International Journal of Business and Economic Development

The popular and solidarity economy (PSE) aims to achieve collective well-being through activities based on solidarity. The Amazon region of the Republic of Ecuador is closely linked to extractive activities, which risk affecting the health of local populations and accelerating forest degradation. Furthermore, poverty in this region affects 57% of the population, forcing families to engage in harmful forestry activities with significant environmental consequences. International cooperation, providing financing to promote bioenterprises, has generated sustainable alternatives for these populations. In this context, associativity emerges as a mechanism that generates sources of income for families dedicated to the preservation of forests, presenting itself as a viable solution to this problem. This research aims to determine how the financing of international cooperation influences the associative processes of the PSE, taking as a case study the Association of Wayusa Producers of Limoncocha, Ecuador. This association is part of the " Proamazonía " project financed by the Ecuadorian government and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Data was collected through semi-structured surveys and focus groups with key stakeholders. The results suggest that it is possible to achieve both economic and social benefits through the associative process. These include empowering Indigenous women, integrating them into the production process under fair conditions and preserving local culture. Consequently, this improves the quality of life of families and, at the same time, prevents the expansion of the agricultural frontier, promoting the economic and environmental sustainability of the area.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is a continent-wide free trade area which is expected to pave way for a continental customs union. This article assessed the current state and extent of intra-Africa trade in 2001-2018. The results give insights into the foundation which the current regional economic communities in Africa have put in place regarding intra- and inter-trade linkages. This is a foundation which the AfCFTA would utilise to achieve trade integration in a continent-wide economic integration arrangement that seeks to improve intra-Africa trade. Five regional groups were considered, namely Arab Maghreb Union, East African Community, the Economic Community of West African States, Economic Community of Central Africa States, and the Southern African Development Community. Intra-regional trade intensity index results show that trade within individual regional groups, and within Africa, is oriented towards respective member countries, although there is no evidence of increased inward orientation over time. Inter-regional trade intensity index results show that most regional groups trade intensively with each other, albeit at different levels. With increased market access in the AfCFTA through lower trade resistances between regional groups, inter-regional trade is expected to increase as per the volume of trade criteria in the natural trading partners hypothesis.

Purpose: This study aims to investigate the impact of the human energy crisis on employee productivity, particularly within the IT sector in India. The study also provide recommendations to overcome this crisis and enhancing productivity of employees.
Methodology: Employing a positivist philosophy and deductive approach, quantitative methods were utilized via a cross-sectional survey with a stratified sampling strategy. The sample comprised 65 employees, ensuring reliability and validity through established scales and rigorous statistical analysis.
Findings: The outcomes highlight that human energy crisis significantly impacts employee’s performance. Employees in IT face adjusting to a changing workplace culture, impacting their mental health. This human energy crisis includes factors like stress, workload, burnout, and lack of work-life balance. To avoid burnout and improve workplace, organisations should implement stress reduction techniques, encourage active work, social support, involve staff in decision making, and implement excellence performance management. These policies aim to advance worker autonomy, skills development, and job equity.
Practical Implications: This research contributes to academic literature and provides insights into the human energy crisis, a common issue causing stress, exhaustion, and workload. It suggests that employees prioritise theory well-being over work, and suggests strategies for HR, managers, and administrators to improve employee performance. The data can also be used by the government, as employees work in both public and private sectors.
Originality: The research fills a gap in literature concerning the mediating factors of the human energy crisis and contributes to both academic understanding and practical application in public and private sector workplaces.
 

This paper describes a new approach to financial fraud detection that is informed by both artificial intelligence and machine learning.  It proposes, then tests with a simulated database of transactions, a metaheuristic algorithm based on two-layer deep learning.  Employing a simple adaptation to a basic deep learning model that applies a hybridized honey badger modification, demonstrably higher quality outcomes were obtained than with commonly used competing models.

This systematic literature review investigates the literature and theoretical underpinnings of government support schemes for micro, small and medium scale enterprise (MSME) financing with a focus on the UK's Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS). The review compares these schemes with similar schemes from different countries and regions of the world, especially Australia and India. The review covers 49 papers sourced from ProQuest, Taylor Francis and Scopus databases. The selection was limited to peer-reviewed, full text papers, with the search criteria further defined by source type, document type, age/recency, subject area, and journal publication title. The review indicates that eight major theories are commonly employed in the literature to justify government interventions in MSME equity and debt financing globally. These theories are categorised as demand-side theories and supply-side theories. The demand-side theories include resource-based view, pecking order theory, signalling theory, discouraged borrower syndrome, internal resources theory, and demand-side failures. The supply-side theories are finance escalators, and supply-side failures. The review indicates that the UK’s EIS and SEIS have made significant capital contribution to MSME financing howbeit the schemes require improvement for greater impact. Whereas the UK’s SEIS and EIS are focused on equity financing for MSMEs, similar schemes in other countries are mainly debt financing interventions. Unlike other schemes that focus on correcting either supply-side failure or demand-side failure, the UK’s EIS and SEIS have focused on correcting both supply- and demand-side failures. Overall, the UK government’s Enterprise Capital Fund addresses the UK’s MSME equity gap while providing employment, innovative impacts, and revenue. However, further progress is required to achieve maximum business exits and to enable early-stage private Venture Capital make sustainable system impacts. Verifiable assessment and evaluation criteria might be required for qualifying companies, perhaps including innovative, business viability and competitive advantage criteria, amongst others. Several studies have investigated MSME financing, venture capital and the UK’s venture capital schemes, but not many have compared the UK’s EIS and SEIS schemes with other intervention schemes around the world as undertaken in this review. This research is relevant to policy makers, angel investors, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists. This research is foundational to potential further survey research into the UK’s venture capital schemes.