pay great importance to the strategic online marketing plan and allocate the funds needed for its development.

We think, like most academics and researchers, that social networks have become the cheapest and most active form of customer communication and a tool for developing and deploying online businesses. Once again, it is true that technology does not help us if we forget about the main asset of the companies, the human resource. We strongly believe and sustain the idea that the success of social networks is based on the social human character or brain. By communicating, each of us looks into the mirror of the society we live in, and we expect continuous confirmation of our way of thinking, behaving, talking, etc. This is the axis on which SM is based.

In this article, we are explaining in detail that the online businesses need to avoid the frequent mistakes made in commercializing through social media channels.

The Development of the Creative Industries to Create a Competitive Advantage: Studies in Small Business Sector

Totok Sasongko, Mohamad Rifa'i, Nugraheni Suci Sayekti — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Nowadays, developing creative industries is one of the main priority of Indonesia’s economic development plans. The government have been conducting many efforts to push the development of creative industries in Indonesia such as discussion with policy makers in the field of creative economic development and in all regions and giving incentives and easy access to investors who want to invest their money in creative industries. Long term goal of this study is to formulate a theory of the development of basic model of creative industry entrepreneurs capable of creating added value on the creative industrial products that have been produced. The added value is very necessary because it will be able to help raise the value of the resulting product and have the competitiveness to attract consumer interest and win the competition in the market so that this creative industries can continue to grow are sustained. Demonstrating the results of the study in order to develop the necessary creative economic collaboration between the different actors that play a role in the creative industry, community, business world, as well as the government which is a fundamental prerequisite. The third element of the collaboration without the feared economic development creative will not run in accordance with the program that has been prepared by the government because of possible disharmony in the implementation of the development of economic activities creative.

THE IMPORTANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCES IN THE ALBANIAN ECONOMY

Zoica Kokaveshi Zharkalli — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Abstact: Natural resources plays a very important role in ensuring the livelihood of rural communities. Besides providing food, they can be a precursor to poverty reduction and economic growth. Decentralization of natural resources management is estimated to generate considerable benefits which are analyzed in three aspects, the economic, social and ensuring their sustainable development. Even in our country, in the context of achieving high levels of democratic governance and transition to a consolidated market economy, have been undertaken several decentralization reforms in different areas. One of the most important, is the transfer of a part of natural resources such are communal forests and pastures, in owneship of local governments units, in order to fulfill better the community needs, increase benefits from their use and at the same time protect them. In this paper, in addition to the analysis of secondary data available, it is intended to assess community perceptions of the importance of these resources in the creation of family income as well as, the possibility to increase the income generated after their transfer to local governments. Assessment is based on primary data collected by surveying members of rural communities affected by the decentralization process of these natural resources.

DISCURSUS OF WOMEN POLITICAL RIGHTS BASED ON AL-QUR'AN; Empirical study on women's political participation in Jakarta, Indonesia

Arsyad Sobby Kesuma, Syamsuri Ali — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The aim of this study is to illustrate the general Islamic view of women and their rights in political participation. Qualitative methods are used with the basis of collecting secondary data sourced from books, journals and scientific publications from relevant agencies. Geographically, the study provides an overview of women's political participation in Indonesia. This is based on the assumption that the majority of Indonesia's population are Muslim and the level of women's political participation in Indonesia is getting better every year. The result of the study is expected to be an overview and the basis of policy development related to increasing women's political participation in the perspective of Islam

A Study of Intellectual Property Right on Micro Small and Medium Enterprises: Case Study TanjungBumi Batik

Siska Maya, Siswi Wulandari, Indah Purnamasari — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The contribution of Batik industry have exceptional influence for the Indonesian economy. The value of batik and batik products in 2017 reached 58, 46 million us dollars. Indonesian batik is exported to Japan, United State of America, and Europe (Cabinet Secretary Republic Of Indonesia, 2018). In giving incentive towards creativity and innovation to the batik industry, the government have an important role as a regulator. This research used qualitative and investigation method. The local government as a stakeholder or extension of central government play an active role in solving the problems ofintellectual property right especially in batik industry. This will be an incentive for the batik creativity and innovation in the long term.

Quality of employment in small firms

Cristian UȚĂ — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0300

The strategic objective of the European Union set out in Lisbon is to become the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy capable of delivering sustainable economic growth, increasing employment and developing greater social cohesion. At the heart of this strategy are businesses, and given that the vast majority of them are SMEs (less than 250 employees), policies to achieve this are focused on them. At the same time, improving the quality of work and working conditions is still an important objective on the European political agenda due to multiple socio-economic implications. In this context, the work "Quality of Employment in Small Companies" by Daniela Paşnicu and Gabriela Tănase is very current. Appeared in 2017 at the University Publishing House, the paper is structured in five chapters.

What are the characteristics of an efficient firm in developing countries’ private sector? The case of Vietnam

Linh PHAM — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0300

The private sector is the primary source of local development in developing countries. Previous research in developing countries has documented many factors contributing to firm-level efficiency. However, which of these factors are most likely to correlate with efficiency? This paper studies the relative importance of the firm-level efficiency determinants in a transitional economy, using a firm-level panel dataset in Vietnam between 2005 and 2013. The empirical results show that firm-specific production and labor characteristics are the most significant determinants of efficiency. Thus, firms actively seeking to improve their own production process and labor force can be well-rewarded. Moreover, government technical supports and human resource training programs, combined with anti-corruption efforts, are beneficial for firm-level efficiency, thereby improving the living standards in developing economies.

Internet as Media Literature "Knowlwdge of Islamic History": Case Study Students In Jakarta, Indonesia

Syamsuri ALI, Budi SATRIA — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0300

The Internet has a huge impact on human life, especially students. Open access to information, will improve the process of disseminating knowledge. This study aims to analyze the level of effectiveness of the use of internet media in increasing the knowledge of students in Jakarta on the history of Islam. The study involved 150 respondents categorized by their administrative region; South Jakarta, East Jakarta, West Jakarta, North Jakarta and Central Jakarta. The results of the study were processed descriptively. Variable in the research are; the attitude of internet users, subjective norms, interest in learning and learning behavior. The results showed that the use of the Internet as a media of literacy is currently not optimal. One of the reasons is, the limitations of internet links that discuss the history of Islamic knowledge in the form of scientific studies, mostly just a blog that is less the sense of scientific, so that students prefer to find sources of literacy from the library (printed book)

Analysis of Tidung Island Tourist Perceptions and Preferences Using Importance Performance Analysis Method

Muhamad SYAHIDDIN, Dhian Tyas UNTARI, P PARYONO — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0300

The purpose of this research is; A) mapping the perception of tourists on Tidung Island tourism, b) mapping the preferences of tourists on Tidung Island tour. Primary data were obtained from questionnaires distributed to Jakarta citizen (as potential tourists) and tourists (as existing customers), a total of 60 respondents. Aspects in the study include; Product, promotion, transportation, price and service. The Important Performance Analysis (IPA) method is used to analyze the data. The results showed that; Cleanliness and appearance of the site is still considered less attractive by the public in general. There is a GAP between the perceptions of the preference of potential tourists and existing tourists. So to maintain the sustainability of tourism on the Tidung Island, then the cleanliness and appearance of tourist sites should be improved by administrators of Tidung Island

Investigating the Role of Tourism in the Conservation and Sustainable Development of the Environment: A Geographic Approach

Mahtab JAFARI — Fri, 03 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0300

Tourism is always embracing economy, social and environmental impacts. For this reason, the policy of sustainable development of tourism is necessary. The general approach is that governments have paid attention to tourism ecologically in the long run. This is approved and financially self-sufficient, and from the perspective of social and moral for local communities is beneficial and promising. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of wetland ecosystem conservation and environmental sustainability of tourism in rural areas. The purpose of applied research and in terms of data collection is descriptive and analytical. The study population consists of 3 villages’ khawmirabad rural district, Sarkol Zarivar which in the whole 93 villages of this area, a number of villages was selected. Sample households of the village and randomly classified and 12 villages were selected. Cochran formula used to determine the sample size and questionnaire to 330 randomly selected villages were selected among heads of households. The validity of the test Cronbach's alpha was 0.77 percent. For statistical analysis of data from one sample -t- test, chi-square test and ANOVA test in spss software is used. The results show that tourism in economic and socio-cultural aspects have a positive impact on the wetland ecosystem conservation and sustainable rural environment.

Deductive systems for BigData integration

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0300

The globalization is associated with an increased data to be processed from E-commerce transactions. The specialists are looking for different solutions, such as BigData, Hadoop, Datawarehoues, but it seems that the future is the predicative logic implemented through deductive database technology. It has to be done the swift from imperative languages, to not declaratively languages used for the application development. The deductive databases are very useful in the student teaching programs, too. Thus, the article makes a consistent literature review in the field and shows practical examples of using predicative logic in deductive systems, in order to integrate different kind of data types.

Supporting SMEs in creating jobs

Daniela Pasnicu — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0300

SMEs are the most dynamic sector of the economy, representing a key factor in employment growth. Although SMEs have been severely affected by the economic crisis from 2008, they continue to be a more and more important source of generating jobs, regardless of size class. Given the differentiated contribution of SMEs to job creation as a result of their heterogeneity, the article analyses the dynamics of staff in enterprises by size classes and activities of the national economy. The statistical analysis is followed by a SWOT analysis of policies and tools to support SMEs in creating jobs both with direct action - management, recruitment, training and indirectly action by addressing general business issues. Measures that support the economic growth of SMEs through internationalization, innovation and improved access to finance foster competitiveness and, implicitly, the creation of new jobs.

Fiscal dependence in a special autonomy region: evidence from a local government in eastern Indonesia

Elsyan Rienette Marlissa, Jhon Urasti Blesia — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0300

This research aims to analyse the degree of fiscal dependence of local government upon the central government in the regency of Mimika, one of Indonesia’s eastern regencies. The ratio of fiscal decentralization is used to calculate the local government’s ability to increase its regional revenue in order to support development initiatives in all sectors (Malmudi, 2010). Secondary data of locally-generated revenue and total revenue from the period 2010-2015 are used to measure the degree of fiscal decentralization. The results show that the degree of fiscal decentralization in the regency remained at a low level, reflected from the average value of 12.92 percent with the highest degree, of 25.09 percent in 2012. An analysis of fiscal decentralization in the period 2010 – 2015, indicates that the regency lacked sufficient fiscal capacity, showing heavy dependence upon financing from the central government. The local government is expected to develop the region’s potentiality through creative efforts within their governmental apparatus to increase local revenues. The funds from the central government could provide a positive contribution if used in the consumption of goods and services that potentially support economic activities.

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN SOCIAL SCIENCES AND RELATED SUBJECTS

Haradhan Kumar Mohajan — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0300

This literature review paper discusses the proper use of qualitative research methodology to discuss several aspects of the research for the improvement of the skill of the readers. During the last few decades, the use of qualitative research has been increased in many institutions. It can be used to explore several areas of human behavior for the development of organizations. The purpose of this study is to provide inspirations to the new researchers for the development of their qualitative articles. The paper analyzes the design of qualitative research giving some methodological suggestions to make it explicable to the reader. In this paper an attempt has been taken to study the background of the qualitative research methodologyin social sciences and some other related subjects, along with the importance, and main features of the study.

Efficiency and inefficiency of public administration

Roman Vavrek — Fri, 30 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0300

Public administration and local government in particular, which also includes municipalities in individual countries, is in the context of the economic crisis a very topical and widely discussed issue. The management of municipalities is subject to increasing control by the public, the state and the municipalities themselves. The aim of the presented paper is to offer a comprehensive definition of efficiency and methods which allow to measure it. As results of our analysis can be mentioned overview of TOPSIS technique application in a several studies.

Brain drain: Propulsive factors and consequences

Dragan ILIC, Marko MILOSAVLJEVIC — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0200

When speaking about the total number of highly educated individuals’ migration, it is easy to spot that it is rapidly increasing. The brain drain issues should be taken very seriously especially in under developed and in the developing countries, knowing that the human capital is globally mobile and that highly educated individuals can without any issues market their knowledge around the globe. Dealing with it requires a carefully tailored strategy for these countries, which are suffering from severe human capital losses on annual basis. Since the labor markets of today are highly competitive, it is necessary for these countries to secure good advancement and doing business opportunities. The purpose of this research is to provide an insight into the key propulsive factors and potential consequences caused by the brain drain. The method used in order to conduct the research was a carefully designed questionnaire taken by the date subject enrolled at the third and fourth years of state governed and privately owned universities. This research shows that one of the key reasons for brain drain in underdeveloped and in the developing countries is shortage of further educational advancement opportunities.

Foreword

Manuela EPURE — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

Digital world is changing constantly and the way in which it affects our life and work seems to be dramatically and somehow unpredictable. New skills and competencies are required and more than ever our learning efforts must be equally distributed between old, traditional and new knowledge, more abundant and diverse far from what you learned before and beyond any imagination a decade ago.

Performance at work is redefined in such a way that has no connection at all with what was expected from us at the beginning of our working life. We have been trained to use our knowledge to solve problems, now we need to be trained to use machine learning systems to deal with complex problems and to relay on artificial intelligence when it comes about understanding our digital world and his diverse connectivity with our real life.....

Analyzing the Impacts of Restructuring on the Turkish State-Owned Banks

Gazi SARISAKALOGLU, Mustafa BILGIN — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

The subject of this research is to compare the performance based on determined criteria of the state owned banks in Turkey before 10 years and after 14 years from 2001 the date they were included in a restructure program. The t-test method is used in the study. According to the results of the analysis, it was concluded that the most successful state-owned bank was Halkbank with a small margin in front of Ziraat Bank after the year that the restructuring program was implemented. Ziraat Bank, as well as having the second most positive development of public banks in terms of analysis ratios, it has almost equal proportions with Halkbank in terms of asset quality and branch ratios. Halkbank is ranked first as usual in terms of branch ratios. All state owned banks are subject to the close rates for branch ratios. When evaluating the performance of public banks in general over a total of 36 criteria, they showed positive development for 26 criteria. That means after the restructuring program that we called 2nd period in the study public banks became more successful based on established criteria.

European Trade – Where is Going? Retail Entertainment

Viorica JELEV — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

As competition grows, brand manager imagination needs to work, and sales growth solutions need to focus on customer focus attention. It is a difficult task if all brands offer discounts in the malls they are in, and the announcement of differentiation is put to the attention of specialists who offer solutions for fun of any kind for the clients. The article aims to present the evolution of world trade in recent years and the various ways of diversion invented by retailers to keep customers in store chains longer for them to buy more. I will also present the off-line consumer profile, as found in the specialty studies and the adaptation of the entertainment methods according to these shoper typologies. The conclusion of this article will focus on what the link between entertaiment and retail is, the new concept of RETAILTAIMENT that leads to increased sales and profits of economic agents.

Discourses of leadership changeorchanges of leadership discourse?

Cornelia ILIE — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

The present study focuses on the discursively performed leadership during periods of transition and change in the context of competition-driven organizations. It explores discourses of leadership in a diachronic perspective, scrutinising the ways in which they construct and re-construct corporate and culture-related identities. Drawing on interviews and press conferences with several CEOs of two multinational companies, Nokia (Finland) and Ericsson (Sweden), an investigation of the challenges of leadership branding was carried out in a discourse-analytical and pragma-rhetorical perspective. Particular emphasis has been placed on systematically comparing the presentations in letters to employees by the CEOs of Nokia and Ericsson. This comparative study provides evidence for the internal and external challenges underlying leadership discursive construction and re-construction aimed at ensuring a consistent interconnectedness between a company’s values and its competitive qualities.

The Effect of Government Spending on Education to Human Capital in ACEH Province

. SARTIYAH, Sri HARTOYO, Yusman SYAUKAT, Rina OKTAVIANI — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

This study was conducted to examine the effect of government spending on education, poverty, income per capita and the dummy of the main and newly established regions to education in Aceh Province. The data used in this study are panel data of 23 city districts in Aceh Province from 2008 to 2013. To estimate multiple models of data panels, Common Effect Model and The SYSLIN Procedure 2 SLS Estimation using SAS 9.31 Program are used. The results of the study showed that government spending on education, income per capita in main regions are positively and significantly effect on education, while poverty negatively affects on education in Aceh Province. However, education has a small response to government spending on education in Aceh Province. According to the results of the research, it is recommended for local governments to intensify the service and supervision of education in the newly established regions, specifically in remote areas.

Betawi Traditional Culinary; Reflection The History Of Jakarta (Formerly Known As Batavia)

Dhian Tyas UNTARI, Ricky AVENZORA, Dudung DARUSMAN, Joko PRIHATNO, Harnios ARIEF — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 00:00:00 +0200

Abstract. Betawi is a native of Jakarta where once known as Batavia. The concept of modern society in Jakarta, shifting the traditional value of Betawi. So it is important to study about Betawi culinary; as a Betawi cultural product. Research have the Two phases. The first phase to analyzing the potentials and the functions of Betawi Traditional Cuisines; have using secondary data and the second is to analyzing as well as testing the culinary socio-cultural representation in the community of the Special Capital District of Jakarta using the primary data. Geographically, the respondents will be taken from the five administrative areas of the Special Capital District of Jakarta (330 respondents in total). The assessment aspects in the representation test include; knowledge, uniqueness, originality, social value, distribution, sensitivity and seasonality

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Human capital is an important asset for any organization or country. Looking into the future, it seems that a human-centric vision of the work of time ahead that recognizes the people’s knowledge, talent, creativity and skills is the key positioning for a prosperous and inclusive economy.

“Human capital means the knowledge and skills people possess that enable them to create value in the global economic system”. To measure the development of this capital is imperative to determine how it can be better used to achieve a solid economic growth. Similarly, at the company level, the development of the human capital means to secure a competitive advantage in the long run. More skilled and efficient employees will yield an increase of productivity and more competitive prices....

Mutual Trade and Cross-Border Economic Interaction of Ukraine and Slovak Republic

Martin Lačný — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The Slovak-Ukrainian border, as well as mutual economic interaction has been changing in the course of the following periods: a) 1993-2004: the bilateral intergovernmental regime of the border; b) 2004-2016: the community regime of the border between the EU and Ukraine, and c) the new border regime after the signing and subsequent implementation of the Association Agreement between the EU and Ukraine, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area Agreement (DCFTA) as well as an agreement on visa-free regime between the EU and Ukraine. Within the outlined context the paper seeks to explore the history and dynamics of Slovak-Ukrainian mutual economic interaction, as well as the recent conditions in the CBC area, understanding of which may contribute to building capacities of CBC actors to make best use of opportunities brought by AA/DCFTA and thus consequently to boost economic development of the Slovak-Ukrainian borderland regions.

Areas of Smart Specialisation and the Romanian Research

Codruța Ilinca DRĂGOIU — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

This article aims at identifying the areas of smart specialisation presence in the Romanian research and strategies in the field. A succinct picture of national goals and the evolution of the areas of smart specialisation in Romanian research have been outlined by reviewing research policies at EU and Romanian level.

The influence of positive reinforcements on motivation for education and training activities

Elitsa PETROVA — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

This article presents a research on the influence of positive reinforcements on motivation for education and training activities. The study is conducted in a real educational environment. Numerous different theories perceive the motivation of the individual as a driving force for every action and behavior. In this paper, we draw attention to the positive reinforcements, rewards and incentives provided in the learning process, which could influence the motivation for learning and respectively the better performance of the students. The subject of the study is the positive reinforcements, rewards and incentives provided in the training process. The object of the study is cadets in the last year of their education in the Military Science professional field, specializing in Organization and Management of Military Units at a Tactical Level at the National Military University in Bulgaria. The study includes students and cadets in the first year of education as control groups for comparison.

Keywords:

ROLES OF COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOCIETY

Haradhan Kumar MOHAJAN — Tue, 03 Oct 2017 00:00:00 +0300

At present one of the most important concepts in social learning theory is the idea of communities of practice (CoP), which describes a learning theory with a strong relationship to the social construction of knowledge. A CoP is a collection of people who engage on performing a common activity for the welfare both of members of the community and the society. In modern society, it is used in some form of high levels of skills, knowledge and proficiency to perform the jobs properly. It plays an important role in the sharing of knowledge and creating value for both their members and organizations. A CoP is composed of three crucial characteristics: domain, community, and practice, which provide a guide to the development of community. The paper describes structural components, basic characteristics, and essential elements of a CoP. It also highlights benefits, importance, and the challenges and barriers of a CoP. In addition, it describes virtual CoP in brief. The main aim of this study is to explore the ins and out of a CoP in some details

Characteristic of in-work poverty – a comparison between Romania and European Union

Mihaela Ghența — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The aim of this article is to analyse the characteristics of the working poor in Romania compared to other European Member States. In-work poverty is an important aspect in the discussions regarding the effectiveness of employment in preventing the risk of poverty. The in-work poverty is the result of several factors among which we mention those related to the individual characteristics, household composition, and labour market policies. In Romania, the level of in-work poverty continues to remain high for the overall employed population aged 18 years and over and this evolution is due to the part-time working program, the temporary contracts, and the low level of education. The last part of the article presents the measures identified in the scientific literature to reduce the in-work poverty.

The role of economics in cartel detection.A review of cartel screens

Iuliana Zlatcu, Marta-Christina Suciu — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

. In their desire to gain market share and profit, companies often resort to certain anti-competitive practices. Among them, it is well known that cartels are considered the most serious infringement of competition law. Cartels aim to increase their prices and profits at the expense of the consumers’welfare by avoiding the risks of competition and reducing the uncertainty in the market.

In order to uncover cartels, screens can be a useful tool for competition authorities, using them to support opening an investigation or to filter industries prone to anticompetitive behaviour for further investigation. Screens can also help authorities to estimate the duration of the infringement, by identifying the starting point and the ending of the respective practice.

This paper reviews the main screens identified in the empirical literature and also used by competition authorities in order to uncover firms’ behaviours which are more likely to be consistent with collusion than with competition.

The engaging Romanian teachers in a 3D feedback process

Natalia Manea, Mihaela Purcaru — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

This article presents a comparative overview regarding pupil’s perceptions about quality of the educational act. Some of the key topics that are taken into consideration are the culture of learning environment, the expectations, the confidence and the feelings about the school’s climate. The research is a specific practice within Teach for Romania organization that comes as an innovation method in the Romanian educational system and only applies to teachers of TFR.

Evaluation in PR through current methods and performance indicators. Future trends

Elena Gurgu, Aristide Cociuban — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract: In today's economic environment, deeply marked by a crisis whose impact continues to spread, there is talk of efficiency. Society efficiency as well as efficiency at company and individual level. Efficiency in the field of public relations professionals is done by evaluating the work done.

Although the evaluation is not a new chapter of the communication plan, generated by the economic crisis, but a compulsory one, irrespective of the external environment, we are seeing an increased pressure in this regard. The "client" - the one who runs a campaign - now wishes, more than ever, to know what impact the money has been on. Although the PR world is a complex one, which is generally based on purely creative concepts, in the evaluation the "client" wishes to simplify to the fullest extent of all syllogisms and, finally, a clear answer to one question: what impact did the sum have invested in communication activities?

IoT E-business applications

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis, Rocsana B. Manea Tonis — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 00:00:00 +0300

“Internet of things” (IoT) will develop soon an ecosystem of internet-connected things, that facilitate the mobile commerce experiences and the client need to be informed all the time. It will be associated with a feeling of freedom and capacity of doing very easy what was considered difficult in the past.

Nevertheless, these opportunities will not be capitalized upon without overcoming a series of obstacles, including addressing consumer privacy concerns, the long replacement cycles of durable goods and the standardization of operating platforms.

Modern E-business web applications are now developed using new technologies such as NodeJS, AngularJS and Bootstrap. The article identifies and solves practical issues regarding the JSON exchanged messages between NodeJS and AngularJS within SMEs E-business environment.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

We are living in a globalized world, hence the need to reconsider the way in which we are interacting and working bothlocally and internationally.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution not onlybrings us new technologies, but requires a new leadership approach. It is about responsive and responsible leadership that could allow us to keep up with the major changes likelyto occur due to new technologies in place.

KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AS A STRATEGIC BUSINESS RESOURCE

Eugen Ghiorghita, Adam Grzegorczyk — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The development of a knowledge-based economy means that today's businesses face many of the new challenges of adapting to the changing environment. Since the early 1990s, knowledge management became not only an academic discipline, but more than that, an effective way to assure the continuous improvement of the organization. The search for competitive advantages led companies to focus on the complex philosophy of intellectual capital and its connected concepts: human capital, structural capital, organizational capital, intellectual property, and last but not least, relational capital. The present article puts forward a short insight into the complexity of the ever changing and evolving system of knowledge management various concepts.

FACTORS THAT POTENTIALLY AFFECT THE FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY OF THE PENSION SYSTEM IN ROMANIA

Luise Mladen, Mihaela Ghența — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

In Romania, the State Social Security Budget spending exceeds the revenues, and this situation leads to a growing deficit of the public budget. This evolution is the result of a complex of factors, more or less difficult to be managed, which we analyze in this article. The phenomenon of ageing has a significant role in increasing the pressure on the social protection systems, in general, and on the pension system, in particular. Also, the labour market related factors and the economic factors have an important impact on the sustainability of the pension system. The design of the pension system is equally important.

BANKING SYSTEMS IN ROMANIA AND ICELAND: TWO DIFFERENT WORLDS BUT SIMILAR DEVELOPMENT

Claudia Gabriela Baicu, Mar Wolfgang Mixa — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The novelty of this paper is the comparative analysis of the Romanian and Icelandic banking systems. The study results reveal that despite the fact that Romania and Iceland are two different worlds, there are several similarities between the banking systems of these countries. They include a late development of banking systems, foreigners contributing a great deal to the development of the banking systems in the early stage of evolution. After the Second World War until the 1990s specialized banks operated in both countries. The banking systems of both countries prior to the 1990s were dominated by politics. Liberalization of banking and capital occurred both in Romania and Iceland after 1990; the bank privatization process took place during a similar period (1999-2006, Romania; 1998-2002, Iceland). Before privatization, banks in both countries lacked experience in a new banking “arena”. The global financial crisis greatly affected the two banking systems. Despite similarities, the evolution of the two banking systems was also marked by differences, notably the ownership origin of banks after privatization (foreign dominance in Romania; domestic owners in Iceland) and different business models developed by banks in the pre-crisis period.

THE AUDIT OF THE QUALITY CONTROL SYSTEM WITHIN THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FIELD

Robert Gabriel Dragomir — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The present paper speaks about the audit of the quality control system. First we exposed the general framework; the importance of information technology field under the actual development and challenges of the informatics systems. Then, we presented the national and international laws which regulate the audit of the informatics systems. Thirdly, we exposed the methodology of the audit for the quality system control in IT domain, describing its stages and flux diagram. In the end we jumped at the conclusions.

THEORY AND PRACTICE IN TEACHING ENGLISH ECONOMICSVOCABULARY

Daliana Ecaterina Tascovici, Carolina Platon — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The present paper proposes to speak about teaching English economics vocabulary. So, at first, we make references to the key points and the issues which are raised by teaching and learning specific vocabulary: learners usually select the words they want to achieve; once learned, words move between active to passive status; one of teachers’ activities is to help students remember the acquired vocabulary; teachers should provide the correct exposure to words and opportunities for learners to practice them.

Secondly, we will study examples of economics vocabulary teaching and show how discovery techniques can aid vocabulary acquisition.

In the end we draw the conclusions, showing the importance and the active role of the discovery techniques in teaching English vocabulary.

THEORIES REGARDING THE ROLE OF THE GROWTH POLES IN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

Laurentia Georgeta Avram, VIORICA FILOFTEIA BRAGA — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The specialized literature stressed very little or not at all the role of the growth poles in the economic integration, although the development of the national economies depend on connecting the major urban centers in the regional economic system, continental and global levels. Conversely, integration and globalization of the economic, socio-political, cultural and the transition to a knowledge economy seem to be major factors in the transformation and restructuring of the growth poles and the urban systems dependent on them.

SOCIAL INTEGRATION OF DISCHARGED MILITARY SERVICEMEN IN BULGARIA

Neno Hristov — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

a book review

ARCHITECTURE OF CHOICE – ADVICES OF BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS

Venelin Terziev — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0300

THE NEW BOOK BY PROFESSOR DIMITAR KANEV

A book review by Venelin Terziev

Dimitar Kanev is professor and doctor of economic sciences. He is one of the known and established Bulgarian scientists, whose major interests are connected with the general economic theory, behavioural theory, economics and management of education and economics of labour. He is professor at Nikola Vaptsarov Higher Naval School in Varna and at Chernorizets Hrabar Varna Free University.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Recently, the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting took place from 17-20 January 2017 at Davos-Klosters, Switzerland and then key topic was Global Governance and the related issues such as: Fourth Industrial Revolution, responsive and responsible leadership, restoring economic growth and global collaboration.^{^[1]}

Important changes are expected regarding size, speed and scope of these transformations that Fourth Industrial Revolution generated. The transformations consist mainly of new systems built on the infrastructure of the digital revolution. Also, this will fundamentally change the way in which we produce, consume, move, communicate and interact with one another. Nanotechnologies and given new powers of genetic engineering will impact dramatically who we are and how we think and behave^{^[2]} .

Social networks usage implications at the level of medical services consumption in Romania

Daniel Adrian Gardan, Mihai Andronie, Iuliana Petronela Gardan, Cristian Uta — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

The social networks usage degree increase is evident in recent years, this having implications for the consumption of the most types of products and services. A very special field of research is presented by the consumption of healthcare services, who, both in terms of consumption motivations, decisional buying process or consumer behavior is having peculiarities and specific traits. In this context, the present article aims to investigate the role that social networks use can have regarding changes within the consumer behavior in case of healthcare services consumption. In order to achieve the scientific endeavor, authors have conducted a quantitative marketing research as a field survey, using a questionnaire administered online to patients from different medical institutions, both from the public and private sector.

The research results reveal key issues from the perspective of emotional involvement within consumption for the patients and the influence of key variables such as level of education, personality and lifestyle within social networks usage context.

Bio economy and entrepreneurial ecosystem patterns Case study for Romania - USH ProBusiness

Costin Lianu — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

This paper is investigating various patterns of entrepreneurial relations and engagements that may help the shift to bio economy and the ways they can facilitate entrepreneurial understanding and access to markets and business opportunities in this field. It also investigate the role of universities and cluster in transfer of knowledge towards bio economy and possibilities of interaction making a case study on USH ProBusiness in Romania. Main conclusion of the paper is that participation of entrepreneurs, especially SME but also large companies in active Entrepreneurial Ecosystems (EE) plays an essential role in transposing bio economy from strategy to action but some regions may be well advanced and other lagging behind. High trust and large EE in terms of networking are better fit to accelerate the knowledge and innovation process and universities may play a major role in this direction, as important catalyst.

Methodological framework for ex-ante assessment of active policies on the labor market - experimental approach

Daniela PASNICU — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Ex-ante assessment is a mandatory step before the process of implementation of policies because it brings, through the analyses undertaken improvements for initial design, contributing, on a case by case basis, to increasing of efficiency, effectiveness, relevance, sustainability, equity and of its internal and external coherence. In recent years, at international level, but especially in the EU countries (EU), the ex-ante socio-economic programs and public interventions have become an extremely necessary instrument in decision-making, which is linked own economic and social development of the EU Member States.

The article presents a methodological framework for ex-ante assessment of active measures for the employment growth in the context of rural areas, on the bases of efficiency, effectiveness and coherence criteria. Ex-ante social impact assessment of an active policy can have beneficial effects on employment under quantitative and qualitative aspects. The novelty of the article consist in the specific, experimental approach of the development and of ex-ante evaluation of active labor market policies, in the context of rural areas.

The Effects Of Global Economic Crisis of 2008 to Financial Statements and Liquidity Ratios Which Companies are Settled In BIST Energy Sector (2005-2013 Term Review)

Selcuk Kendirli, Muhammet Cankaya, Altug Cagatay — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Aim of this study is to compare and analyze whether the 2008 global economic crisis affected the balance of the energy companies which are listed in the İstanbul Stock Exchange and have shown continuity in 2005-2013 period by using a variety of analyzing methods. Companies that demonstrate continuity between the years 2005-2013 were not assessed in this study. Horizontal and vertical analyses were made on the financial statements of the companies which are evaluated and liquidity ratios were assessed. As a result of the analysis the companies have been found to be affected to different degrees by the crisis.

The Organizational Justice of the Administrative Leaders and its Impact on Employees' Career Performance

Zaid Yaseen Saud Al-Dulaimi — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The aim of this study is to help us to know the degree of Organizational Justice practiced by the administrative leaders in Baghdad for Economic Sciences and of Al-Ma'mun privet university colleges in Baghdad and its relationship to the employees' work or Career Performance. In order to achieve this goal, the study will seek to answer the following questions:

What is the degree of Organizational Justice practiced by the administrative leaders in the discussed colleges from the employees' point of view?
What is level of work or Career Performance of employees from the point of view of their leaders?

The study's society is formed from administrative leaders, heads of departments and discussed faculties. Researchers will use a questionnaire for data collection and it will include, the responder's demographic information, the measuring tool for the Organizational Justice practiced by the administrative leaders, the measurement of Career Performance of their employees. Study Tools has been verified by bringing it to the attention of the arbitrators of jurisdiction, and verification of the appropriateness of using the test method and the test. For answering the questions of the study researchers will use arithmetic averages, standard deviations and Pearson Linklabs.

Logical Querying of Relational Databases

Luminita Pistol, Radu BUCEA-MANEA-TONIS — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

This paper aims to demonstrate the usefulness of formal logic and lambda calculus in database programming. After a short introduction in propositional and first order logic, we implement dynamically a small database and translate some SQL queries in filtered java 8 streams, enhanced with Tuples facilities from jOOλ library.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

More and more, the today’s economic debates gravitate around the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the global transformation characterized by the digital, physical and biological technologies that interfere and change the world around us and our perception of the humankind progress.

The Dimension of Atypical Employment in Romania

Cătălin Ghinăraru, Luise Mladen — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

Official statistics can not always highlight the true scale of atypical work phenomenon in Romania because of the multitude of the non-standard forms of employment and because of the fact that its regulatory and monitoring mechanisms are build in accordance with the typical work model. The purpose of our research is to try to estimate the atypical employment in Romania using a variety of statistical data basis.

Web Platform for Romanian SMEs Networking

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis, Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

Abstract. After the 90s, private initiative in Romania has tried to get market shares in the emerging niches: IT services, ecommerce, retail, energy. With the liberalization of the market after admission to the EU, local entrepreneurs could not cope with external competition, crushing in debts or insolvency. The situation is not different today when the local capital is strongly competed by multinational companies. After a continuous research process the conclusion is the only solution for the SMEs is collaboration in business hubs, virtual companies and other forms of local cooperation. In this article is presented a type of collaboration between SMEs using discount coupons to recommend each other clients.

The Role of Accounting and Internal Control in Reducing Bureaucracy in the Public Sector

Luminita Ionescu — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

The aim of this paper is to present the relation between efficient internal control and accounting procedures and how the internal control system could play an important role in reducing bureaucracy. Nowadays, the government accounting and control of public finances are a national and international priority, in the context refugee crisis and terrorist attacks. Modernization of the public sector accounting could accelerate the process of reducing bureaucracy by implementing accounting information system and electronic signature.

The reform of the public administration in all European countries developed new control techniques and procedures in order to control public sector budget and financial activity. Efficient intern control procedure and managerial responsibility could contribute to good governance, transparency and low level of bureaucracy.

The Impact Of Social Partnership On The Environment

Mariem Kchaich Ep Chedli — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

The multidimensional social problems that everyone seeks to remedy them are very complex and no actor can confront them on their own. So the different parties have to work together by creating relations of partnerships.

The State has long been the main actor in the control and regulation of social relations. However, in recent years there has been a rapid decline in their role given the enormous charge and lack of resources. Hence the need for the intervention of other parties.

Some review of literature explores the conceptualization of social partnership in order to meet the needs of the organization or solve organizational problems. More and more large companies and multinationals get started on a voluntary approach to social responsibility and have begun to move closer to certain social enterprises by concluding partnership agreements.

The purpose of this study was to study the social transformation that follows the creation of a relation of a social partnership between a social enterprise and a company that has involved a strategy of social responsibility. Then, we will present the environment to finally study the impact of social partnership on the environment; on economic, cultural and political dimensions.

Some Economic Dimensions of Sustainable Development

Claudia Gabriela Baicu — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

We are living today in a world of huge challenges, deep interconnections, profound mutations and global risks under the impact of several factors among which climate change, innovation, increased competition or evolution of technology could be mentioned.....

Premises for Adapting Curriculum and Educational Package to Labor Market Requirements

Luise Mladen, Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

From all times it has been demonstrated that human resource is the most important and valuable asset for a company. Investing in human resource training and education should be a priority for organizations and universities. As the investments to bring benefits for economy the communication and collaboration between organizations (market) and universities (school) must be very close. As a consequence the scope of the paper was to identify the measures necessary to improve the existing university curriculum by linking with the labor market requirements. In this regard was implemented a market research within, “Adapt2jobs” POSDRU project, in 2 steps: a survey for organization and a survey for students. The article presents the results of the qualitative and quantitative results of the analysis regarding the market demand, the requirements of organizations for employees.

Protection of Intellectual Property and its Economic Aspects

Lenka Pelegrinová, Martin Lačný — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Intellectual property as assets in intangible form is classified in most countries under the definitions of the TRIPS Agreement and PCT according to the manner of its protection. This article presents results of an analysis of relationship between the protection of intellectual property rights at certain globalization level and verification of their influence on economic indicators in the selected countries of the research sample – 32 countries of a similar intellectual property protection system under the PCT. An examination of the level of globalization as a quantitative marker was enabled by the KOF Index of Globalization. The time and cross-sectional data enabled to test 352 objections by applying a non-parametric statistical method – panel data regression with the effect of random cross-sectional variables. The conclusions show that there is a statistically significant probability of the relation between the quantity of registered patents and the level of gross domestic product, gross domestic product per capita and adjusted net national income.

New public diplomacy and its effects on international level

Elena Gurgu, Aristide Dumitru Cociuban — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The purpose of this article is to make known the new type of public diplomacy and the effects this new diplomacy can have internationally. The objectives of our article refer to the context of change, the role of the media in public diplomacy, new approaches and elements of public diplomacy, current diplomacy in scientific and technical way and the use of scientific cooperation to improve bilateral relations between countries.

OPPORTUNITIES OF MODERN UNDERSTANDINGS ON HUMAN CAPITAL

Evgeniy Stoyanov — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 00:00:00 +0200

The study is focused on the key factor in the structure of any organization – the human capital. The objective is to present the thesis of the author that it is possible to optimize the process of formation of human capital through consolidated administration of certain management and control concepts. The tasks are connected with accumulation of evidence that the concept of the audit of human resources can be and should be developed.

Postmodernist Identity Construction and Consumption

İrfan ÇAĞLAR, Reyhan KARABABA — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. With the transition from modernism to postmodernism, identity as a concept has started to become redefined in sociology literature. The aim of this study is to show that postmodernism and symbolic interactionism are fused together to delineate both the scene as well as an actor’s identity. In that way, the interaction of a social structure with a culture that won’t be completely ignored, and, with the opinion that the categorized roles can skillfully be shaped and diversified by actors, it is possible to refrain from a pure determinism. But the transformation to enter different roles lacks meaning. Individuals pay more attention to their appearance more than who they are in order to be accepted by each group. In this manner, a metaphysical shell game begins. In the following study, the “Social Appearance Anxiety” was used as an indicator of this game. And to determine who is willing to play the game, cultural parameters were utilized.

This study was based on the analysis of the data collected through two questionnaires given to 181 students studying at Hitit University. The INDCOL questionnaire [Singelis et al., 1995] measuring cultural values and “Social Appearance Anxiety” scale developed by [Hart, 2008] were used in the study.

Future Economy and Touristic Entrepreneurship

Viorica Jelev — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Specialists claim that Eco-Bio-economy or social economy is the economy of future, in the service of human life by the rational use of environmental resources. The concept brings together in an integrated manner, according to the researchers, economy, ecology, biodiversity, biotechnologies and focuses on integrated sustainable development of the world. The new social economy, together with the corporate social responsibility joins a new multipolar world to a healthy environment by creative and innovative concepts that will ensure the sustainability of living in a sustainable manner. Doctors have added to thisEco-Bio-Economy concept a new one called One Health - a new integrated approach for human, animals and environment health state to that they should emphasize the importance of human behavior upon the planet biodiversity. Economer agents have mostly understood the importance of alarm signals drawn up by researchers on the destruction of the resources of the planet and adapted their business sites to the requirements of the green economy. A responsible business is also ecotourism that promotes a favourable travel for the surrounding environment. It requires accommodation on farms, in peasant houses, small rural hotels. The educational environment contributes to the trend planetary tourism, with the formation of new specialists with new knowledge, behaviors and consumers use formation of new characters, sensitive to environmental issues. This educational model is also promoted by Spiru Haret University, by creating the Master degree in tourism but also in environmental protection.

Foreword

Manuela EPURE — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The world economy is still recovering after the ‘big crisis’, whose effects are visible in many industries, thus making the investors more cautious about new projects.
At the regional level, the European Union has developed an ambitious strategy for the coming decades. EU’s growth plan aims to deliver a smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, focused on five goals in the areas of employment, education, innovation, poverty reduction and climate/energy.

What if simulation for a Brazilian company regarding marketing budget

Diogo André PINTO — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The article research is a case study regarding how to design the marketing budget for a small Brazilian company that started the activity one year ago. Taking into account the data that we gather, we decided to use What-if simulation. The case study is a simplified model representation of a company, adjusted according to the data that is released as target for the following year. In practice, the formulation of a scenario allows the construction of a hypothetical world that the analyst can see and navigate.

Basics and alternatives concerning the measurement of company performances

Cicilia IONESCU — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

In a competitive economy, a company's activity aims to achieve strategic objectives. Of these, two objectives: making profit and meeting the needs of a particular market segment are vital targets to maintaining the company’s market position. This requires information which reveals the company's financial position and profitability. The companies which want to be competitive must assess the company's capacity to generate positive results and cash in a reliable way. This strategy needs information on the resources used and the results obtained, but should not overlook the truth that the profit arises from uncertainty and the risk assumed by the entrepreneur. In this regard, the International Accounting Standards often use the term "probability" when referring to the recognition criteria of structures comprised in the financial statements.

Organic Production Business Model and the Concept of Corporate Social Responsibility

Ekaterina ARABSKA, Venelin TERZIEV — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) considering competitiveness and sustainability issues in contemporary globalizing world is closely linked to organic production being a production system applying holistic approaches in the overall management and production activities and assurance of the highest degree of conformability to sustainable use and preservation of resources. The paper examines the organic production as a business model corresponding to the spheres of CSR regarding society, environment, human capital and work conditions, knowledge and education. The focus in on sustainable business practices in organic production assessed in the study from the point of view of management, environment, human resources, public relations and business environment considered in five dimensions: economic, social, environmental, cultural and accountability.

Resources for Apitourism in Bulgaria

Zlatka GRIGOROVA, Stefka TIMAREVA, Ivanka SHOPOVA — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The report includes an analysis of the situation, trends and prospects of the resource base for the development of apitourism as an unconventional attractive and specialized type of supporting farmers through agricultural practices. The report presents the resource base (traditions, state, production and marketing of honey). For the aim of the analysis data has been used from the National Statistics Institute, Ministry of Agriculture, Food beekeepers' associations, processors and traders of honey and bee products, the Ministry of Tourism and tourism industry organizations. The main purpose of the study is to assist companies and individuals in the field of agribusiness and apitourism for the realization of bee products and services.

The Management of Crisis

Mariem Kchaich EP CHEDLI — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Many business leaders defines a time of crisis as a moment which completely hinders society
activity which ultimately leads to bankruptcy they prefer the choice of resentment downturn and do not
consider it a key moment for the renewal ideas, ways of thinking, of policies and strategies adopted that
mobilize around new ambitions, new development projects, new sales models, new businesses, new markets
and do a crisis a moment of creation and innovation and collective revitalization.
The purpose of this article is to study the various steps of the management of crisis and best management
practices in times of crisis to be applied properly by the manager. Therefore, we would have to ask the
following question: How can we ride a situation of crisis and provide benchmarks based on best
management practices?

The Recovery of Companies

Mariem Kchaich EP CHEDLI — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The transmission of an enterprise faces different forms which are the recovery, indeed whether it's
about a sale or a succession the transmission often puts in danger the existence of an enterprise.
An enterprise can be taken over by another enterprise as part of its external growth strategy or by an
individual who can be an heir, a former employee of the enterprise, a commercial or financial partner or a
foreign buyer for the firm, but whatever his prior knowledge of the target enterprise the individual buyer
holds the position of a new manager and fits into a functioning structure and leads a staff that he did not
recruit..
As part of our article, we have been interested in the study of the recovery of enterprises and its various
aspects, in the first part the general case we discussed the resumption namely the transfer of businesses and
through the brakes related to the transmission and the process of transmission. The second part is dedicated
to the recovery and its integration in the fields of entrepreneurship, as well as the different forms that can
take the recovery of a company namely: the external growth and the recovery of enterprises by individuals.

The Healthcare System and the Hidden Traps of its Logistics

Larisa MIHOREANU, Carmen COSTEA, Alexandru STEFANESCU — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The analysis of the society development is more complex than one might think at first glance. So is the market. There are sides and activities not easy to see and one needs high capabilities and strength to look beyond the appearances and see what’s not visible.

The most dangerous games happen inside the crossing boarder sectors that no men land between legal and black activities; that is a very vivid area where actions and profits are higher than ever can imagine. This side of the economy has its tentacles piercing the legal boarder of the sound economy and functions through movements that effect all sectors and activities pushing to get huge black profits.

Romanian health sector makes no exception. The wish to get getting higher and higher profits doesn’t go with performing and satisfactory management when the corporate liaisons are oriented more on discussions and less on integrative quality and satisfaction of people concerned; thus the so called guys in white coats are necessarily oriented to another sort of motivation – linked to networked process of getting black money and laundering it through the backing support of the informal more than legal procedures.

The loss is always paid by individuals and community as: fewer funds from taxes, stratified salaries caused subjective application of norms and procedures, decreased labour quality, inappropriate economic behaviour, losses in the robustness of the future generations. Through such channels, the informal economy last running building up a strong logistic that develops parallel activities, utterly designed to respect specific customs based on gestural understanding and communication that encourage the unfairness, the aggressiveness in competition and hot money/short run investments.

This paper intends to catch some of the general aspects of what black and informal economy can carry out, through procedures that use the imperfect legal methodology decision and its implementation into informal possibility to fraud both the public funds and peoples savings.

The paper touches also the public consequences of the undeclared work of employees of public and private sectors emphasising also the need to identifying some specific roles to play in the future by the services business planning, the law application and the policy of autonomy to help the medical market blossom vigorously.

In conclusion, we sustain that the fair action is not an alternative conception of developing, in the fashion, neither of human evolution nor of need-based growth. There is a higher need to model individual awareness and motivation in the direction of increasing the self-responsibility for building a better environment based on a proactive personal development, from within and connected to the outer world.

Innovative Solutions for Companies to Reduce Gender Gaps (UK Study Case)

Andrei ANGHELUTA, Larisa MIHOREANU, Carmen COSTEA — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 00:00:00 +0300

For many years the gender gap has been a complex reality having economic implications and social decisiveness. No matter the percentage recently decreased, we still confront with social discriminations. In this paper we focused on the UK labour market so we developed a case study for a logistics company, using classification of the employees in different pay bands. Based on this study we created a state of the art human resource tool that can be applied worldwide and that help firms to analyse the root causes and to reduce the gender gap.

Changing Economy – developing key skills for a new attitude

Raluca MIHALCIOIU — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

Go with the times or be gone in no time

Our economy and society is marked by very rapid changes. We live in times of permanent changes in a breathtaking pace. This is accompanied by uncertainty, anxiety and general lethargy.

We can recognize Phenomena such as these not only at individuals - undisputed right at each of us in varying degrees – but it also relates to all sectors, such as the economy, politics, society in its various areas.

New Trends in Economic Globalization

Elena Gurgu, Aristide Cociuban — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The long disputed and analyzed, globalization has now become an objective phenomenon unprecedented in world history, as magnitude and evolution. Criticized by some, revered by others, it seems that follows its trajectory. For us relevant are some negative aspects of globalization, but more significant are those that maintain balance and well-being of mankind. Based on the research conducted we have concluded that both globalization and regionalization emerged and developed as a result of unprecedented increased competition in the level of trade of states or regions.

THE EVALUATION OF WORKING CAPITAL IN AIRLINE COMPANIES WHICH PROCEED IN BIST

Selcuk Kendirli, Aslihan Kaya — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The working capital like cash and liquid assets runs the facilities and supports daily activities of firms. This kind of capital is essential to continuity of activities, increase of volume, maintain credibility, reduce impacts of risks and to overcome with extraordinary situation. The working capital management is very important for making profits from activities, especially for dynamic sectors like aviation.

The aviation industry which airline companies operate is a very dynamic sector. In this sector working capital has to be managed very professionally and carefully by airline companies. This study aims to assess the airline companies’ working capital in terms of effectiveness. Airline companies which shares traded on BIST will be sample of this study.

The Effects of Right Offering Announcements on Returns of Shares of Deposit Banks Traded in İstanbul Stock-Exchange

Selcuk Kendirli, Muhammet Emin Elmali — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

In this study, the impacts of right offerings announcements on the returns of shares are analysed. Right offerings means to have the rigth of receiving new shares in proportion to shares on hand when the corporation issues new shares for outsourcing capital increase. In this study, before and after the right issue announcements, the abnormal returns (AR) of shares of the banks in Istanbul Exchange Market-100 calculated and the return changes are analysed.

ACTIVE SOCIAL PROGRAMS AND THEIR STRATEGIC ADVANTAGES IN LABOR MARKET DEVELOPMENT

Evgeniy Stoyanov — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The active programs and measures on the labor market are the subject of increasing interest and comment not only because expectations for tangible effects, but also because of the relatively significant financial resources necessary for their implementation. The paper discussed the active social programs and their strategic advantages in labor market development considering the methodology of their development and accenting the role of human resources and innovative technologies.

Eco industrial Development: As a Way of Enhancing Sustainable Development

Begum Sertyesilisik, Egemen Sertyesilisik — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The world’s habitat is being deteriorated especially due to the unsustainable production. The need for sustainable development and reducing humanities’ environmental footprint have been addressed in various international frameworks, meetings and reports (e.g. Kyoto protocol, the Resource Efficiency and Cleaner Production Program, the Ten Year Framework of Programs on Sustainable Consumption and Production, the UN Resource Panel, and the Green Economy Initiative, Rio+20, green building certificates, “UNEP Green Economy” in 2011, “Green New Deal” in 2012, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report etc.). EIDs (the eco industrial development) can act as catalysts in sustainable development and in reducing environmental footprint of the production processes. Based on an in-depth literature review, this paper aims to analyze how EID can be supported so that environmental footprint of the production processes can be reduced contributing sustainable development. With this aim, the objectives include: analysis of the need for the EID; need for the sustainable development enhanced by sustainable production and sustainable products; key success factors for, barriers against and drivers for the EID. The policy makers, companies, and researchers are expected to get benefit from this paper.

AN ESSAY ON THE APPLICABILITY OF THE LINDER HYPOTHESIS IN DETERMINING THE PATTERNS OF THE ROMANIAN INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Tania Georgia Viciu, Larisa Mihoreanu, Carmen Costea — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The paper tries to shed light on the effectiveness of a previously proposed and wide accepted trade model and its consistency in developing economies such as Romania. The structure and evolution of the exports and imports of Romania in the last years have indicated an increase in the intra-industry trade, and concurrently, a shift towards the commerce in predominantly capital-intensive commodities. While the Linder theorem provides useful insight into the patters of international trade formation, the hypothesis that trade is proportionate with the demand and market similarities expressed by GDP per capita, does not test out for the data available for Romania and its main economic and commercial partners.

The political and economic restrictions and opportunities generated by foreign relations in the region can be attributed with the role of trade-creating forces, rather than income similarities on the markets.

Estimating the Outdoor Recreational Value of Chitgar Forestial Park of Tehran with the Use of Contingent Valuation Method (CV)

Majid Kholuzini Sharahi, Mohamad Hosein Mohamadi, Azam Abedini — Mon, 28 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

Among issues related to the environment, one of the most important issues is pricing the environment. In the present study, the outdoor recreational value of Chitgar Jungle Park of Tehran and its visitors' willingness to pay per visit (WTP) were estimated by using Contingent Valuation method (CV) and 140 questionnaires based on dichotomous choice. The results revealed that 30 percent of the surveyed people were willing to pay an entrance fee and the mean willingness to pay for each visitor was estimated at 3076 Rials and its total annual recreational value was estimated at 5 billion Rials. Among the effective variables on individuals' visit of this park, recommendation, income, per-visit cost, family size, and visits during a year were 1% significant; park facilities and quality were 5% significant; and the visitors' use of personal vehicles, education, type of house, as well as job were 10% significant.

Functional Programming Using the New C++ Standard

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis, Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

Today software technology evolves very quickly, to an old paradigm, called functional programming. This paradigm uses lambda functions ready to be used where declared instead of function pointers. The long term target is to let compilers evaluate rather than execute a program/function. The new C++14 standard allows lambda calculus as we demonstrate in the applicative section of implementing conditionals, booleans and numbers.

Peet, R., Hartwick E. – Theories of development: Contentions, Arguments, Alternatives

Manuela Epure — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

This book review aims to discuss the new perspectives on theories of development provided by two outstanding scholars: Richard Peet and Elaine Hartwick in their recent published book “Theories of development: Contestations, Arguments, Alternatives”. An interesting point a view is presented from the beginning: development means a better life for everyone but economic growth can occur without touching problems like inequalities, poverty etc. The introductory chapter explains the differences between Growth and Development, and it is followed by a part I Conventional Theories of Development, part II Nonconventional Critical Theories of Development, part III Critical Modernism. Readers will find this book review intriguing and interesting enough to stimulate their curiosity to explore this fascinating book.

Foreword

Eugen Ghiorghita — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

Society today is in transition. We can see it. We live in it. Actually, the mankind’s history is a transition: from simple to complex, from primitivism to civilization. There has been a permanent change in ideas, mentalities, knowledge, institutions and technologies....

Arbitral Tribunal Power to Disqualify Unethical Counsel

Cristina Florescu — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

In specific matters of conflicts of interest ethical issues in connection with the parties' legal representatives could occur in the course of arbitration proceedings. The purpose of this paper is to identify and investigate the current status of the arbitral tribunals and arbitral institutions power to sanction counsel’s misconduct in the event of conflicts of interest. Parties have a fundamental right to choose the counsel and in the same time the right to an independent and impartial tribunal, therefore the source of the arbitral tribunal power to disqualify a counsel is a hot topic. There are no express provisions granting arbitrators such power, only soft law instruments, but which have no binding effect as long as the parties do not agree on them. For these reasons, two renowned cases where international arbitral tribunals have dealt with the subject are examined. Developing “truly transnational” ethical rules and their implementation by the arbitral institutions might be a solution. Arbitral tribunals are establishing this issue on the basis of the undertaken and applied international soft law (professional guidelines) which gained credibility and popularity and also became accepted international standards in the arbitration field.

Contributions to the Analysis of Amendments of the Crime Ctipulated in Article 43 of Law no. 255/1998 on the Protection of New Varieties of Plants Made by Law no. 187/2012 for the Enforcement of Law no. 286/2009 on the Criminal Code

Bujorel Florea — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0300

The article brings into question the criminal protection of new varieties of plants. The author presents certain judicial norms, as previous issues, concerning the occurrence and protection of the rights over new varieties of plants through the granting of the variety patent.

Furthermore, the study indicates the amendments made by Law no. 187/2012 on the enforcement of Law no. 286/2009 on the Criminal Code, concerning the counterfeiting crime incriminated in Law no. 255/1998 on the protection of new varieties of plants.

Finally, the author underlines the specific elements of the contents of the investigated crime, thus providing the concerned parties with a table enabling, through the implementation thereof, the detection of the determining factors in the establishment and holding of the criminal liability of individuals infringing the rights of the plant variety patent holders, through counterfeiting.

Improving VAT Compliance in Romania by Implementing a New Tool – Tax Lottery Receipts

Dragos Ungureanu, Doina Dascalu — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

This paper aims to present and explain the newly implemented measure of organizing a Tax Lottery Receipts in Romania, in orderto combat tax evasion by raising awareness among consumers and make them responsible when purchasing any goods.The lottery proposes an approach to strengthen the fiscal voluntary conformation by stimulating financially those who promote respecting the law – asking for the fiscal receipt, and helpthe fiscal authorities this way in the fight against tax evasion, contrasting at the same time with punishing those who do not respect it – not issuing fiscal receipts.

Public Debts Trends in the Current Economic Context, from Both National and International Perspective

Doina Dascalu, Dragos Ungureanu — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

. The article presents an analysis of the way public debt operates in Romania, in the context of states economies trends, of complex and topical financial environments.

In the context of a functional market economy, the issues faced by certain states involving high public debt levels or potential budgetary pressure risks converge towards the idea that public finances sustainability needs to be a major challenge at the level of public policies.

Considering this situation, the adequate policies to tackle public finances sustainability need to have, as a launching base, the overall strategy of the European Union, focused on the three component parts, namely abatement of public debt, increasing productivity and employment and last but not least, reforming the pension and healthcare systems.

To ensure reasonably sustainable public debt levels, EU member states need to attain medium term strategic budgetary objectives, that would ensure a downward trend of public debt, a condition which can be fulfilled by compliance with budget policies rules, which ground development in the macroeconomic framework.

The Future of Education into a Digital World

Viorica Jelev — Thu, 24 Dec 2015 00:00:00 +0200

The article investigate the role of communication in the digital age, between consumers and business and seeks to render highlighting changes within the Romanian society in the last 26 years, with the effects occurred in people's behavior, but also the changes of university education at the discipline I teach, Merchandising and International Marketing, with impact on the delivery of new information to the students of the Faculty of Economic Sciences, within Spiru Haret University. We live in an era where everything seems to change and evolve almost overnight. ”The world economic order went through a tectonic transformation, accompanied by, and in part caused by, groundbreaking advances in science and technology and the rise of globalization” . New industries start to develop, while others are on their last legs or already extinct in a world of advanced, emerging, and developing countries. As a result, lots of jobs from years past aren’t as relevant today as they once were, and many no longer exist. Therefore it’s easy to predict that eventually, today’s jobs will evolve into something completely different. And some will become obsolete. And it is those changes that lead to multiple consequences, affecting many other fields, one being education. We need a broad, flexible and motivating education that recognizes the different talents of all children and delivers excellence for everyone. Studying methods and curricula from the 20th century may no longer be relevant in the constantly evolving and changing world of the 21st century, in preparing you for your future job. And in order to maximize your chances of having a successful career in the field of your choice, you have to constantly adapt and evolve. Creative education involves a balance between teaching knowledge and skills, and encouraging innovation. New branches of industries will appear, and potential employers and employees will need to acquire new skills and abilities. And it is these new skills and abilities that should be taught and attained in schools, especially by those attending higher education, which is at an inflection point. It is this constant change, the need to permanently evolve and adapt, that has led to the development of various groups, organizations and networks, tasked with generating answers and solutions to present day problems, as well as predicting future trends in their respective fields of activity. Finally, I try to find the answer to the question "what is the future of humanity?" what typology of man must we form to save the future of the planet. The answer is "the beautiful man", as Dan Puric called in his book.

Development for a better life

Manuela Epure — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Today, humanity is facing various challenges when it comes to the development level in different countries or regions. The global economy is bouncing back from a serious crisis, yet still struggling with the unpredictable reminiscences of the crisis. Restarting the economic growth is vital for the global development. But when it comes to “development”, are we sure what it really means with respect to different countries? World Bank experts define development through a set of indicators of wealth which reflect mainly the quantity of resources, resource allocation, the effect of production and consumption on people’s environment and the like. Different countries have different visions on how to increase the national wealth, therefore the interest in setting development policies may vary from region to region, from country to country. Development is also related directly to people's quality of life: access to education and health care services, employment opportunities, availability of clean air and safe drinking water, and the threat of crime and so on. A sustainable economic growth must be nourished by the fruits of human development such as improvements in human capital along with opportunities for its efficient use: more and better jobs, better conditions for encouraging new and innovative business and greater democracy at all levels of decision‐making[1]. The interdependency between sustainable economic growth and human development is more than obvious, complex and diverse relationships are constantly set, the prerequisites for economic growth or human development are established, and the list is still open. Investing in human capital development is one of the conditions that enable economic growth.

[1] SoubottinaT.P., Sheram K.‐ Beyond Economic Growth –Meeting the Challenges of Global Development, World Bank Learning Resources Series, USA, 2000 http://www.worldbank.org/depweb/beyond/beyondco/beg_00.pdf

The Private Rented Sectors in the North and South of Ireland: A Case Study in Convergence Analysis

Aideen Hayden, Paddy Gray, Ursula McAnulty, Bob Jordan — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0300

The theme of this paper centres on the convergence and divergence of housing policy between two regimes inhabiting the same geographical space on the island of Ireland, as reflected in the development of the private rented sector (PRS) in both jurisdictions. Using a historical comparative analysis of key indicators, this paper aims not just to present an accurate picture of the state of policy towards the sector in both jurisdictions today, but to place this analysis within a framework which looks at the backdrop of overall housing systems. The paper postulates that while Northern Ireland and the South of Ireland are reflective of the Anglo Saxon tradition in housing, major historical differences in their pathways have brought clearly identifiable policy outcomes indicative of their differing status in comparative welfare analysis. While both jurisdictions have diverged significantly during the course of the twentieth century in the profile of policy and housing tenure mix, showing examples of path dependency at work, there is clear evidence of more recent convergence. More recent changes in housing policy in both jurisdictions away from direct social housing provision and the changing role of the private rented sector are also examined and a convergence theory is proposed.

Alternative Forms for Promotion and Dissemination of Good Management Practices

Elenko Zahariev — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0300

At the present stage actuality of the problem is predetermined by the needs of the real management practice in organizations and the need to offer theoretical and practical knowledge to enable it methodologically correct and methodically right to implement appropriate changes in the management of the particular organization.

The article is devoted to one aspect in the field of management - creating a new form of organization of management (called new favorite) - international managerial architecture. It argues that it was dictated by poor management of institutional and corporate level, the lack of adequate professional standards, control and monitoring of the activities of managers. An attempt is made to give a reasoned response to relatively basic question: "Predetermination or managerial obfuscation are alternative forms of promotion and dissemination of good management practices?". The goal is to answer the question in a relatively unbiased approach, insofar as possible minimizing subjectivity in the treatment of problems. Finally, certain results of the proposed thesis on the need for the creation of NIMA are discussed- structure and structural parameters. The discussions are based on the experience in the Republic of Bulgaria taken as an example situation.

Application of New Instruments to Increase Effectiveness of Implementation of Social Policies on Labour Market in Bulgaria

Venelin Terziev, Ekaterina Arabska — Wed, 30 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Nowadays, public employment services face a number of urgent tasks as raising the employment rate and reducing the number of vacant jobs for which is difficult to find enough qualified workers. New realities on labour market and dynamic environment require adequate actions, rational and timely decision making and optimization of work. Dynamic changes in social environment impacting labour markets and activities of public employment services impose various tasks which implementation should be carefully planned, organized and controlled. To achieve that public employment services should take a more comprehensive look at the demand and supply of labour, considering the numerous transitions taking place constantly on the labour market and people's personal development. Improving processes and the quality of the administrative services in the Bulgarian employment agency is seen as a prerequisite for effective implementation of employment policies. The study presents opportunities for improving the quality of services offered in the Directorates "Labour Office" in the Republic of Bulgaria by introducing a process model and improvements in the capacity and efficiency of work in the field of labour mediation.

Scientometric Indicators as a Way to Classify Brands for Customer’s Information

Mihaela Paun, Iris Tusa — Thu, 01 Oct 2015 00:00:00 +0300

The paper proposes a novel approach for classification of different brands that commercialize similar products, for customer information. The approach is tested on electronic shopping records found on Amazon.com, by quantifying customer behavior and comparing the results with classifications of the same brands found online through search engines. The indicators proposed for the classification are currently used scientometric measures that can be easily applied to marketing classification.

Shaping the Future - A Difficult Task

Manuela Epure — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Living in today’s world is not easy: as a human being you need to adapt yourself to a hostile environment where unforeseen challenges emerge, keeping us in constant alert.

Economic development is directly connected to human development; therefore sustainable economic growth needs to be the central point of the current development strategies, not only at country level but mainly at global scale....

"Audit – sources and institutionalization” By Evgeniy Nikolov Stoyanov

Venelin Terziev — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

The author of the presented book (published in the form of a monograph)is a professor in economics with PhD in accounting, control and analysis of economic activity. He is a lecturer in: Burgas University "Asen Zlatarov", Agricultural University - Plovdiv and University of agribusiness and rural development - Bulgaria. His scientific research is in the field of audit and its application in various areas which is reflected in over 60 publications in Bulgaria and abroad. Prof. Evgeniy Stoyanov is one of the prominent Bulgarian scientists in that field having original ideas in his work presented on a number of conferences, seminars and scientific forums.

The monograph “Audit – sources and institutionalization” consists of an introduction, eight chapters, conclusion, references and a glossary of abbreviations used. It will be shortly presented and analyzed below as a book of special interest in the development of scientific thought in economics and management.

Global Risk Management – A Necessity in a World of Vulnerabilities and of ECO-Economy and BIO -ECO-Economy Needed by ECO-SANO-Genesis

Elena Gurgu — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. The Vision of the Eco-Bio-Economy is to sustain development of the humankind welfare in all forms, through an economy of future dedicated to human life through the rational use of the environmental resources. The present work attempts to discuss the issues that humanity faces at the beginning of a new global economic paradigm. The minimum point of the financial crisis started in 2008 meets the final years of the decline phase of the long term global economic cycle. The feeling is one of lack of vision on the part of Governments, of improvisation, of passive reaction, such as seeing and doing. One feels that the economic context is worn out , dysfunctional because of deep recovery problems. The perception, not far from the taugh reality, is that of a national competition meant to minimize losses caused by the financial crisis and to use beggar thy neighbor types of policies, similar to finding the way out of the crisis on the expense of others.

Opportunities of Establishment of Destination Management and Marketing Organizations in Bulgaria

Venelin Terziev, Ekaterina Arabska — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

The paper examines tourism sector development in the Republic of Bulgaria in the context of the country’s strategic priorities till 2020 of knowledge-based economy, sustainable growth and smart specialization, the opportunities for its integration with agri-food sector and potential contribution to balanced rural development. The principles and roles of destination management and marketing organizations are discussed and the opportunities for their application in the national conditions are explored. A framework for of establishment, management and functioning of such organizations is proposed based on integrated and participatory approaches, planning, coordination and communication activities, permanent monitoring and controlling.

Which Governments May Control the Mass Media: Iran and Kurdistan as a Case Study?

Araz Ramazan Ahmad — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract

This paper is the comparative study in order to discover the motives of using censorship on Media. The main argument of this study is to determine the "Using of Censorship on Media in different government states” Consistently, the study depends on document analysis method and academic sources as well.

Correspondingly, the study focuses on Media and democracy and then Mass Media in Iran and Kurdistan region of Iraq. Finally, the law of press in Iran and Kurdistan will be analysis to know the key elements of censorship in both governments.

The Role of Social Media in the ‘Syrian Uprising’

Araz Ramazan Ahmad, Nazakat Hussain Hamasaeed Hussain Hamasaeed — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

This paper, which is entitled ‘The Role of Social Media in the ‘Syrian Uprising’ aimed to report on survey research conducted which identify the role of played by social media in the ‘Syrian Uprising’ Currently social media tools were good mediums of electronic communication among protesters in Syria. Further, it was a vital medium for spreading information such as photos, videos and documents about the revolution for national, regional and international spheres. This paper looked at the impact and relationship between protesters and Syrian people who used social media ,technology and the nature of its role in the ‘Syrian Uprising ‘ as well as the study has made a controversial argument between different views of scholars about the subject and its case. This paper has interviewed 30 protesters inside Syria through a survey.

This study, demonstrate the appeal that social media can have both positive and negative points in the ‘Syrian uprising’.

The Importance of the Sustainability of Environmental Accounting

Habib Akdoğan, Ela Hicyorulmaz — Wed, 24 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0300

: Rapid population growth, industrialization, unplanned urbanization, global warming, tourism activities and natural disasters have resulted in environmental issues that have reached global dimensions and started to threaten the life of creatures. For the permanent protection of ecological balance and sustainability, massive national and international regulations are needed. Threatening the life of creatures has not been considered in the system consisting of the establishment of equilibrium between man and nature as required. At this point businesses have important responsibilities. Businesses, for example, in order to prevent environmental pollution waste control systems, filtration systems, recycling methods etc. endured environmental costs in a variety of ways, as these costs are incurred also causes more businesses to see the value of protecting the environment.

The result of the activities of environmental impacts of enterprises can be considered, to be taken in the preparation of the necessary data to guide decisions, contacts and presentation of the stages of the environmental accounting system.

In this study, we first examine the concepts of environmental accounting, sustainability and environmental costs and then in the cement factories located in Turkey the environmental costs and environmental accounting will be given in the results of a survey made for the calculation of the sensitivity.

Keywords: Environmental Accounting; Sustainability; Environmental Costs

Book Review “Political Ecology: A Critical Introduction, 2nd Edition” by Paul Robbins

Madalina Epure — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Book Review “Political Ecology: A Critical Introduction,

2^nd Edition” by Paul Robbins

SMEs Role in Achieving Sustainable Development

Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Sustainable development might be achieved by entrepreneurial enterprises with social responsibility, by innovative SMEs leaded by innopreneurs that not only respect the 21 Agenda advices, but innovate in technologies that reduce the impact of ecological footprint, or that might regenerate natural resources. It is also well know that “the cost of protecting the environment without polluting it is cheaper than bringing a contaminated environment back to its old one. As a result clean and nature-friendly technologies are preferred, and yet again, if there still any pollutants they have to be recycled”. [Kendirli, 2014] We always return to the principium “primun non nocere”. The article is a plea for accomplishing de sustainable development principles, and shows how SMEs may foster it.

Emerging technologies and us!

Manuela Epure — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

As another year starts, the world is no longer the same, rapid and dramatic changes are
occurring, so we must adapt to our new environment, in the most efficient ways possible.....

Treasury Financial Management company in the current economic crisis

FLOAREA GEORGESCU — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Any management decision has a direct monetary impact on the structure uses and sources of cash. Cash Management aims to permanently maintain a balance between inflows and outflows of cash and cash to predict the impact of any operational decisions that could affect these flows. The success of any business requires good management of all these flows.

The principle of this approach is relatively simple: using a minimum of ores to obtain maximum performance in a given period. Cash management is an extremely complex issue, and balancing receipts and payments flow is a constant struggle for survival of firms.

In It work we will focus on how they are oriented in a going concern basis, cash inflows and financing needs of current operations. Managers should understand and know the specific movements of cash within the business system, driven daily decisions on operating, investing or financing, and a variety of external circumstances which affect the company. Such decisions and events can affect the company's ability to pay its obligations to obtain credit from suppliers, banks or credit institutions and to maintain an operational level in line with the company's products and services through investments.

The Women Employees within the Frame of Social Responsibility and an Analyse

Hulya Cagiran Kendirli, Tugba Gulen, Tugba Kumbul — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract: In many resources, corporate social responsibility is defined as an organization's ethic and responsible attitude towards all the partners in and outside of the instruction, it’s taking the decisions accordingly and apply them.

In the researches that have been carried out recently, the concept of "partner" stands out. Institutions have relations with some certain partners such as consumers, advertisers and workers and so on as these groups include women as well. That is the reason why the studies should be carried out considering the women.

This concept has a great role in increasing the number of the social responsibility projects of the institutions that put emphasize on women.

Although Turkey signed CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) which is a legally binding contract and many contracts of ILO which aimed at protecting the equality of men and women, and made some certain laws to protect the equality, it was the 126th country of 130 countries according to the Index of Gender Mainstreaming report published by WEF (World Economic Forum) in 2013. In this regard, the need to replace women in the centre of social responsibility projects is inevitable.

From Performance Measurement to Strategic Management Model: Balanced Scorecard

Cihat Savsar — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract: In Today’s competitive markets, one of the main conditions of the surviving of enterprises is the necessity to have effective performance management systems. Decisions must be taken by the management according to the performance of assets. In the transition from industrial society to information society, the presence of business structures have changed and the values of non-financial assets have increased in this period. So some systems have emerged based on intangible assets and to measure them instead of tangible assets and their measurements. With economic and technological development multi-dimensional evaluation in the business couldn’t be sufficient. Performance evaluation methods can be applied in business with an integrated approach by its accordance with business strategy, linking to reward system and cause effects link established between performance measures. Balanced scorecard is one of the commonly used in measurement methods. While it was used for the first time in 1992 as a performance measurement tool today it has been used as a strategic management model besides its conventional uses. BSC contains customer perspective, internal perspective and learning and growth perspective besides financial perspective. Learning and growth perspective is determinant of other perspectives. In order to achieve the objectives set out in the financial perspective in other dimensions that need to be accomplished, is emphasized. Establishing a causal link between performance measures and targets how to achieve specified goals with strategy maps are described.

Organic food purchase habits in Hungary

Viktória Szente, Dorisz Torma — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0300

In Hungary organic food market has both demand and supply oriented aspect: several times not necessary products are distributed while the selection and volume of certain products are not satisfactory. Thus our aim was to develop a coordinated benchmark strategy to increase the trade of organic products. To get more details about the Hungarian organic food market we applied the “mystery shopping” method to observe changes in organic food supply and carried out a quantitative survey using a 1,000 member countrywide panel. Our results indicate that organic origin is considered somewhat important for every 4th respondent, while only 3.7% of the interviewees paid attention to put organic food products into their cart. The most serious obstacle is the doubt of surveyed individuals about the authenticity and the alleged benefits of organic products, complete with a high perceived price. “Price” is the most influential factor on shopping decision, but the advantageous “constant quality” and “health benefit” factors are just following it. Most of the respondents stated that they buy organic products directly from the producer (27.4%), but small retail outlets are likewise popular (though to a somewhat lesser extent). In conclusion, there is potential demand for ecological food products in Hungary. Although the proportion of conscious consumers is small; it significantly exceeds the current market share of the products. Consumers should be approached with better prices, smart retailing solutions and through awareness raising.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Mon, 22 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Foreword

Knowledge, attitudes and behaviour regarding waste management options in Romania: results from a school questionnaire

Karin KOLBE — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

This study analyses knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in the area of different waste management approaches of pupils in Romania. Examining school students’ knowledge about waste management options and finding out the reasons that prevent them from participating in environmentally sound disposal options is essential for teachers and legislators. For this purpose, questionnaires were designed and distributed in two schools in Romania.

The analysis revealed that knowledge is highly developed in Romania regarding the potential of recycling, while the concepts of waste management technologies are far less known about and understood. Landfill is seen as a problem for human health and the environment. However, recycling behaviour is low - partly as a result of limited possibilities. In general, the treatment hierarchy that is recommended in the "European waste hierarchy" is only partly reflected in students’ attitudes towards waste management options.

Are Greeks’ Unconcerned about Ethical Market Choices?"

Antonia DELISTAVROU, Irene TILIKIDOU — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

An Ethical Unconcern (EthU) scale was constructed and its impact on Positive Ethical Consumption was examined. The procedure of EthU included literature search, brainstorming and discussion groups to generate the preliminary pool of 99 items, refinement of the scale via a students’ survey by the employment of item-to-total correlation and alpha-if-item deleted techniques. The initial scale was tested in a consumer survey conducted in the urban area of Thessaloniki, Greece. Item-to-total correlation and alpha-if-item deleted techniques were applied again, followed by Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) by the employment of PCA. The procedure left 21 items in five factors with eigenvalues greater than 1 explaining 61.34% of the variance. The five factors were named Boycott/ Discursive, Fair-Trade, Scepticism, Powerlessness and Ineffectiveness. The AMOS SPSS was then used to conduct confirmatory factor analysis. Goodness-of-fit results indicated that the measurement model fit the data well (χ²=594.226, p<0.000, CFI=0.926, NFI=0.899, TLI=0.910, RMSEA=0.066). The examination of the Positive Ethical Consumption indicated rare to occasional ethical buying choices among Greek consumers. The inhibiting role of Ethical Unconcern on Positive Ethical Consumption was found to be rather low.

What Change Can The New Developments In Energy Sector Bring Into the World`s Energypolitical and Geopolitical Order?

Onur TUTULMAZ — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

The recent developments bring US to a leading natural gas and oil producer position. The attempts in last 20 years to bring new horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies together have developed a success in shale gas and oil production in US; the production volumes has reached to a position to redefine the market. Last estimations are bringing more information about the shale capacities of the major basins of the world. However, the estimates are based on a wide range of assumptions and consequently their results vary in a large scale. In any case, these developments have crucial economic, political and geopolitical consequences on the energy market, petroleum producer and consumer countries and regions. Despite the wide range of ambiguity of the estimated size of the resources, the estimations show US and North America has one of the biggest potential, already turning technology into the giant production numbers. Some of the estimations allege so big numbers can even mean to a new world order. The asymmetric nature of the potential, can also be said, increases some of the expected impacts too. In this study, basically, we want to supply an initial solid and economical evaluation to this ambiguity. We are trying to shape a frame for the new energy potential and to put it in a place in the current practice of the world. Secondly, in this context, we are underlying here some of the possible economic and geopolitical consequences each of which can constitute a subject of deeper study.

Food Quality Certificates and Research on Effect of Food Quality Certificates to Determinate Ignored Level of Buying Behavioral: A Case Study in Hitit University Feas Business Department

Hulya CAGIRAN KENDIRLI, Gürkan ULUSOY — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Nowadays, food and food industry has become one of the most important sectors for manufacturers and consumers. Many countries of the world including Turkey have been developed and implemented many standards for food safety and presentation of food to ensure safe consumption. In this study, we studied on the most common of these standards through HACCP and ISO 22000 standards.

The purpose of this study is, to determine students' awareness and ignores of level of food quality and food quality certification during their food shopping. This research has conducted with survey in the Hittite University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Business Administration by 256 students are attending to this department. Department student number is 775 in totally. We have determined some hypotheses in the context of research and we applied cluster analysis, chi-square analysis and correlation analysis to the research. According to results of a significant relationship was found between hypotheses.

We considered 260 students. After calculating with 0,95 confidence interval and 0,05 tolerance we have to reach 258 students. We used the Cronbach’s Alfa for testing the reliability of survey. Cronbach’s Alfa is settled between 0 and 1 and for reliability of scale and it must be over 0,60 for acceptance to survey. Our survey’s scale has been 0,79 and we can said that, it is a reliable scale for this survey study.

According to result of research, there is no relationship between demographic specialties of students and ignored of food and quality legislation. But there is relationship between sexuality and ignored of food and quality legislation.

Sustainable Environment and in the Context of Environment Economy Necessary and an Analyze

Selcuk KENDIRLI, Gunes UNAL, M. Sakir BASARAN — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

:In global world, the environment has become a scarce resource. Since economics is about how to deal with scarce resources, environment and economics are interrelated with each other. On the other hand it is also clear that economics which creates both positive and negative externalities, affects the environment. For this reason, it is not possible to except environmental problems from the economics. Today some socio-economic activities like increasing consumption based on shopping malls, urban regeneration, fast population growth and etc. have being created environmental cost.

One way of using economics is to ensure that the costs and the benefits of environmental measures are well balanced. Although it is difficult to estimate costs and benefits, there is an increasing demand that this is should be done before the economical activity.

Economic and environmental objectives are often perceived as being contradictory. It is believed that a choice must be made between one and the other and that cannot be achieved concurrently. To change this perception, some measures should be taken on both national and international level. At this point, an efficient environmental auditing is being important day by day to ensure environmental economics.

Expansion for Who, Markets or The Poor?

Selcuk KENDIRLI, Sedat KUSGOZOGLU, M. Sakir BASARAN — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

In this study we examine the impacts of expansionary monetary policies executed by the Federal Reserve on poverty in the United States of America. It has been discussed in various studies that the Fed’s expansionary monetary policies create a less positive impact on economy as a whole than financial sector. In this study, the expansionary effects of expansionary policies on the poor living in America will be discussed. The main thesis of the study is that the poor living in the United States benefited less from expansionary monetary policies than either financial sector or the US economy as a whole. When discussing the thesis of the study both employed and unemployed poor will be discussed. Therefore, it will be questioned that the decrease in the unemployment rate is the indicator of the fight against poverty.Indicators such as indices and interest rates in the financial markets, and indicators such as growth rates and unemployment rates in the overall economy are regarded as essential indicators but as for poverty it’s hard to find such regarded indicators. Unfortunately, there are not too many statistics about the poor living in the United States in the reports of the international organizations. Thus the main trouble of the study is that international comparisons are almost impossible. Therefore, various indicators produced by the U.S. government agencies of various indicators will be used in this study.

Factors Affecting Mobile Tagging Awareness; A Research on Social Media Consumers

Kübra DALDAL, Sabiha KILIÇ — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of the study is to identify the factors affecting awareness of mobile tagging on social media. The study assumes that the mobile tagging awareness levels of social media consumers are high. As a result of the literature review made in the scope of the purpose and assumption of the study, it was identified that the variables used in the measurement of brand awareness levels are recognition, remembering, being first in remembering, brand dominance, brand knowledge and brand opinion. A conceptual model showing the relation between these variables and mobile tagging awareness levels of social media consumers and hypotheses connected to this model were developed and a survey form, loyal to the relevant literature, was prepared in order to obtain the data necessary for the analyses. The universe of the study covers the consumers who are members of social media sites Facebook, Twitter and Linked In. For the analysis of the data obtained as a result of the survey conducted, descriptive statistics containing percentages and frequencies, factor analysis and Pearson’s Correlation Coefficient was used in the analysis of the hypotheses.

Including the monetary part in macro accounting: A ‘modern’ approach to the macroeconomic accounting

Onur TUTULMAZ — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Economic output is placed at the heart of the macroeconomics. To calculate the output one needs to achieve simplifying a high level complexity of economic relationships to form a system. On the flip side, the model should be enough elaborated to be able to reflect the important relationships. In this manner, the classical macroeconomic identity as Keynes suggested is simple enough to understand the main elements but it does not show the financial parts of transactions. Not having the monetary part of the economy it lacks the coherence. With the financial and economic crises getting more frequent, more endeavour to build a more inclusive and coherent macroeconomic system has been observed. However, there are large variety in different options of simplifying and simulating complex relationships among the real and monetary part of the modern economies. Our paper tries to set an analysis comparing some of the recent prominent ideas in building balance sheet and transaction flow matrix in regard to macroeconomic accounting system. We can conclude the new achievement of including the monetary transactions in the frame causes a compromise from the simplicity for a coherent and more complete picture of macro economy.

Regional Economic Growth; Socio-Economic Disparities among Counties

Salih Özgür SARICA — Sat, 20 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

State level economy has always been relying on its major metropolitan area’s economic success. So, such metropolitan agglomerations have been considered the only agents that can foster the state’s economic standing as if other economic places do (or may) not have significant contribution to the regional economy. In contrast, as some major cities enhance their economic well-being and agglomerate in specialized sector, the rest of the region lose their economic grounds or stay constant by widening the economic gap among cities. Therefore, an institutional approach can help to establish new regional arrangements to substitute all economic places to coordinate each other and succeed the economic growth as part of state government by reducing the disparities. In this sense, this study builds upon the inquiry that seeks the impacts of some economic disparities among economic places (counties) on the performances of state level regional economy.

The development of ethics in business and the importance of human and intellectual capital

Madalina Epure — Fri, 03 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0300

The development of ethics in business and the importance of human and intellectual capital

The municipality as a source of information?

Roman Vavrek, Ivana Kravčáková Vozárová, Martina Cehlárová, Ivana Ondrijová — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

The municipality as an entity of the local government and disposes defined rights and obligations, which are governed by the special regulations. In accordance with Act no. 211/2000 Coll. on free access to information, the municipality is mandatory publish and make available information that this Act also more specify. This paper focuses on availability of information from websites or other available sources. The basic set was represented by 91 municipalities of Prešov district, in which were surveyed a total of 75 data (6 identification and 69 financial). Within the implemented questioning, we can conclude especially the availability of identification data, for which there are multiple sources (eg. number of inhabitants). Overall, however, the municipalities did not provide the requested information, when up to 27 municipalities did not provide more than 5 data (including 3 identification). One of the outcomes is also a proving of small correlation between the volume of data obtained from the municipality and the number of its inhabitants, respectively the distance from the district town.

An Opinion on Strategic Directions for an Economy in the Capitalist Periphery: The Case of India

Sorab Sadri — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

This paper is based on sixteen years of intensive examination and research into three Industrial Sectors (manufacturing, process and technology) of Western India and all observations contained herein are born out of and relate directly to those sectors. The premise upon which we stand is that if business ethics and corporate governance co-exists then with proper HR interventions a value centred corporate culture will very likely emerges and the journey towards achieving organisational excellence becomes that much easier. In the postgraduate textbook entitled Organisational Excellence through Business Ethics and Corporate Governance the authors had begun by defining ethics and stating that ethics was the precondition for generating value centred corporate cultures? They then delved deep into what ethics entrails and how it impacts the organisation as well as the individual within it. Thereafter they went in to the concept of Corporate Governance, defined it, viewed how it developed, examined how it was practiced overseas and then how it came to India. In this paper the authors attempt to show how good governance is based on ethics and how those who head the functions of People Management, Company Secretary, and Accountancy (cost and chartered) can gainfully use it for realising the larger interest of the organisations they belong to. To that extent, this paper is just what the title suggests: an opinion on the subject based on ongoing research

Virtual teams and E-leadership in the context of competitive environment - Literature review

Ioana Manole — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Globalization, accelerated movement of goods, technology and information transformed society in recent decades in unprecedented ways. In the context of a generation that focuses on continuous innovation and creativity at the highest levels, ability to lead and motivate people represents one of the best qualities of a manager, regardless of the activity. Unprecedented growth of competition, the need to reduce costs by automating continuous processes and create a competitive advantage in a market where the supply of goods and services is similar are forcing companies to put increasing emphasis on human resources. As part of creating competitive advantage, organizations relocate and create virtual teams in order to reduce costs, but keep the quality of the products or service, but they self-expose to risks if the virtual teams are not managed efficiently.

The present article aims to explore new directions for leadership competencies in virtual context, reviewing the basic team characteristics from the traditional environment through new requirements based on virtual experience particularities.

Management of Innovative Projects through Agile Technology

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis, Rocsana Tonis (Bucea Manea ) — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Because of the globalization and the evolution of internet and technologies, nowadays the innovation is associated with open collaboration conducted by a legal framework. The paper analyses the methods that allow a better management for innovative projects and focuses on agile projects within a technological network.

Evolution after 1990 of the Legal Framework with the Incidence on the Managerial Ethics of the Romanian Firms

Laurentia Georgeta Avram — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Firms with an ethical behaviour, which satisfy the conditions of morality, namely to respect applicable law articles, have certain characteristics: “balance between profit and ethics; ethical values underlying the daily behaviour of individual actions; penalty system which provides penalty and correction actions by unethical nature; set of values that involves treating others with respect and honesty as you want and to be treated; manufacture and marketing of the products so that you are be thankful if you use them; treating the environment as it would be your property”.

In Romania, although the law has improved methodologically according to the European Directives, but problems arise in its implementation. The Commission report to the European Parliament and the Council on Progress in Romania under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism {SEC (2008) 2539} show that Romania continues to face important difficulties in the functioning of its judiciary and fighting the corruption. In 2013, the political clienteles and corruption have worsened the Romanian state budget, representing, however, the greatest threat to the economic growth (MCV Report - 2013 - Brussels, 30.01.2013 COM (2013) 47 final). What are the solutions? There are the political stability and, not least, that constitutional.

Consumer Attitude and Behavior towards Bio-products in Slovak Republic

Jana Chovancova, Emília Huttmanová — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Bio-product market is very challenging and developing rapidly. Consumers have raised great interest in healthy and tasty diet with high nutritional compounds, confidence in food safety, environmental and animal welfare concern and also sustainability. The aim of this paper is to analyze consumer attitude and behavior as well as the factors influencing purchasing behavior when deciding to buy bio-products or their substitutes. The essential part of the article presents the partial results of the research, which was directed to consumers buying bio-products in Slovakia.

Open source MySQL Browser for Open Innovation

Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract. Our purpose is to cross-compile MySQL driver source code for Linux on Windows architecture using a tool chain in order to build a neutral valid graphic interface on 32 bits. Once achieving this goal we could say that every possible Open source application can be built and run on Windows with maximum efficiency concerning costs and resource. This browser is an example of open innovation because its source code is free for anybody willing to develop new software apps for business and uses only Open source tools.

Foreword

Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea) — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Foreword

Recycling of the MSW in the Slovak Republic

Mariana Dubravská — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

The Paper aims at recycling of the MSW in the condition of Slovak Republic. Waste management is facing big criticism in Slovakia. It is one of the environmental policies that is written in political strategies but not taken seriously. Environmental policy has not been given any priority in the government for many years. The changes came together with EU membership. Standard scientific research methods included synthesis, analysis and comparative method

Few Aspects Regarding the Building of the Rule of Law

Alexandru Florin Magureanu — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Delegating the sovereignty from the citizens to the Government is necessary, to a certain degree, in order to ensure the efficiency of the constitution and the separation of powers, as well as the process of lawmaking. However the complex structure that we now call a “state” and that already seems to have reached its limitations is often perceived as a cold, impersonal structure, in which citizens are becoming only an insignificant part, an interchangeable wheel in a grand design. Thus the decision tends to become more distant from the citizens, than it was in the Greek democracy for example. The new means of communication, especially the Internet, give the citizen the possibility to be closer to the decisions taken by the legislator. The building of a “virtual agora” in which citizens are asked to participate directly to their own governing seems an achievable dream. Main difficulties towards such an ambitious goal are no longer of a technological nature, but of transforming the traditional law making process, the somehow rigid essential characteristics that the rule of law must have, with the direct exercise of sovereignty, by the citizens, if not in all matters, at least at a local, administrative level.

Intellectual Capital in Enterprises and a Model Study in an Industrial Zone

Selcuk Kendirli, Sabiha Kilic, Hulya Cagiran Kendirli — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Intellectual Capital in Enterprises and a Model Study in an Industrial Zone

Abstract

The study mainly consists of two parts. The first part includes theoretical knowledge, the second part includes application-oriented information.

In the theoretical part of the study, intellectual capital and SMEs are emphasized in general. In the application-oriented part of the study, a field research will be done for Corum SME. In this study, the demographic structure of Corum SMEs, intellectual capital structure and financial performance of this structure will be evaluated. The resulting data will be analyzed in this context. The businesses operating in the Organized Industrial Zone of Corum and those matching the definition of SME will be considered within the research scope. Surveys will be applied by interviewers face to face and each survey will be evaluated individually. After the evaluation, a model will be proposed.

The aim of our study is to investigate the relationship between components of intellectual capital in SMEs and business performance. For this reason, a survey will be conducted for SMEs. Since the results of the study will be shared with scientific circles and the public, they will prove to be guiding for Çorum SMEs.

Social Innovation Role in Creating a Methodological Framework Adapted to Reality

Mariem Kchaich Ep Chedli, Teodora Bianca Floricel, Larisa Mihoreanu — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Innovation remains a complex concept that can’t be analysed and researched by ignoring the definition and influences of all aspects and interactions which were identified in the innovation cycle. Consequently the paper initiate the development of a modern methodological framework to be applied for analysing business social innovations in its continuity to be used by companies to adapt their activities to the current market demands. These innovations are intended for running innovative company, with employees ready for new ideas. The research development has taken into analyse several approaches: the concept of social innovation, the manner of which social innovation can be analysed, focusing on methodological aspects and the third part presents the conclusions. Given the present economic crises effects, its societal and social consequences in a reduced interest for applied social innovation, people tend to choose not making changes in their life and work despite new and innovative ideas; this can be taken as an approach for to avoiding risks and activity disruptions. As results our expectations merge within the idea that a complex society requires complex answers at all problems and personalised applications of any new theory or idea. Therefore the purpose of the paper is to propose concrete ideas of social innovation that can be easily put into practice.

Empirical Investigation of Industrial Management

Elenko Zahariev — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0300

The paper is devoted to an aspect in the sphere of management – business priorities of industrial management in XXI century. In modern times the actuality of treated problems is mainly laid into the necessities of the real management practice in industrial organizations and the need theoretical and applied knowledge to be offered to that practice which would allow it methodologically right and methodically correct to implement the corresponding changes in management of a concrete organization. Objects of analyses and evaluations are some fragmented approbations of theses using the corresponding instruments. The characteristic features of the organizations’ profiles and the persons interviewed participated in the investigation are summarized. The determining approaches for Bulgarian organizations are considered too.

On the basis of the critical analyses the fundamental tasks are drawn which are inherent to contemporary industrial managers. Attention is paid to key management functions for an effective managerial process. An analysis of managers reaching the best results in industrial management is presented as well as when they are reached. Outlined are also specific peculiarities of industrial management in theRepublicofBulgariaand parameters of the level of productiveness in conditions of business globalization and priority forms in marketing of the ready product / service in XXI century. The results of the launched idea for the necessity to create a new International management architecture (NIMA) are determined – structure and structure defining parameters. The results of the investigation of main business priorities in industrial management are commented as well as expected problems in the process of functioning of industrial organizations in XXI century. At the end the corresponding conclusions are made in respect to the techniques used in determining effectiveness of industrial management in Bulgarian organizations.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 00:00:00 +0300

Foreword

Estimation and valuation in accounting

Cicilia Ionescu, Floarea Georgescu — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0200

The relationships of the enterprise with the external environment give rise to a range of informational needs. Satisfying those needs requires the production of coherent, comparable, relevant and reliable information included into the individual or consolidated financial statements. International Financial Reporting Standards IAS / IFRS aim to ensure the comparability and relevance of the accounting information, providing, among other things, details about the issue of accounting estimates and changes in accounting estimates. Valuation is a process continually used, in order to assign values to the elements that are to be recognised in the financial statements. Most of the times, the values reflected in the books are clear, they are recorded in the contracts with third parties, in the supporting documents, etc.

However, the uncertainties in which a reporting entity operates determines that, sometimes, the assigned or values attributable to some items composing the financial statements be determined by use estimates.

Management Strategies and Environmental Accounting in Economic Entities. A Contribution to Sustainable Development

Cicilia Ionescu, Ramona Chivu, Marin Chivu — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Abstract: The economic transactions made in an causes interactions with the environment, in some cases occurring adverse environmental effects. Progressive degradation of the natural environment and increasing social concern before this event, converted protect the environment in one of the most important strategic actions amendment requiring entities to include consideration of environmental issues.

The general objective of this study is to analyze business practices related to environmental issues, both in its accounting treatment and environmental management strategies to entities that perform activities of environmental degradation.

Harmonization of accounting in the process of globalization of economic activities

Floarea Georgescu, Cicilia Ionescu — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Abstract. Once with the Romania adhering at the European Union the public accounting system was transformed and adapted according to the requirements imposed by the international public sector accounting standards (IPSAS).This fact had imposed the appearance of legislative norms and provisions adapted to the actual requirements, by taking into account the growing and complex level of economic activities where the irreversible process of globalization takes place.

The changes due to the economic politics, especially the new configuration of the international economic relations, relations characterized by an intense and irreversible process of globalization, have conducted to the implementation of a unitary and uniform legislation, particularly for the member states of EU. The accounting reform has begun through the harmonization of legislation according to the requirements and provisions of International Accounting Standards and European Directives.

The ampleness and the rapid rhythm of informational society’s development have implicitly leaded to the development of accounting information’s importance and dimension. The decisive role of the accounting information had conducted to the accentuated growth of the interest, manifested at all informational society’s level, from the development of activities in financial and economical domain point of view.

The accounting normalization process imposed the development of norms and provisions necessary to the drawing up of accounting documents, by defying methods and a specialized terminology, applied in the activity of entities and accounting specialists.

Quality of life: a multifaceted approach A review of “Measuring Equitable and Sustainable Well-being in Italy” by Enrico Giovannini and Tommaso Rondinella

Viciu Tania Georgia, Antoniu Ovidiu Balint, Carmen Eugenia Costea — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0200

The article constitutes a multifarious approach to describing the main directions provided by international bodies and scholar for measuring individual and national well-being. Constructing their analysis from a statistical point of view the authors describe and examine the quality of life framework built since the ‘40s. The focus point of the study is represented by the measures undertaken by Italian National Institute of Statistics (Istat) in order to provide a fair and harmonized measure of quality of life. Giovannini and Rondinella’s work stands out due to the fact that it provides a very well documented exploration for the well-being measurements.

Actual cash financing situation of SMEs in Romania and further recommendations

Rocsana Tonis (Bucea-Manea), Radu Bucea-Manea-Tonis — Sun, 30 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0200

The world is experiencing a revolution in the digital and mobile technologies, with more information available more quickly and for more media than ever before. In this context, SMEs can turn to cloud solution. Although the advantages of using the cloud are compelling for SMEs still involves financial costs. In Romania the rate of access to funds is very low. In this context, SMEs need additional assistance to obtain funding.

Values as Motivation Factors of Economic Behaviour

Martin Lačný — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The article presents a reflection on the structure of values functioning as motivators of economic behaviour. Considering the principle of rational egoism the author describes three segments of crucial values, which seem to be fundamental, as a matter of the contemporary Euro-American economic value system – freedom and justice; responsibility and confidence; progress, prosperity and rationality. An important methodological basis of presented reflection is the Ethics of social consequences – dynamically developing consequentialist ethical theory, responding to the challenges arising in the field of applied ethics in the framework of efforts to solve practical problems of today's world.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Tue, 24 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

Foreword

Sustainable Quality of Work Life and Job Satisfaction [an Indian Case Study]

Sorab Sadri, Conrad Goveas — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

As HR experts would propound, organizational success is highly dependent on attracting, recruiting, motivating, and retaining its workforce. The quality of work life (QWL) pertains to favourable or unfavourable work environment in keeping employees motivated so as to enable increase per capita productivity. It aims at achieving an effective work place environment that satisfies both the organizational and personal needs and values of employees , promoting well being by job security, job satisfaction, development and thereby helping to maintain a better balance between work and non-work life. The word sustainability is derived from the Latin sustinere (tenere, to hold; sus, meaning up. Dictionaries provide more than ten meanings for sustain, the main ones being to “maintain", "support", or "endure”. However, since the 1980s sustainability has been used more in the sense of human sustainability on planet Earth and this has resulted in the most widely quoted definition of sustainability as a part of the concept sustainable, that of the Brundtland Commission of the United Nations on March 20, 1987: “sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.

Sustainable Economic Development in the Transition Countries, With a Retrospect of the Republic of Macedonia

Aleksandar Nikolovski — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

Sustainable development represents a civilization challenge that should meet the needs of today’s generations without jeopardizing the ability of the Earth to meet the needs of the future generations. This challenge, as an evolutionary process in which the social and economic development and the environment protection are independent, but mutual complementary components demands the solving of several issues

The vision of sustainable economic development is based on the historical, cultural and political development of the countries. There is no unique way of sustainable development for different countries and therefore they cannot be made in the same way.

The transition toward sustainable development represents a social choice that connects the global vision of the local needs and goals. The citizens must participate in the process of sustainable development. They must recognize the role they have in creating problems and finding solutions.

In order to gain a general frame for the assessment of sustainable economic development it is necessary to integrate several methodologies and approaches toward the possible future generations for a quality and healthy life.

One of the ways of assessing the results from the policies and the activities is the use of the principles and indicators according to which it is determined how much the countries work on sustainable development. Part of the indicators are generally accepted, and part are in a modeling phase. A systematic approach is necessary to see whether all indicators are necessary, and which of them are necessary for the assessment of sustainability. The economists do not have problems in executing the objective and quantitative indicators. The sociologists are facing many problems in the execution of indicators because of the immateriality of the life quality. However, the environment experts see problems when they are limited in the execution of indicators.

Sustainable development is much more than a mutual connection between the economy, the law and the ecology in establishing relations between the indicators of sustainable development and the economic development are the basis for creating conceptual link between the different approaches toward sustainable economic development.

The aim of this paper is the implementation of today’s relevant experiences, practices and theoretical knowledge expressed through the changes that are reflected in the life in the Republic of Macedonia:

• Protection of natural resources

• Sustainable production and consumption

• Sustainable sources of energy and

• Following and reporting about the conditions, supported by the following indica-tors:

• Level of citizens’ involvement in the social activities

• Number of companies that have an ecological strategy

• Number of people involved in the planning process

• Number local communities in the Republic of Macedonia, which are eco-logically oriented

• Number of shops that sale home food and organically developed food

• Number of companies for organic production

• Renewable sources of energy in the Republic of Macedonia

• The level of nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere

The elaboration of the final material will go through the following principles: Participation of local citizens. Key segment of the implementation of the Agenda 21; Short-term plans that support the municipalities that environmentally oriented; Local production, which is forced whenever possible;

The oil, coal, gas, water should be saved and renewable sources of energ y should be used instead.

CO2 Embodied in Trade between Poland and Selected Countries

Jan T. Mizgajski — Thu, 19 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

This study is aimed at analysing the carbon embodied in trade flows between Poland and its major trade partners. Calculations are based on the data from the GTAP database for the year 2004. The study uses an input-output analysis, which allows responsibility to be assigned to individual flows for generating specific amounts of emissions in the economy. It is shown that Polish exports contain significantly more embodied carbon than Polish imports, despite the fact that the value of the imports is higher. Moreover, it is found that among the surveyed countries, only three were net importers of carbon emissions to Poland. Export to Germany is responsible for the most of emissions in Poland. In turn, Poland receives the most emissions from imports from Russia.

Impact of weight indicators of TOPSIS technique in the selected district in the Slovak republic

Roman Vavrek, Peter Adamišin — Thu, 19 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The purpose of multicriteria decision models is to help decision maker to evaluate each alternative and to rank them in descending order of performance. This study analyses the concept of Multiple Attribute Decision Making for using in local government area. The aim of this paper is to analyse the concept of Multiple Attribute Decision Making for selecting the most efficient municipality in selected district in the Slovak Republic. Achieving this purpose, TOPSIS technique (in two variants) is used as decision making tools.

Environmental management and its application in the Slovak Republic

Mariana Dubravská — Thu, 19 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The Paper aims at implementation of environmnental management in the condition of Slovak Republic. Systems of the environmental management represent the mean of practical realization of environmental requirements, competitiveness indicator, tool of the sustainable development support and acknowledgement of good environmental behaviour by regulation of the business activities impacts. Standard scientific research methods included synthesis, analysis and comparative method.

Industrial Pollution Regulation in the EU and in Macedonia, Serbia And Croatia

Aleksandar Chavleski — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

Industrial pollution control has substantial impact in the protection of the environment. In the European Union, there’s vast legislation in this field consisting mainly of the Directive on industrial emissions of 2010 aimed at consolidating the so far existing legislation in this field. The new Directive on industrial emissions aims to establish an integrated prevention and control of the pollution arising from industrial activities and it lays down rules designed to prevent or, where that is not practicable, to reduce emissions into air, water and land and to prevent the generation of waste, in order to achieve a high level of protection of the environment taken as a whole. Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia have made significant progress in this field in the recent years as part of their obligations under the Stabilization and Association Process. The purpose of this particular article is to evaluate the degree of alignment and implementation of the environmental legislation in this particular area with the legislation of EU as well its practical application, and to identify the existing deficiencies and necessary steps for action

Assessing the changes in drought conditions during summer in the Republic of Moldova based on RegCM simulations

Vera Potop, Constanta Boroneant, Mihaela Caian — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

We assess the changes in drought conditions during summer in the Republic of Moldova based on the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) calculated from monthly precipitation data simulated by the regional climatic model RegCM3. The RegCM simulations were conducted at a horizontal resolution of 10 km in the framework of EU-FP6 project -CECILIA. The domain was centered over Romania at 46°N, 25°E and included the Republic of Moldova.

Influence of Fertilization System on Wheat Yields in Terms of Global Climate Change

Miroslav Jelić, Olivera Nikolić, D. Knezevic, Nadica Savic, G. Dugalić — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

Over the last few decades, wheat production, both in Serbia and worldwide, has been practiced under characteristic agrometeorological conditions. It has generally been affected by specific strongly marked agrometeorological and climate extremes, most notably extreme temperature and drought events during critical periods in the growing season, which mostly had a negative impact on the growth, development and yield of wheat in Central Serbia.

This paper presents results and discussion on both the potential effect of climate change on winter wheat yield and the possibility to alleviate it through an appropriately adjusted fertilization system.

The present study on the effect of different rates and ratios of NPK fertilizers on grain yield in seven winter wheat cultivars under different (dry and “normal“) conditions during the year was conducted in a long-term field experiment at the Small Grains Research Centre in Kragujevac over a period of seven years (2000/01-2006/07).

Depending on the fertilization treatment, the average yield reduction in dry years showed 50% variation relative to “normal” years. The highest reduction in grain yield and other productive traits of wheat in dry years was observed in the treatment involving nitrogen nutrition, particularly lower application rates. As compared to the non-treated control, the use of complete NPK fertilization having an increased amount of phosphorus resulted in the lowest yield reduction during the dry years that were unfavorable for winter wheat production. The average grain yield reduction in dry years was lowest in wheat cultivar Matica and highest in Kg-100, respectively.

An Exposition of Research Methodology in Management and Social Sciences

Sorab Sadri — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

In writing this paper the author has consciously stood apart from his earlier works and attempted to dispassionately review his own position so that some degree of clarity of thought might emerge in the process. The paper is based on the author’s contribution between 1992 and 2012 to this subject and which has been used as the basis for several doctoral level investigations under the author’s guidance. They had played a major role in helping the author to crystallize his views. To these scholars, therefore, the author’s gratitude is unflinchingly extended. Management has been described as being concerned with and based on the science of decision making and operating from the foundations of the art of decision executing. Hence, research in the area of modern Human Resources Management, especially, is both interesting and challenging having its one foot planted in industrial sociology and industrial psychology while the other placed in supply chain management and organisational restructuring. Hence, the argument of this paper is more relevant to serious research scholars and to those management teachers who wish to pursue rigorous academic research. This is not meant for those in the cut-copy-paste league, which unfortunately is, of late, becoming quite prevalent within the Indian academia.

New Bangalores? The role of Central and Eastern Europe in business and IT services offshoring

Zoltan Gal — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

The paper discusses how the second global shift in business services provision and corporate restructuring open up new offshoring opportunities into Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It explores three issues: First, it builds upon the theoretical framework of the ‘new paradigm of globalization, which considers offshoring as one of the most important globalizing forces of recent time. This results in a shift in global trade, namely from ‘trade in goods’ to ‘trade in tasks’ determined by the changing trends in the division of labour. Second, the paper gives an overview of services relocation into CEE in comparison with its Asian counterparts. As the EU expanded eastwards, the opportunities for European corporations to offshore their business services to these ‘nearshore’ locations increased. Building on the region’s nearshoring advantages such as geographical-cultural proximity and on their multilingual graduate sup ply, CEE is likely to utilise more value added quality-driven BPO and KPO services. Third, the paper examines the implications of offshoring for the home markets in CEE assessing its impact on their locations. It reveals the role of offshoring activities in the metropolitan transformation and discusses the factors that make the capital cities an increasingly attractive option for companies to relocate their services. Despite CEE has taken advantage on the trend supported by the global service delivery models reducing dependency on any single location, its further growth may be influenced by the worsening macro-conditions, and future prospect of the region depends largely on government incentives and on the success of exploiting talent pools offered by its provincial cities.

Research on the Core Competitive Power Elements Evaluation System of Green Hotel

Hui Liang — Thu, 19 Dec 2013 00:00:00 +0200

Green hotel is a new type of hospitality industry development model based on the concept of circular economy and sustainable development. This paper makes an analysis and evaluation of the elements of green hotel core competence, on this basis, constructs the Green Hotel core competitive evaluation index system.The construction of the system is conducive to understand the green hotel’s own competitive advantage objectively, and explore ways to enhance its core competitiveness, providing objective basis for sustainable development of China's Hotel industry.

The Impact of Globalization on Economies of Developed Countries

Lenka Pelegrinová, Martin Lačný — Wed, 04 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0300

The concept of globalization is interpreted by various authors in terms of its importance or content. This article presents results of an analysis of the influence of globalization trends on important macroeconomic indicators of selected countries. An examination of the level of globalization as a quantitative marker was enabled by the KOF Index of Globalization, which provides an indication of the economic, political and social globalization at global level. Research methods included time series analysis, trend analysis and nonparametric regression model (regression of panel data).

Green Trends in the Hotel Industry - Status and Opportunities of SERBIA

Bela Muhi Muhi, Jasmina Stanković, Dušan Jovanović, Rade B. Božović — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0200

So-called "green" hotels that are trying to respect the rules of environmental pollution and reduce it to a minimum have become wide spread recently. The main principle of this trend is to use a variety of methods of responsible hotel operations, to reduce energy, water consumption and carbon dioxide emissions, to take care of the decomposition of solid waste and increase the recycling of waste materials, to use conventional detergents and other chemical agents to the lower measure and replace it by harmless "organic", to prevent or at least reduce the pollution of the environment and, wherever possible to preserve local biodiversity. In this paper, the authors provide an overview of green trends in the hotel industry with a focus on status and opportunities in Serbia.

Why society is a complex problem? A review of Philip Ball’s book – Meeting Twenty-first Century Challenges with a New Kind of Science

Diana Tampu, Carmen Costea — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The 21st century is burdened by a series of dramatic changes and efforts are carried out to find potential solutions to consumerism, access to information, transient climate disequilibria, health care and demographic transformations. A new page in human history will bear witness to the introduction of new ways of thinking, new changes, new relationships and interconnections that transcend states and societies. The moment is ripe for individuals aware of the implications carried by global changes and challenges, to step up and encourage responsibility and sustainable development. Mankind is currently living in a data-rich world, where information is widely dispersed. Nevertheless, extracting the right assumptions and conclusions from the available data proves difficult as numerous social phenomena do not run with clockwork precision as the laws governing the Newtonian universe.

Human awareness and intelligence demand a more responsible approach to all operations and steps should be made in determining the consequences and their impact. The goal of this paper is not restricted to providing a review but also to enforce certain ideas in relation to the complex interactions specific to society and economic activities.

Education of the next generation of managers in context of green economy

Jana Chovancova, Helena Harausová — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0300

This paper deals with the issue of education for sustainable development of the generation of future managers in the context of the green economy. The paper analyses the need for environmental education of graduates in theoretical way who are expected to act as executives and in positions which are defined as Green Enhanced Skills Occupations or shortly Green Jobs and who should be able to apply the tools of environmental protection in a business sector, municipalities or third sector. The essential part of the article presents the partial results of the research, which was focused on finding whether students of economic universities are aware of issue of sustainable development and environmental policy tools, which can help the implementation of green economy in the practice and whether this issue is taught at universities. At the end of the article authors point out the important role of universities in preparing the future managers to work in the green economy.

How Does the Changing Access to Resources Affect the Power and Authority of the Postsocialist Romanian State?

Madalina Epure — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0200

In the past two decades, former postsocialist countries such as Romania have experienced very radical changes in terms of government and resource policy (Swinnen, 1997; Swinnen et al., 1997; Szelenyi, 1998; Turnock, 1998). To make sense of these changes this review paper will make use of recent postsocialist literature, which links the access and control over resources to the exercise of power and authority in the postsocialist state (Berry, 1993; Lund, 2002; Verdery, 2002; Ribot and Peluso, 2003; Sikor, 2006; Sikor and Lund, 2009; Sikor, Stahl and Dorondel, 2009).

The review paper aims to re-trace this line in postsocialist thinking in the relevant literature and show how the concepts of property and access to resources are connected to the crucial concepts of power and authority. It will perform a critical review of the relevant literature and also explore the aforementioned concepts of property, access, power, authority and state.

It will furthermore show how these concepts feed into the formation and consolidation of the Romanian postsocialist state. Since conflicts over property are emphasised by postsocialist researchers (de Waal, 1996; Giordano and Kostova, 1996; Verdery, 1999; Rabinowicz and Swinnen, 1997; Swinnen and Mathjs, 1997; Szelenyi, 1998; Sikor, 2003; Sikor, Stahl and Dorondel, 2009; Dorondel and Sikor, 2009), these are underlined here and thought to be the main thread connecting property and access to resources with power and authority in the new state. More specifically, the paper will reveal how said conflicts force actors to seek the authorization of their property claims at the door of the state. By doing so, they grant the new state the authority to do so again in the future and thereby contribute to the consolidation of its legitimacy.

Essentially this review paper argues that changes to resource access engender conflicts, which in turn lead to the formation of a new social contract between the postsocialist state and its people (Lund, 2002).

Environmental sustainability model and biodiversity preservation in Central Rhodopes

Zlatka Grigorova, Ekaterina Arabsk — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The paper examines the significance, opportunities and ways of biodiversity preservation and sustainable use of natural resources in the central region of the mountain of Rhodopes in Bulgaria.

The proposed integrated model of recommendations embraces the following issues: preservation of rare, in danger of extinction and protected plant and animal species and their habitats; implementation of approved environmentally friendly practices in plant growing and animal husbandry; sustainable use of forest, hunting and fishing resources; knowledge, capacity building and motivation in applying measures for sustainable development.

In fact that model is composed of many components and considers a number of important aspects. Its application will contribute to the sustainable use of natural resources and preserved biodiversity for future generations.

The analysis of the energy intensity of economies by selected indicators of sustainability (Rio+ 20)

Peter Adamišin, Emília Huttmanová — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The aim of this paper is to analyze the status and the development of energy intensity in selected countries of Central and South-eastern Europe. Reducing of energy consumption is one of the ways to ensure not only economic, but also environmental aspects of sustainability.

This paper describes the relationship between economic development and energy intensity of countries, particularly the countries of the selected region.

GREEN MARKETING AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT – EXPERIENCES FROM REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Radnovic Branislav, Milena Ilic, Zoran D. Zivkovic — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

The world must be developed according to the needs of people, but with the obligation of sustainable development as a comprehensive process that depress all aspects of life, at all levels.

Sustainable development is about making models in a qualitative way to meet the socio-economic needs and interests of citizens, while eliminating or significantly reducing the impacts that threaten or harm the environment and natural resources.

Sustainable development of mankind leads to a sustainable society in which man has good control of the planet and responsible custodian of heritage for future generations.

Sustainable development is without a doubt, as a result of the coming dramatic changes requested in all areas of life of every individual. Changes are related to the change in our spending habits (which in itself is already hard enough) and the change of consciousness in the fields of economics, politics and society.

Companies that are self-conscious to environment with potential for business and profits, also realize a significant contribution to environmental protection. These successful companies not only sell products to its customers and thus gain profits, but in the corporate commitment to make decisions for the care of their surroundings. In contrast to conventional producers, the most successful green companies direct their customers, or in advance know what needs to be made and the buyer offers an environmentally friendly product. Green companies are ready to address concerns about the natural environment.

Green marketing is the primary segment of social marketing, because it covers the protection and preservation of the values necessary for survival, existence and development of man as a human being, reflecting the practical support the implementation of the philosophy of sustainable development of mankind.

Green marketing presents important opportunities for industry and economy of the Republic of Serbia. Therefore Serbian companies must re-define the roles of business and products, as well as joint work with government agencies, consumer groups and NGOs. Serbia is becoming aware of environmental issues, but for green marketing businesses, companies, consumers and government still do not pay enough importance.

SOCIALY RESPONSIBLE MARKETING - YESTERDAY AND TODAY

Milena Ilic, Branislav Radnovic, Zoran D. Zivkovic — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Several factors direct the companies to apply a higher level of corporate social responsibility: the increasing expectations of customers, changes in expectations of employees, laws and government pressure, investor interest in the social criteria and changes in supply practices

The basic principles of socially responsible marketing as an ethical business, respect for ecological principles and respect for the legislation. Organizations must ensure that all employees know and observe the relevant laws.

Companies must adopt and make available to the written rules of ethics, to develop tradition of ethical conduct in the company and impose a responsibility to his men to follow ethical and legal guidelines.

By adopting these or similar principles, companies can create opportunities to reduce current and future costs, strengthen competitiveness and market position and achieving greater profits.

In contemporary business, more ecological component is present in the execution of business activities as an important prerequisite for improving competitive advantage and company image. Awareness of the issue of environmental protection in companies has evolved primarily as a result of the influence of customers and various non-governmental and non-profit organizations on marketing orientation of companies, and the requirements for the development of products and services that meet environmental standards and consumer needs.

ECONOMY DEVELOPMENT: BENCHLEARNING

Vanja Malobabic — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Benchlearning like new method integrates efficient methods and human development at a time when such integration is recognized as increasingly vital to organizational succes. It:

-offers practical inspiration on improving quantitative goals

-company performance and competitiveness-by influencing the attitudes of people within the organization

-provides a new method combining the qualities of both the learning organization and knowledge management

-shows how this concept can be applied using case studies and illustrations and the result of pilot project

-describes practical perspectives and tools on management and learning theory.

This work will be invaluable to senior and middle managers, consultants and practitioners and MBA students, as well all those working within organizations that are keen to improve and develop their performance.

The aim is to produce a business strategy which will make organizations work more efficiently.

Different aspects of ‘ the economics of learning’ have been the main content research.

This work answers the question ’how do you know that your operation is efficient?’Benchlearning show that it is possible to move on from pure comparison to benefit from the knowledge and experience of others and create a real learning organization. Examples from a range of organizations including Ericsson show how to monitor efficiency, provide inspiration for a development drive, and illustrate how to influence people’s experience, in combination with the principles of organizational learning.

Benchlearning principles can be applied to almost any group or company to promote a win-win-win situation: employees’ performance improves as they learn to develop, customers gain more value and choice, and owners benefit from a more competitive organization.

URBAN DEVELOPMENT TOOLKIT FOR CLIMATE CHANGE: CRITICAL REVIEW OF STATE INTERVENTION IN PRAXIS

Vladimir Mihajlov — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

This paper aims to review the various forms of state intervention in urban planning, and its purpose is to reconsider guidelines for solving problems in cities, caused by climate change.

After World War II, urban planning was guided by centralized state management, in the scope of progress and social justice. State intervention was recognized as an instrument for creating new models of the city spatial organization. However, because of the new market conditions arising, the policies about Urban Development came in the focus again, in order to control global influences, mainly climate change (the costs of construction, environmental pollution and hazards). It is therefore necessary to return again to the public intervention in urban planning. This will not be easy, because it has to be consistent with democratic freedoms; some of them should be strengthened, and some limited to ameliorate the effects of climate change.

In conclusion, the set of general guidelines is expected, in order to translate the policy measures for climate change mitigation, into the instruments urban development is controlled by. Therefore, the changes in defining of building codes are expected, as well as the standards for energy conservation and land-use control (zoning, taxes and urban regulations, etc.).

ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS CERTIFICATION

Aniko Miler-Virc, Zdravko Glusica — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

ISO 14001 prescribes the requirements for a system, not environmental performance itself. Similarly, certification is of the management system itself, not environmental performance. An audit is not conducted to ascertain whether your flue gas emissions are less than X part per million nitrous oxide or that your wastewater effluent contains less that Y milligrams of bacteria per litre. Consequently, the procces of auditing the system for compliance to the standard entails checking to see that all of the necessary components of a functioning system are present and working properly.

A company can have a complete and fully functional EMS as prescribed by ISO 14001 without being certified. As certification can add to the time and expense of EMS development, it is important for you to establish, in advance, whether certification is of net benefit to you. Although most companies that develop an EMS do in fact certify, there are cases where certification does not add immediate value. Certification is not always beneficial to small and medium sized companies. Certification is not always necessary for companies with one or two large clients with environmental demands who are satisfied that you have a functional EMS (second-party declaration). Whatever decision you make, it is important to remember that just as a driver′s licence does not automatically make you a good driver, ISO 14001 certification does not automatically make your company environmentally benign or ensure that you will continually improve environmental performance. The system is only as good as the people who operate it.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE RISK MANAGEMENT IN SERBIAN INLAND WATERWAY TRANSPORT

Todor Backalic, Marinko Maslaric — Sat, 22 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Climate changes require special attention and global monitoring. Impacts on nature and industry are increasingly evident. Water transport could be the backbone of the future European combined transport system. Unfortunately, risks in water transport are perhaps an under researched area and consequently, this article outlines a rationale, why it is necessary to develop competence about risk in water transport. The development of the cargo transport in river traffic depends directly on technical-exploitative characteristics of the network of inland waterways. Research of navigational abilities of inland waterways always comes before building ships or making a transport schedule. Navigation characteristics of rivers have to be determined as precise as possible, especially from the aspect of determination the possible draught of vessels.

River transport due to their operational business and environmental conditions faced with several risks having different degrees of consequences. Current risk assessment methods for water transport just consider some dramatic events. We present a new method for the assessment of risk and vulnerability of water transport where river depth represents a crucial part. The analysis of water level changes on Serbian rivers during the last sixty years was done.

Marketing Sustainable Retail Development

Dragan Ilić, Jasmina Stanković — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

One of the primary benefits of sustainable retail over the long run has to be the marketing gain from having something other competitors do not: lower operating costs, a more socially responsible public profile, ease of gaining planning approval for new projects, better access to certain investment pools, higher rents (in the case of developers), ease of recruiting and retaining key people. Each of these benefits needs marketing and public relations support; each benefits from a clear and consistent corporate message that promotes sustainable retail.

To date, there are very few retailers or developers who have championed sustainability long enough, consistently enough and with enough actual demonstration of changes in standard operations to gain the benefits of green marketing, but the very paucity of examples serves to underscore the point: the green marketing space is wide open for large retailers and developers.

What would be the marketing steps that a company could take to benefit from its “sustainability focus?” The key to any marketing program is to differentiate a company’s actions from those of competitors and to do it along lines that its various stakeholders care about. This practice of differentiation is often expressed as “finding a difference that makes a difference, to someone who makes difference to you.”

For retail developers, the first differentiator should be to attract more and better tenants to all of their centers, tenants who value lower operating costs and the developer’s program of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility.

“Green Pack” in Function of Green Marketing as a Form of Social Responsibility in Serbia

Saša Raletić, Dragana Beljanski — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

Green marketing is defined as a partnership of all interested stakeholders to sustainable development. This form of marketing is a relatively new form of social responsibility in Serbia and as such it is subject of this paper. The necessity of integration of green marketing in a social responsible behavior is justified by the fact that purely commercial marketing business ignores the possible conflict between short-term desires and long-term benefits of market entities and society, with regard to global environmental problems. The laws are the lower limits of business and the community social responsibility, which includes green marketing, a higher level. Whereas the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia in May 2009 adopted 16 laws on environmental protection, that is called the “Green Package”. Laws were passed with the aim of regulating the business and social responsibility and green marketing and development. The aim of this analysis is the “Green Package” as a basis for application of green marketing in Serbia. The work will result in efficiencies that are realized by applying the law of “green package” and point to existing gaps.

Green banking

Maja Drobnjaković — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

There is an urgent need to march towards “low - carbon economy”. Global challenges of diminishing fossil fuel reserves, climate change, environmental management and finite natural resources serving an expanding world population - these reasons mean that urgent action is required to transition to solutions which minimize environmental impact and are sustainable. We are at the start of the low - carbon revolution and those that have started on their low - carbon journey already are seeing benefits such as new markets and customers, improved economic, social and environmental performance, and reduced bills and risks. Green investment banks offer alternative financial services: green car loans, energy efficiency mortgages, alternative energy venture capital, eco - savings deposits and green credit cards. These items represent innovative financial products.

Improvement of wastewater treatment by use of natural coagulants

Jelena Prodanović, Marina Šćiban, Mirjana Antov — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

An activated sludge and other organic sludges from wastewater treatment processes are usually anaerobically digested prior to application on land. The purpose of digestion is to convert bulky, odorous sludges to relatively inert material that can be rapidly dewatering. The important benefit of this process is a biogas production, too. It is proper to enlarge primary sludge production in a primary settler by adding some coagulation aids, with aim to increase a biogas production, as much as possible. The most common coagulant is alum, but presence of large quantities of aluminum salts in sludge has a harmful impact on digestion and digested sludge application. Some natural coagulants, that have a numerous advantages, can be used instead of alum. Natural coagulants could be extracted from a different plant material, and considering the fact that they are of organic nature, the biogas yield can be enhanced by their presence. A plant material that remains after extraction can be used as a feed. The aim of this paper is a consideration of potential environmental benefits of substitution of alum by natural coagulant extracted from common bean seeds in sewage wastewater treatment process.

Monitoring of Sun’s Uv Radiation and Stratospheric Ozone Layer Thickness over the Region of Novi Sad (Serbia)

Zoran Mijatović, R. Kobilarov Kobilarov, B. T. Vujičić, D. T. Mihailović — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

The results of the Sun’s UV radiation and stratospheric ozone layer thickness over the region of Novi Sad (Serbia) are reported. Monitoring the UV radiation and stratospheric ozone layer thickness started in 2003 and 2007 respectively. Results recorded during these years have been analyzed. Upon these analyses it can be concluded that during observational period, the significant difference in daily maxima of the UV radiation recordings or ozone seasonal maximal values from year to year, has not been detected. Obtained results are graphically depicted.

Environment Protection as a Presumption of Sustainable Development

Jelena Premović, Tamara Premović — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0300

Rapid economic growth and irrational use of natural resources in the last decades of the XX century have influenced the changes in the environmental sphere and to specific environmental problems. These processes in the global economy and society, caused a disturbance of the environment by increasing pollution of the environment.

Emerging problems of the entire human society can be solved by applying the concept of sustainable growth and development and raising awareness about the necessity of implementation of basic environmental standards in business. In order to reduce the harmful effects of production processes on the environment and to help meet the objective of sustainable development outlined at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio De Janeiro in 1992 the ISO 14000 Standards were created.

The essence of sustainable development is responsible development that meets the current needs a way to rationally use natural resources to ensure meeting the needs of future generations and environment protection.

Foreword - (reviewers’ view)

Sorab Sadri — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0300

It is indeed a singular honor to be asked to write this Foreword for a prestigious journal like JEDEP that
has now come out with its fifth issue.
I would like to share a thought that came to me as I was reading the abstracts. When you are
presented with a bouquet of flowers all of the same hue and color it is beautiful. But when the flowers are
in various colors but yet of the same biological genre this beauty is enhanced. That is true of this issue of
the journal and the contribution of the authors as well. To begin with, for a person who has been looking
into organizational excellence and business sustainability for the past two decades, this cluster of essays
made delightful reading...

Foreword

Elsa de Morais Sarmento — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0300

The entry into a non-expansionary phase of the economic cycle, caused by the financial and economic
crisis raised serious budgetary constraints to most countries since 2009, and reopened a debate that
reconsiders the institutions and rules governing the functioning of markets. However, even in times of
crisis, it is fundamental not to neglect the growth potential of policies that promote green and sustainable
development, especially when the global landscape is being reconfigured by new technological paradigms,
a new set of players and a high degree of uncertainty...

E.Wayne Nafziger - ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, 5TH Edition, Cambridge University Press, UK, 2012

Manuela Epure — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

Interested readers can take a look inside of the book at:

http://books.google.ro/books?id=bGxVzEdae7UC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Economic+Development,+Nafzi
ger&source=bl&ots=qKaeX4KrqA&sig=2wpgv971Igh0DUJrcz4EH--
TzXE&hl=ro&sa=X&ei=TGVlUJdGzdmyBv2_gdAI&ved

The Value of Decentralisation in Wastewater Management: Gauteng Province Case Study, South Africa

Cornelius Chris Reynders, Harmony Musiyarira, Prvoslav Marjanovic — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

In a semi-arid water scarce country like South Africa, the efficient use of limited water resources and measures to extend the service value of these resources is a prerequisite for achieving sustainable development.

The conventional supply-sided management approach to water supply causes increased wastewater generation with accompanied increased pollution loads requiring higher levels of mitigation environmental pollution. Where disposal of wastewater treatment effluent takes place in rivers and natural water bodies, the lack of adequate natural compensating capacity of such water bodies typically result in severe ecological damage of the aquatic environment. With a shift of emphasis to a sustainable demand side management approach (as opposed to a supply side one), the avoidance of water wastage and high wastewater generation represents both resource conservation and environmental protection friendly approaches and contribute to overall sustainability. The integrated nature of water supply and wastewater management systems require an approach that considers these systems holistically. A new paradigm for water management is therefore needed to ensure that the issues of waste disposal and pollution are dealt with in a sustainable manner taking into account the emerging objectives of modern society for resource conservation and environmental protection.

A balance therefore has to be found between the uses of additional fresh water resources as a means of satisfying en ever increasing water demand on the one hand and alternative unconventional resource exploration and employment, without the risk of depletion of natural available fresh water resource flow, irreversible harm to the environment and social and economic constraints.

This paper explores wastewater and grey water reuse as unconventional resources in a qualitative manner within this balancing equation. It further proposes a methodology for deriving monetary indicator values for wastewater reuse by internalising negative environmental impacts. This is achieved through application of Lagrangian optimisation of the treatment plant production function (output distance function) for deriving marginal prices of contaminant removal and resulting avoided pollution.

Ethic of responsibility and the future of nature

Miso Kulic — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

The question of science is the one that concerns the very foundations of our reality and, in addition to that, it is a question that deals not only with our natural reality, with what was once called the "natural nature", but also with social and technological reality produced by science itself, which for a long time now is our second nature. Science has become not only the instrument by which we try to understand the reality of nature, through the process of creating reality, forming and transforming nature, it has become the reality in which we live itself, and without which, as it seems, we could hardly go on living. However, even though science as an instrument for understanding reality has become the reality which we have produced ourselves, we are still, paradoxically enough, far from answering the essential question: What is science?

Since the question of science is at the same time the one of the production of reality, it is obvious that the question "what is science?" does not amount to a self-evident question asked by a scientist regarding his scientific field. It is not only a question concerning the nature of scientific knowledge, or of scientific methods of scientific results achieved. What is at stake here is the insight concerning social and political usage of science, that the reality, which is produced by the sciences, reveals to us even in the forms of its deification, manipulation, ideologization and virtualization. Is persevering in its science-Enlightenment paradigm of human emancipation or does it, on the wave of critical self-reflection spanning all the way through the 20th century, more and more question, as Paul Feyerabend (Against Method) does, the extent of constraints imposed on free thought which it produces itself? Of course, the other side of the questioning itself belongs here too: scientific progress can be evaluated regardless of its consequences, of the dangerous threats it poses to our future: nuclear annihilation, ecological pollution or climate changes which endanger the survival of the living world ?

Adapting of Economic Development to Climate Change

Sandra Zajmi — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

Climate change is the most complex challenge that humankind has had to face in recent times. With each successive generation, redressing the imbalance will be more difficult. Diverse and complex requirements of maintaining life on Earth, collectively called the environment, can be caused both by natural, geophysical factors, and anthropogenic or social factors.

There is a lot of evidence that the economic activity of mankind is a major anthropogenic factor in current turmoil of the environment on Earth. Since the middle of the nineteenth century, the anthropogenic impacts on the environment are becoming increasingly important, and undoubtedly dominate. Of all forms of economic activity the greatest impact have the activities related to energy production and use in various sectors. The link between environmental conditions and economic activities has become the subject of separate scientific disciplines that are dynamically developing in the second half of the twentieth century.

Economic growth of the economies, especially of developed countries, in seventies and eighties of the twentieth century, drew attention to the growing international economic, political and ecological interdependence, particulary in terms of its ecological outcome. The future economic growth of all countries on the planet thus becoming a global problem.

In this context, more attention must be paid to the relationship between population, resources, and environmental outcomes on one side, and long-term sustainable economic development on the other side. In the recent time there have been noticeable the increasing number of problems that are becoming global: economic, social and energy problems, and contain ecological basis. Human decisions and acivities are dependent on ethics and view of the world, and this view depends on the culture, tradition, achieved level of development and so on.

Therefore, it is necessary to adjust economic development to climate change, where a great importance plays a cooperation between the public and private sector.

Sustainable urban structures to challenge climate change

Emil CREANGA, Maria DUDA — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

Public spaces within the city in all their form of different types - streets, boulevards, squares, plazas, market places, green areas - are the backbone of cities. Over the centuries buildings defined the shape and quality of public spaces, valorising them in various ways.

The post-modern development of urban form generated a great number of “urban spaces”, where there is no longer correspondence between architectural forms and social and political messages: shopping malls and theme parks, inner public spaces, strip developments etc. Urban sprawl accompanied by loss of agricultural/rural land and its impact on the environment are serious concerns for most cities over Europe. To strike the right balance between inner city regeneration, under-use of urban land in the old abandoned sites and the ecological benefits that accompany the new private business initiatives in suburban areas, is one of the major challenges confronting cities in Europe.

The paper will analyze the complex relations between architecture and public space, in an attempt to understand how traditional urban structures, public and green spaces, squares and streets, could provide orientation for quality-oriented regeneration. Case in point is Bucharest - capital city of Romania - where aggressive intervention in the urban structure during the 1980s disrupted the fabric of the city. The investigation is oriented towards fundamental questions such as: how to secure and preserve sites that serve as initial points in upgrading processes, how to balance private investment criteria and the quality interests of the urban communities.

The major aim is to provide a support for decision making in restoring the fundamental role of public urban space in shaping urban form and supporting community life.

Sustainable energy management - a prerequisite for the realization Kyoto Protocol

Mirjana Golušin, Olja Munitlak Ivanović, Simonida Vučenov — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

Energy management can be defined as the process of planning, directing, implementing and controlling the process of generation, transmission and energy consumption. Energy management is a kind of synthesis of phenomena and concepts of modern energy management (management), or the use of modern settings management in the energy sector. Furthermore, when outlining the basic settings for power management Modern management is based on the assumptions of sustainability and conservation of energy stability for present and future generations. Therefore, modern energy management can be seen as a kind of synthesis of three actuarial sciences: energy, sustainable development and management. Sustainable Energy Management is a unique new concept, idea and approach that require many changes in the traditional way of understanding and interpretation of energy management at all levels. Sustainable energy management concept can not therefore be construed as an adopted and defined the concept, but must be constantly modified and adjusted in accordance with changes in the three areas that define it, and in accordance with the specific country or region where applicable. Accordingly, sustainable energy management can be defined as the process of energy management that is based on fundamental principles of sustainable development.

Consequences of Climate Change for agriculture and nature in the Netherlands

Jeroen Arends — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 00:00:00 +0300

After the publication of the IPCC reports on climate change, the Dutch Meteorological Institute of the Netherlands (KNMI) conducted a study on the consequences of climate change for the Netherlands. Four different scenarios regarding the rise in temperature and their consequences have been developed. Other institutes have elaborated more on these scenarios, making predictions on the effects of climate change on nature and agriculture for the Netherlands. Overall conclusions are that climate change will have dramatic consequences for nature, agriculture and Dutch society in general, being so exposed to rising sea levels. Depending on the scenario, consequences have various gradients of impacts and effects. In general, it is estimated that winters will be softer and wetter, and that summers will be hotter and drier with intermittent torrential rains that can have dire consequences for agriculture and nature. Growing seasons will start earlier and will last longer which could lead to mismatches in species interaction. Species of various kind will suffer the effects of climate change and will disappear from the Netherlands altogether, either through extinction or by moving away north. Other warmth loving species from the south of the Netherlands will move upwards towards the country leading to possible threats to indigenous species.

Decision Making Support in Wastewater Management: Comparative analysis of techniques and tools used in centralized and decentralized system layouts UDK 628.2

Harmony Musiyarira, Cornelius Chris Reynders, Prvoslav Marjanovic — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Wastewater management has been seen primarily as a technical and economic issue but it is now recognised that these are some of the elements in an array of other factors that affect sustainability of wastewater systems. Literature studies point out that municipal authorities have a general and long-standing tradition of using indicators in monitoring performance, reviewing progress and reporting the state of the environment as part of the regulatory enacted compliance. However, they have neglected other critical aspects of use of these indicators such as their input into the planning and decision making process. This research advocates for the use of sustainable indicators in a context based planning approach and the utilisation of Multi Criteria Decision Aid (MCDA) in a two step approach for comparative analysis and assessment of the sustainability of wastewater systems. The overall objective was to develop a methodology for wastewater systems selection and to produce a practical planning tool to aid in decision making for municipalities. Another objective was to provide recommendations for wastewater and sanitation management improvement in the case study area. The methodology consisted of comprehensive literature review, case study analysis, a review of the Decision Support Systems (DSS) in use and the development of the DSS for Gauteng Province. The full spectrum of viable wastewater or sanitation options was incorporated into the DSS. From the sustainability assessments carried out using Multi criteria decision analysis, one result showed that varying degrees of sustainability are obtainable with each treatment technology involved and decentralised technologies appear more sustainable. Based on the local context and indicators used in this research, the DSS results suggest that land treatment systems, stabilisation ponds and ecological treatment methods are more sustainable. One major finding from literature is that no technology is inherently sustainable on its own but is a function of the local context specifics. Since there is so much variation in social and economic needs within the areas; the overall results imply that a differential wastewater management approach should be employed with tailor made solutions resulting for each municipality or certain areas within a municipality.

The Role of Mid-Ranged Universities in Knowledge Transfer in Central and Eastern Europe - Sustainable University Strategies in the Era of Post-Mass Education UDK 378. 4 : 001. 92

Zoltan Gal — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0200

JEL Classification: I23, I28, I25, I21

Irrigation, a Component of the Sustainable Agriculture in North Western Romania in the Context of the Climate Change UDK 631. 67 : 551. 583 (498)

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0200

The paper is based on the researches carried out during 1976-2010 in the long term trial placed on the prelvosoil from Agricultural Research and Development Station Oradea. The main field crops of the area (wheat, maize, sunflower, soybean, bean, potato, sugarbeet, alfalfa) were studied. Based on the soil moisture determination ten to ten days, the soil water reserve was maintained between easily available water content and field capacity on the watering depth. Pedological and strong pedological drought (the decrease of the soil water reserve on watering depth bellow easily available water content, bellow wilting point respectivelly) were registered every year. The use of the irrigation determined the improve of the water/temperature+light (Domuta climate index) report, the increase of the daily and total water consumption, yield gains very significant statistically, the improve of the yields stability and yields quality, the increase of the water use efficiency. The use of the good soil management didn’t worsen the soil structure and the chemical and biological parameters of the soil were improved. The researches sustain the irrigation opportunity for sustainable agriculture in the North-Western Romania.

Тhe Right to a Healthy Climate as a Function of the Right to Life UDK 342.7:502.131.1

Temelko Risteski, Elena Todorova, Sejdefa Džafče, Anita Gligorova — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Objective: To define the concept of healthy climate and in this regard to determine the relationship between the right to healthy environment and right to life, as top human right, from a legal and ethical aspects.

Results: Analysis of international legislation on environment, climate and human rights, and laws on nature protection, environment and other environmental laws of the Republic of Macedonia and other countries of Southeast Europe, based on the facts of climate change, shows that these changes affect the quality of life and therefore the exercise of the right to a healthy life.

Conclusion: The right to life is top human right. All other human rights are subordinate to it. It is healthy climate in which the weather as a meteorological phenomenon is mostly compatible with the physiological states of human organisms, most of the average healthy people, and allows normal physiological functions. Normal physiological functions of the organism has a direct impact on human health. Human health is directly in function of life. It makes life healthy and happy. Only healthy and happy life is a real human life. All the troubles in life can be overcome if the person is healthy. It is a notorious fact. Thus, the right to a healthy climate is in function of the right to life.

Energy potential of Republic of Serbia as an Investment Opportunity UDK 338.48

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0200

Serbia has a big potential to accomplish the goal of making the environment green and comfortable for living. It started with reforms in comprehensive Energy Sector and set up a new Energy Policy in accordance with the EU practice and standards. With new national policy, Serbia became aware of middle-term and long-term strategies for developing of adequate Power Sectors. There were investments into the Network and there are plans for building new and expanding existing transforming stations, building new interconnecting line and making some other investments. Having in mind the cooperation with EU, Service for Electrical Energy Market Development has already prepared wide range of available services related to market and deregulation of network, from requirements for connecting to transmission line to securing balance mechanism, and that makes possible for international Electrical Power market to exist. Since the production system is unable to respond to the demand in certain moments of time and Serbia has to import Electrical Energy, that makes Renewable Energy Sources very attractive for use in Power system. Deficit of electrical power must be covered either by import or by more intensive investments in new production capacities, making Serbian energy sector economically interesting.

Foreword

Manuela Epure — Fri, 12 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0300

Foreword