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The paper unpacks the "black box" of informal institutions and theorizes about the role of informal networks in channeling continuity and change in informal institutions. Specifically, we argue that the persistence of informal institutions depends on the functionalities of the informal networks upon which they rest. When informal institutions are enacted by informal networks that are "relatively affective" and "relatively closed," their persistence is higher than the persistence of informal institutions that are enacted by "relatively open" and "relatively instrumental" networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entrepreneurship scholars often lament the lack of economic growth in contexts of poverty and informality. We propose that this dismal assessment, as well as subsequent prescriptions to address it, flow from a narrow epistemological approach to informality based on absence, where the lack of (Western) market-supporting legal and regulatory institutions explain missing economic growth at the firm level. In contrast, we build a theoretical approach grounded in presence, proposing that a more comprehensive incorporation of existing institutions may reveal less visible, individual level types of entrepreneurial growth occurring in informal economies. To do so, we conceptualize informal economies as institutional interfaces built of "bits and pieces" from market and nonmarket institutions. We propose that the configuration of these interfaces influences the cultural toolkits of inhabitant entrepreneurs, which in turn shapes how they grow in an informal economy. Specifically, we link three dimensions of institutional complexity at the institutional interface (jurisdictional influence, fragmentation, and incompatibility) to three types of growth (direct, dispersed, and disguised) that vary in terms of visibility. Our theory animates understanding of diverse informal economies and the entrepreneurial activity that exists within them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A complementary analysis of social evaluations in informal recycling is performed. • SLCA methodology requires adaptations for informal settings. • Our discussion encompasses adjustments made in each phase of SLCA. The transition towards Circular Economy (CE) is a promising approach to sustainable development that may cause significant social impacts. Despite the benefits of CE initiatives, key players such as informal recyclers face serious social issues such as poverty, lack of social security, and discrimination. Although evaluating social impacts remains a considerable challenge, Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) is recognized as a suitable methodology with a life cycle perspective. While most SLCA experiences are conducted in the formal sector, it is important to consider the informal sector, which plays a crucial role in developing countries. This article presents an analysis of SLCA studies in informal recycling settings in order to identify the challenges and adjustments required for informal settings. The analysis is based on a literature review and a documentary review of a pilot application of SLCA in the informal recycling system in Cuenca, Ecuador. The results show that SLCA requires adaptation to be applied in informal settings. There are particular challenges in delineating boundaries due to the fuzzy nature and variability of informal activities. Tasks such as establishing specific indicators, developing reference scales and data collection, require careful planning and active stakeholder participation. For instance, indicators regarding Fair Salary or Working hours were adapted based on best practices. Furthermore, tasks such as verifying and disseminating results should be included in interpretation phases to generate long-term impacts and influence behaviors. The study underscores SLCA's multidimensional view but highlights the need for further standardization and adaptation for informal sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Kinshasa, chronic crises and lack of access to employment, quality education, and other resources contribute to the social exclusion of a growing number of disadvantaged young people. They are deprived of the possibilities of leading a decent life and alienated from both the market and legitimate authorities. Despite their social, political, and economic marginalization, many of these precarious Congolese youth have proved adept at improvising livelihoods in the informal economy and seek out ways to be agents of social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to explore the prevalence of immigrant entrepreneurship in Ghana's informal economy through institutional theory. Specifically, the study sought to understand how the elements of the institutional theory (norms, culture, and regulations, which form formal and informal institutions) support or discourage immigrant entrepreneurship in the Sub-Saharan African context, with insights from Ghana. It is qualitative research that adopts an in-depth face-to-face interview with 30 respondents. Analyzing the data from the interviews, the key findings are immigrants' inability to find paid jobs, failure to gather sufficient funds to operate in the formal sector, and the willingness to use innate ability. The Ghanaian culture of hospitality and the government's inability to implement trade regulations have been an enabler to the prevalence of immigrant entrepreneurship in Ghana. The legal frameworks that prohibit immigrants from participating in retailing, especially in the informal economy of Ghana, are well known by immigrant entrepreneurs, albeit it has yet to adhere. Therefore, there is a call for policy measures to address the weak institutional framework, which encourages disregard for the country's laws. Immigrant entrepreneurs who wish to remain in doing business in Ghana must obey the rules or suffer the punishment thereof. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Monopolies constituted one of the main institutions to control the economy from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic of Turkey. Over time, monopolies' roles changed from revenue sources for the sultans' treasuries to assigning foreign debts to debtors, creating a Muslim-Turkish bourgeoisie, structuring property relations by commercializing the economy and finally generating revenues for modernization projects. The new Turkish state also used monopolies to raise funds for its radical modernization and state-building projects. This article examines how low-income consumers, producers and traders coped with monopolies via smuggling during the first two decades of the Republic. It argues that most of what was called smuggling were economic survival methods and the continuation of the practices that had a very long pedigree among low-income people to cope with the high prices of monopoly products due to high taxes and high monopoly profit margins. This article lays out a different interpretation of smuggling as 'social smuggling', which lessened the burden of the monopolies over low-income cultivators, traders and consumers. It argues that this informal economy limited the state's extractive capacity and economic interventionism required for modernization projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informed by the capability approach and critical discourse analysis, this article examines how the development of green skills among master craftspersons and apprentices in the informal sector of Ghana could be promoted for cleaner production and sustainable futures. The findings show that inequality and poverty; cyclical policy trap; sectoral green initiatives and the green coordination gap; and limited human resource capacity including uncoordinated informal learning approaches serve to constrain the development of green skills among master craftspersons and apprentices in the informal sector of Ghana. To address these challenges, the current study proposes the development of a framework that (1) harmonises the different sectoral initiatives and strategies on green skills to avoid the cyclical policy trap; (2) expands the current green Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) agenda to include green skills development for individuals in the informal TVET sector; (3) closes the coordination gap in government green initiatives by creating an agency responsible for national green agenda; and (4) creates clear qualification models and strategies for the development of green skills in the informal sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Enrolment of informal sector workers in Ghana's National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is critical to achieving increased risk-pooling and attainment of Universal Health Coverage. However, the NHIS has struggled over the years to improve enrolment of this subpopulation. This study analysed effect of social capital on enrolment of informal sector workers in the NHIS. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 528 members of hairdressers and beauticians, farmers, and commercial road transport drivers' groups. Descriptive statistics, principal component analysis, and multinomial logit regression model were used to analyse the data. Results: Social capital including membership in occupational group, trust, and collective action were significantly associated with enrolment in the NHIS, overall. Other factors such as household size, education, ethnicity, and usual source of health care were, however, correlated with both enrolment and dropout. Notwithstanding these factors, the chance of enrolling in the NHIS and staying active was 44.6% higher for the hairdressers and beauticians; the probability of dropping out of the scheme was 62.9% higher for the farmers; and the chance of never enrolling in the scheme was 22.3% higher for the commercial road transport drivers. Conclusions: Social capital particularly collective action and predominantly female occupational groups are key determinants of informal sector workers' participation in the NHIS. Policy interventions to improve enrolment of this subpopulation should consider group enrolment, targeting female dominated informal sector occupational groups. Further studies should consider inclusion of mediating and moderating variables to provide a clearer picture of the relationship between occupational group social capital and enrolment in health insurance schemes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, in order to improve the fuel economy of the actual application of the engine under multi-operating conditions, an experimental study is carried out on a turbo-charged direct-injection engine based on different pre-chamber structures. The engine used for the study is a four-cylinder turbo-charged direct-injection gasoline engine with different structures of pre-chamber spark plugs. The operating conditions in this study include load characteristics at 2000 r/min and characteristic loads at different speeds, including 3000 r/min, 3200 r/min, and 3600 r/min. With stable BMEP or fully open throttle and pedal, the experiment was conducted by the spark angle scanning method to collect data of engine power, economy, and emission under each condition. It was found that the pre-chamber structure has a direct effect on engine performance, with a clear load demarcation line for its effect. Under the WOT condition, the power of pre-chamber ignition is 1.6% higher than that of conventional spark plugs; at the low load of 2 bar, the economy of pre-chamber ignition is degraded by 6%; at the medium load of 8 bar, the economy of the two is comparable; at the large load of 16 bar, the fuel economy proves advantageous. Compared with conventional spark plugs, the pre-chamber spark angle can be advanced by 2~3 °CA, and the pre-chamber ignition with separate ground electrodes is highly reliable. The emission levels of the pre-chamber spark plugs and conventional spark plugs are comparable at all loads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considering the ongoing, record‐setting migration in the Global South, this paper explores the values, principles and ethical tensions of Venezuelan migrants in the informal economy of Colombia. We found that migrants frequently prefer to stay within the informal economy as a way of preserving their identities, values and principles, rather than adopting those of their new country. This choice sets up ethical tensions for the migrants and their host countries. Our analysis challenges the current policy goals of transitioning migrants from informal to formal economies as a mark of success and inclusion. Instead, we attempt to recognize the migrant voice and their agency capacity through our research using focus groups and applied thematic analysis (ATA) of popular music and narratives. Our findings broaden the understanding of why migrants choose to stay in the informal economy and challenge policy goals that focus on inclusion and integration of migrants into formal economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explains independent Uzbekistan's transformation starting from its integration into the global economy as a primary commodity exporter. It argues that, in line with other resource-rich countries of the Global South, this transformation exhibited two enduring and interlinked features, namely rent-subsidised 'backward' industrialisation and the rise of a vast relative surplus population (RSP). First, the end of collective agriculture expropriated most of the Uzbek rural population from the land, so rents from cotton exports could subsidise 'backward' industries manufacturing for the domestic market. Second, as these industries could only absorb a minority of the population due to their limited (largely domestic) scale of production, the majority was turned into a vast RSP that struggles in the informal sector, including as labour migrants. Third, cotton's replacement by gold and natural gas as the main export commodities laid the basis for the current liberalisation. Still, Uzbekistan endures as a raw material exporter, hence as a 'backward' industrialiser and reservoir of RSP. As such, the paper problematises the transition literature's framing of Uzbekistan as an example of failed reform or successful developmentalism, showing instead how these enduring features of its development paralleled similar dynamics in other raw-material-exporting countries of the Global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the factors that influence the selection and productivity of informal service-oriented family enterprises in Nigeria. Using nationally representative micro-data from the Nigerian General Household Survey (2010–2015), we employed random-effect probit and selectivity-adjusted regression models to estimate and analyze the results. The findings reveal that the location of informal Non-Farm Household Enterprises (NFHEs)–whether home-based or non-home-based—significantly impacts the wholesale, retail, personal, and consultancy service sectors operated by informal NFHEs. This impact remains significant even after accounting for variations in individuals, households, or locational characteristics. Furthermore, when considering selectivity in the earnings equation, we found that home-based informal enterprises exhibit lower productivity compared to non-home-based enterprises, a difference that varies across sectors. Overall, factors such as the gender of business owners, educational levels, geopolitical zones, infrastructure, and business characteristics play a crucial role in determining the locational and productivity disparities among service-oriented enterprises in Nigeria. Key recommendations stemming from this study include addressing gender-based segregation and economic disparities, prioritising financial inclusion for small business development, bridging infrastructure gaps, and implementing policies that acknowledge and bolster the informal sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Italy is characterised by a significant dualistic economy, which also includes an extensive underground sector. The aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between the quality of legislation and irregular employment in Italy. Our contribution consists of two components: the theoretical modelling of the impact of regulatory quality on the informal economy and the empirical validation of the predictions of the theoretical model using data from the Italian region between 2004 and 2019. The results confirm the theoretical and empirical arguments in favour of the need for laws to curb the informal sector. The regions with the highest institutional standards tend to have a lower percentage of irregular workers that fosters and encourages the legality of the labor market. Some robustness tests back up the main conclusions which show how important following rules is for strengthening the internal economy and for lowering the number of illegal workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article suggests a revised perspective for technology policies in Africa, one that focuses more on the direct facilitation of economic production at domestic levels. Up until now there has been a strong tendency for public investment in science, technology and innovation (STI) to be confined to national science councils and higher education bodies with little direct impact on national production. The article argues that STI investment as conventionally understood needs to be supplemented by policies that stress facilitation of its use, an argument also made strongly by a recent World Bank publication and indirectly by UNCTAD in its recently published report on African development. This is likely to be especially important in small-scale and informal sectors and will certainly require support on the part of local and national governments (and aid related bodies). Hopefully we will then begin to enjoy a scenario in which the gross financial inequalities that have beset Africa for so long will begin to be modified to the ultimate benefit of all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) for formal sector workers is held along with regulations, joint commitments, training, and continuous monitoring. This condition cannot be applied for informal sector, so it approaches that can be performed such as activating social support from workers' environment. This study aimed to determine for social support to improve the knowledge, attitude and practice of OHS workers in informal sector. Methods: This study a quasi-experimental with pre-posttest and control group design. Subjects were 90 limestone workers taken by Multistage Sampling from Gunungkidul Regency, Indonesia. Subjects were divided into health promotion by family support and peer support (FS&PS), peer support (PS), family support (FS), and control (C) group with treatment period of one month. Variables were measured using a knowledge, attitude, and practice questionnaire. The obtained data then analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis test and Mann-Whitney test. Results: There was a significant difference (p<0.001) in the knowledge, attitude and practice of OHS in limestone workers. FS&PS group gave the highest score for knowledge variable. There was no significant differences between OHS attitude between FS&PS and FS only (p=0.787). The biggest influence of attitude changes was from the FS group. The OHS practice has no significant differences between PS and C group (p=0.696), while other groups have significant differences. Conclusion: The biggest influence of changes in OHS practice was in the FS group. The combination of FS&PS is more effective in increasing knowledge, while attitude and practice are more effective if involving FS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the work, we prove the presence of chaotic dynamics, for suitable values of the model parameters, for the discrete-time system, composed of two coupled logistic maps, as formulated in Yousefi et al. [Discrete Dyn. Nat. Soc. 5, 161–177 (2000)], which describes two interdependent economies, characterized by two competitive markets each, with a demand link between them. In particular, we rely on the SAP (Stretching Along the Paths) method, based on a stretching relation for maps defined on sets homeomorphic to the unit square and expanding the paths along one direction. Such technique is topological in nature and allows to establish the existence of a semiconjugacy between the considered dynamical system and the Bernoulli shift, so that the main features related to the chaos of the latter (e.g., the positivity of the topological entropy) are transmitted to the former. In more detail, we apply the SAP method both to the first and to the second iterate of the map associated with our system, and we show how dealing with the second iterate, although being more demanding in terms of computations, allows for a larger freedom in the sign and in the variation range of the linking parameters for which chaos emerges. Moreover, the latter choice guarantees a good agreement with the numerical simulations, which highlight the presence of a chaotic attractor under the conditions derived for the applicability of the SAP technique to the second iterate of the map. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The studies that explore the impacts of national intellectual capital on informal economy are scant. Moreover, the effect of an external factor such as institutional quality that moderates this relationship has largely been neglected in previous studies. Institutions are considered important pillars to accumulate national intellectual capital and reduce shadow economy. As such, this paper aims to investigate how institutional quality moderates the effects of national intellectual capital on informal economy in 17 Asian countries from 2000 to 2018. Design/methodology/approach: This paper uses the generalized method of moments techniques, which allow cross-sectional dependence and slope homogeneity in panel data, to examine the moderating role of institutional quality on the relationship between national intellectual capital and informal economy. Various tests are conducted to ensure the robustness of the findings. Findings: Empirical findings from this paper indicate that an increase in national intellectual capital and institutional quality declines the informal economy. Interestingly, better institutional quality aggravates the negative effects of national intellectual capital on reducing the size of informal economy. The author also finds that enhancing international trade and economic growth results in a decrease in the informal economy in Asian countries. Practical implications: Empirical findings offer policymakers an indication of the relationships between national intellectual capital, institutional quality and informal economy, pointing out that national intellectual capital and institutional quality should be strengthened to allow Asian countries to limit the informal economy. Originality/value: This study provides a conceptual model through which the moderating role of institutional quality on the national intellectual capital–informal economy nexus can be recognized. This approach has thus far not been investigated in the existing literature. To the best of the author's knowledge, this study makes an original contribution to the empirical of national intellectual capital and informal economy nexus and produces new insights into the fields of the moderating effects of institutional quality on this nexus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines whether the Syrian refugee inflow to Jordan has displaced other immigrant workers in the Jordanian Labor Market. Using data from Jordan, before and after the Syrian refugee influx (in 2010 and 2016), we investigate whether male immigrants' labor market outcomes, compared to male Jordanian nationals, were affected by Syrian refugees. We control for the geographic sorting of refugees within Jordan using an instrumental variable approach. We find that male immigrants were more likely to be underemployed (i.e., work in the informal sector, work fewer hours, and earn lower monthly wages) in areas with high concentration of Syrian refugees. These findings suggest that the main competition that occurred in the Jordanian Labor Market, between 2010 and 2016, was not between refugees and male Jordanian nationals, but between refugees and male immigrants. These results suggest that studies examining the impact of refugees on the labor market should consider the effects on immigrants who are likely to be more vulnerable than natives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we study the long-run effect of the Soviet shadow economy on attitudes toward the market economy and competition in Georgia—a former Soviet republic known for the high prevalence of the shadow economy. We use the density of Soviet-era organized crime as a proxy for the local prevalence of shadow economy and instrument it with agroclimatic suitability for citrus fruits, exploiting the fact that citrus and other subtropical agricultural products were an object of shortage and illicit trade during the Soviet era. We show that the citrus-suitable parts of Georgia have a higher density of Soviet-era thieves-in-law and that survey respondents living in these areas are more likely to report lower preference toward state ownership of businesses and higher appreciation of competition. Higher social legitimacy of private entrepreneurship is likely to be behind these findings: employed respondents in citrus-producing areas rate fairness of their compensation higher than in the rest of Georgia when they have their own business and rate it lower when they work in the public sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The India–Bangladesh border is the world's fifth longest land border, a focus of political tension in an area with vibrant informal economies. Cross-border communities share culture and language and informal cross-border trade (ICBT) is well-established. This article explores ICBT on the Indian side of the border, examining its actors, power relations and spatial dimensions, and the vulnerabilities of those involved. Debates on the social and cultural roots of ICBT, and the vulnerability of small-scale entrepreneurs to a complicit state, and powerful middlemen in lucrative sectors of ICBT, inform the analysis. The trade is theorized through the lens of jugaad, the Indian term for 'making do' and 'instinctive creativity'. The research draws on case studies of three cross-border sectors, everyday trade in small household goods, the politically sensitive cattle trade, and cross-border medical/healthcare services. The mechanisms of jugaad are seen to some degree in all three case studies, but heavy state regulation gives advantage to controlling middlemen and state officials. Finally, we argue that ICBT is a critical component of the wider political economy in the border regions of West Bengal, and that the forgotten sector of ICBT could, if supported by light-touch regulation, have important poverty-reduction potential in enabling livelihoods for marginalized border communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, governments around the globe have carried on strict lockdown measures affecting millions of jobs, public life, and the well-being of people. This study examines people's subjective well-being, such as the perception of the economic situation and mental well-being, who made adjustments to cope with the earning losses. We estimate the well-being cost, which is the money required to compensate people because of the reduction in earnings or employment loss and the coping strategy followed to bring their well-being to the levels of those who have not adopted any coping strategy. We examine two outcomes; the perception of the economic situation and a mental well-being index. We employ data from the ERF COVID-19 MENA Monitor Surveys for Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. The results show that coping strategies with earning losses impact well-being and are associated with high costs. In most cases, the coping strategies of borrowing from banks and selling assets present the highest well-being costs. Furthermore, the estimates highlight significant discrepancies across gender and types of workers, such as those employed in the informal sector and temporary contracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent prevalence of digital currencies has challenged policymakers as they try to control the supply of money and rein in clandestine activities. Corruption and shadow economy are widely prevalent illegal/unobserved activities that have been hard to eliminate worldwide. These longstanding and entrenched activities have possibly found a new avenue to thrive and evade detection/punishment. So disentangling the nexus between corruption, shadow economy, and digital currencies is important. Using recent cross‐country data, this paper analyzes the interrelationships between corruption, shadow economy, and cryptocurrencies. We argue that a large underground sector in a nation provides a mechanism through which corrupt government officials use cryptocurrencies to conceal their unauthorized earnings. Employing formal mediation analysis, our results show that the positive nexus between corruption and cryptocurrency adoption is mediated by the shadow sector. Quantitatively speaking, three‐fourths of the correlation between corruption and cryptocurrency usage is mediated by the shadow economy. The primary implication of our findings is that effective monitoring of cryptocurrencies should pay attention to policies to control both corruption and the shadow economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Resource misallocation has the potential to reduce aggregate total factor productivity and undermine industrial development. Aggregate productivity losses are found to be particularly pronounced in emerging economies where large market frictions impede efficient resource allocation. Available estimates, however, almost entirely exclude firms in the informal sector that in some countries, such as Zimbabwe, make up a high share of overall production and employment. The exclusion of informal firms can result in either an over- or under-estimate of the aggregate productivity losses from misallocation. This paper, therefore, uses firm-level survey data to analyze how market distortions contribute to the misallocation of resources within and between the formal and informal manufacturing sectors in Zimbabwe. Applying the approach developed by Hsieh and Klenow (2009) to firm-level microdata, the results reveal extensive resource misallocation in both the formal and informal manufacturing sector. Market shares of informal firms are found to be low relative to their productivity—an outcome associated with relatively large capital market distortions. Misallocation is also more pronounced among relatively productive firms, thus exacerbating aggregate losses in total factor productivity (TFP). Estimates indicate that aggregated gains in TFP of 151.4 percent can be realized through efficient resource allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Financial crime presents a serious threat to the stability and integrity of the global financial system. To combat illicit financial activities, regulatory bodies worldwide have implemented various measures, including the requirement for financial institutions to assess the financial crime risks they are exposed to in the jurisdictions they operate in. These risks include inadequate anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism frameworks and other financial crime risks that have significant strategic implications for firms' geographical footprints and customer risk classifications. This paper aims to make a contribution to the literature by undertaking a cross-country analysis of 158 countries to shed light on what drives perceived jurisdiction risk of the UK financial services firms. Design/methodology/approach: Capturing firms' perceptions of financial crime risk requires significant data collection efforts, including surveys and interviews with key personnel. This can be highly resource-intensive and may require access to sensitive information that firms may be reluctant to share. Furthermore, the dynamic nature of financial crime risks means that perceptions can change rapidly in response to changes in the regulatory and geopolitical landscape. As a result, capturing and monitoring firms' perceptions of financial crime risks requires ongoing monitoring and analysis. Capturing firms' perceptions of financial crime risks at a cross-jurisdictional level is a particularly complex and challenging task that requires careful consideration of a range of factors. As a result of data limitations, empirical investigation of the factors underlying the firms' perceptions of jurisdiction risk is in its infancy. This paper uses regulatory financial crime data from the UK in a multivariate regression analysis, following a general-to-specific approach where any redundant variables were removed from the general model sequentially. Findings: Results suggest that perceived jurisdiction risk is significantly and positively associated with evasion of tax and regulations, while it is significantly and negatively associated with political stability and regulatory stringency. These have important implications for home and host supervisors with respect to the factors that drive perceived jurisdiction risks and the evaluation of the nature of inherent financial crime risks within regulated firms. The findings confirm the critical role of the shadow economy, political stability and regulatory rigor in shaping jurisdiction risk perceptions. From a policy standpoint, the findings support the case for taking prompt policy action to identify, prioritize and implement specific and targeted measures with respect to the shadow economy, political stability and rigor of regulations to improve international firms' perceptions of jurisdiction risk. Originality/value: While there exists different measures of financial crime risk, it is notoriously challenging to capture firms' perceptions of it, particularly at a cross-jurisdiction level. This is because financial crime risks can vary significantly across different jurisdictions due to differences in legal and regulatory frameworks, cultural norms and levels of economic development. This makes it difficult for firms to compare and evaluate the financial crime risks they face in different jurisdictions. Besides, firms' perceptions of financial crime risks can be influenced by a range of subjective factors, including personal experiences, media coverage and hearsay. These perceptions may not always align with objective risk assessments, which are based on more systematic and empirical methods of risk measurement. This paper contributes to the existing literature by undertaking a cross-country analysis drawing on a unique set of UK regulatory financial crime data, which is based on a total of 1,900 annual financial crime data regulatory return (REP-CRIM) submissions to the UK's Financial Conduct Authority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study identifies the factors that describe informal economies and summarizes them into indices measuring informality. We use data from 189 countries for the years 2015 and 2020. We carry out a factor analysis to identify the variables which structure informal economies and use the scores from a logistic regression to measure the degree of informality for each country. The results show that the degree of informality is related to the level of development. Thus, developing countries are generally those with the highest degree of informality while developed countries are generally characterized by a low level of informality. One of the important contributions of this paper is the method used to derive and then determine the depth of the informal economy in each country from the logistic regressions. Since the informal economy is not directly measurable, we first construct a binary variable named "prior informality." It is this variable that will be used in the logistic regression to measure the magnitude of the informal economy in each country. Thus, we construct a synthetical indicator that takes into account all dimensions of the informal economy with their particularity depending on whether we are in developed countries, in middle-income countries, or in underdeveloped countries. Mathematically, the principal component analysis gives us the best graphical representations of informal economies according to their characteristics. Likewise, the study enables us to classify countries into groups according to the variables that determine informality and draw dynamic charts representing the countries according to their level of informality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy emphasis on financial inclusion and deepening has shifted away from measures capturing formal financial services only and towards the development of more inclusive financial markets which account for both formal and informal services. This study examines the effect of financial inclusion and vulnerability coping strategies on multidimensional poverty, where the conceptualisation of financial inclusion is based on four perspectives—(i) one that focuses on only the formal financial sector, (ii) another that concentrates on only the informal financial sector, (iii) one that considers only the mobile money sector and (iv) finally, one that combines all financial markets (i.e., formal and informal including mobile money). Findings show that the conceptualisation of financial inclusion does not only matter in identifying the financially included but also has an implication on how financial inclusion influences multidimensional poverty. Financial inclusion measures that use only formal financial products and services understate their potential effects on multidimensional poverty, thus, justifying the need for a financial inclusion measure that considers both formal and informal sectors. Incorporating informal financial products and services in the measure reduces multidimensional poverty more for female‐headed households and those in rural settings. Households' adoption of vulnerability coping strategies has the potential to reduce the likelihood of being multidimensionally poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is one of the first which provides an in-depth quantitative analysis of how the development of the tourism industry impacts on the size of the shadow economy of a specific destination. The paper employs time-series techniques and annual data from 1960 to 2018 from Turkey. First, the size of the shadow economy is estimated using the electricity consumption method. The estimates are then used to assess the effect of tourism development on the size of the shadow economy. The findings show that there is a negative relationship between the two. A 1% increase in international tourism arrivals leads to a 0.21% and 0.316% fall in the size of the shadow economy in the short-run and long-run respectively. It implies that as the tourism sector develops, it becomes instrumental in modernising the Turkish economy leading to the movement of resources from the shadow economy to the formal sector. In the long-run the effect of the tourism industry in reducing the size of the shadow economy surpasses that of the financial sector of Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses Low-Income Country (LICs) firms' use of open innovation (OI) in overcoming various innovation constraints. We disaggregate local and foreign sources of innovation using a new measure of international openness. A survey of 501 manufacturing firms in Ghana reveals that OI is employed to address cost, knowledge, management, and market barriers. Knowledge and cost constraints lead to a broader and deeper search whereas cost barriers lead to a greater domestic search. Firms that faced market barriers significantly search more internationally while those facing infrastructure barriers tend to search less broadly and deeply for external knowledge. The substantial informal sector in Ghana hampers OI. Results also indicate an inverted-U-shaped relationship between the breadth of openness and innovation performance. This paper contributes to the literature by providing the first large firm-level survey-based evidence of OI in a LICs context, and by introducing a new measure of international innovation openness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to determine the effect of the minimum wage on employment in the formal and informal sectors in Indonesia. This study has a panel data set with a total of 170 observations consisting of 34 provinces in Indonesia during the 2017-2021 period. The use of the Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method, fixed effect, and random effect are used to compare the results of the three methods used. The results explain that the minimum wage has a negative and significant effect on the absorption of formal sector workers, while the minimum wage has a positive and significant effect on the absorption of informal sector workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research considers a new dimension of the effects of the underground sector by examining the spillovers on cryptocurrency holdings. Cryptocurrencies offer a relatively greater ability to dodge taxes and ensure the anonymity of holders, providing attractive avenues for underground operators to stash their informal-sector earnings. Our results, based on data from more than 50 nations, show that a greater prevalence of the underground economy in a nation is indeed associated with greater cryptocurrency holdings. This result holds across an alternative measure of the shadow economy, and when the bi-directional causality between the shadow economy and cryptocurrency holdings is considered. In other noteworthy findings, greater FDI crowded out cryptocurrency holdings, while greater financial globalization and greater economic uncertainty, ceteris paribus, increased them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the intertwining relationship between informality and education-occupation mismatch (EOM) and the consequent impact on the workers' wages. In particular, we discuss two issues — first, the relative importance of informality and EOM in determining wages; and second, the relevance of EOM for formal and informal workers. The analysis reveals that although both informality and EOM are significant determinants of wages, the former is more crucial for a developing country like India. Further, we find that EOM is one of the crucial determinants of wages for formal workers, but it is not critical for informal workers. The study highlights the need for considering the bifurcation of formal-informal workers to understand the complete dynamics of EOM especially for developing countries where informality is predominant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article draws from ethnographic and oral history research to explore the intersection of cigarette smuggling and tribal relationships in Cizre, a Kurdish city located near Turkey's border with Syria and Iraq. Cigarette smuggling serves as a primary source of income for the city's tribal communities, operating beyond the state's oversight and outside the 'secure' networks of the regulated market. This informal economy necessitates active collaboration amongst participants to effectively avoid state surveillance, and establish partnerships and substitute networks for coordinating the transfer of cigarettes, as well as for securing credit – all rooted in their tribal affiliations. I suggest that due to its significant reliance on tribal networks, the cigarette smuggling industry has allowed the Kurdish tribes to preserve their influence within an urban setting, even after their detachment from their pastoral economy and fragmentation as a result of enforced migration. I argue that the prominent role played by tribes in orchestrating the cigarette smuggling economy is indicative of the redistributive function that these institutions have increasingly assumed for their constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1882, the lavishly decorated golden regalia of a steppe nomad warrior prince, which was crafted in the late sixth century BCE in a "bilingual" Scythian–Milesian workshop on the Black Sea coast, was found on the edge of a Lusatian swamp 120 km southeast of Berlin. Its discovery and the ongoing findings of steppe nomad armaments—arrows, battle axes, and swords—in central Europe have led to a lively debate about the nature of Scythian–Indigenous interaction in the Early Iron Age, ranging from benign visions of long-term acculturation to violent scenarios of short-term raiding. In this article, I argue that an analysis of the iconography of the Witaszkowo hoard and new information from excavations at its find spot make it likely that it was sent as a diplomatic gift by Scythian elites to an indigenous leader and deposited by the local community as a votive hoard. An affirmation of the compact chronological range of Scythian artefacts found in the west, growing evidence for the destruction of indigenous strongholds by horse-borne archers, and concurrent evidence for the drastic depopulation of vast landscapes in the second half of the sixth century BCE allow us to envisage the gifting of this hoard as an episode of a fierce and destructive altercation. It is posited that this onslaught was a facet of the western thrust of the Lydian and Persian Empires, and that its extirpative impact was the result of systematic, commercially driven slaving triggered by the concurrent monetisation of the economies of the Black Sea coast. The effects of these raids on Eastern Central Europe's later prehistoric communities are made manifest by analogies to the disastrous ramifications of the transatlantic slave trade on societies of 16th-to-18th-century West Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Every country desires and aspires for an education system that caters for learners' physiological needs, belonging, love, self‐esteem, security and self‐actualisation at the top, which are rarely provided by a few countries. With a review focus on the Ugandan education system, several challenges related to the education borrowing suggestions as proposed by John Dewey have been attributed to creating an environment that has seen most graduates ending up unemployed, and with leadership challenges, inadequate funding, poor teacher perception, low research and innovations in higher institutions of learning, less involvement of the informal sector in development, low literacy levels, political interference among others. Thus this exploratory analytical‐qualitative review focuses on John Dewey's teachings in his book Education and Democracy—specifically chapter 1, 'Education as Necessity for Life'—with attention on how education as an engine that empowers life, ensures independence through self‐reliance, sustenance, freedom, and is syndrome‐free to enhance appreciation of the contemporary trends in education—critical aspects that are extremely lacking within the current Ugandan education system and can impact on the future of education to the future of education as recommended in National Development Plan III (NDP III). Thus the review recommends that while reflecting on the state of the Ugandan education system, there is a need to revitalise the research and innovations in higher institutions, especially catering for an integral‐education system with a focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from primary school to university, involvement of the informal sector through skills education as proposed by the Ugandan Vision 2040 and NDP III, as well as addressing low literacy levels and providing adequate teaching and learning through quality and balanced funding from all relevant government agencies and development partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Firm restructuring and labour subcontracting has paved the way for the rise of informalisation in the female-dominated textiles industry of Pakistan after the expiry of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC). Despite the emergence of low quality of employment available for women in the informal economy, there is a dearth of knowledge on their position at the workplace, namely 'employee voice.' This study therefore explores the employee voice of informal female workers of the stitching and ginning sections of the textiles industry in Pakistan in the post ATC period. A grounded theory approach, involving 25 in-depth interviews with informal female workers and employers, is used to explore employer-employee interactions. The findings reveal that the core requirements of the 'capability for voice' of informal female workers centre on 'decisions of employers', 'bearing of tradition' and 'worker performance'. The grounded theory clarifies the procedure and identifies the interaction of the above categories to form the contextual conditions that direct the expectations of employers and female workers in the informal labour market. The expectations of a 'perfect fit' of informal female workers, within the hierarchy of the textiles industry, gives rise to a situation of 'tolerance/no voice', despite the negative workplace culture. The findings indicate that strategies to advance gender equality in Pakistan must consider informalisation of the labour market through a gender perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the data for Indian SMEs, this paper examines in an emerging market setting whether firms with exposure to informal competition are more likely to avoid taxes. We use a sample of 9281 Indian firms that responded to the World Bank Enterprise Survey and find empirical evidence that supports this conjecture. We find that firms headquartered in states/provinces with better business environment and firms with more competitive position in the market are less likely to avoid taxes in response to informal competition. This paper also shows that firms that avoid taxes are more likely to invest in innovation and have more efficient operations than the firm that does not avoid taxes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring effective tools to control the rampant expansion of the informal economy is critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Based on balanced panel data for 19 selected Latin American and Caribbean countries for the period 2008–2017, this study employs fixed-effects estimation, limited information maximum likelihood estimation, and system generalized method of moments estimation to investigate the direct and indirect effects of information and communication technologies (ICT) diffusion on the size of the informal economy. The findings suggest that ICT diffusion can significantly reduce the size of the informal economy in LAC. Moreover, the dampening effect of ICT on the informal economy is more significant in countries with lower levels of financial inclusion. Accordingly, we recommend strengthening ICT sector development to enhance financial deepening and government efficiency and thus reduce informality in LAC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines factors influencing Uzbekistan's shadow economy rate, with a focus on GDP, corruption index, tax rate (TR), and the unemployment rate. Using a quantitative approach, we analyse secondary data to test our research hypotheses. The results indicate positive correlations between GDP and corruption index with the shadow economy rate, while tax and unemployment rates exhibit negative correlations. An expansionary fiscal policy contributes to the positive GDP-shadow economy correlation, while corruption motivates participation in the informal sector. Conversely, changes in tax law discourage formal sector involvement, leading to a negative correlation. Similarly, the unemployment rate negatively correlates due to partial income reporting for tax evasion. Our study provides original insights into the drivers of Uzbekistan's shadow economy, which can inform policymakers when addressing this issue. Paper emphasises the impact of fiscal policy, corruption, taxation, and unemployment on shadow economy growth, aiding informed policy decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most governments around the world are fostering innovation and entrepreneurial systems with a prominent role for venture capital (VC) support policies. However, the debate about the role and impact of VC support policies is still focused on the countries of the Global North. In this context, this paper seeks to describe and analyse the role that the state has played in the emergence and development of the VC industry in India and Brazil, two of the biggest economies of the Global South. We adopt a systemic and evolutionary perspective under the general context of a renewed role for the state in financing innovation. We offer interesting questions and implications to discuss the challenges, scale and impact that could be expected from VC industry support policies in the Global South countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microenterprises have long been neglected in theoretical debates on the informal sector, receiving limited attention and superficial analysis. The aim of this article is to study the influence of the characteristics of informal microenterprises in Morocco on the decision to move to the formal sector. The article adopts a quantitative approach, focusing on 500 informal microentrepreneurs in northern Morocco. Through descriptive statistics and the use of a binomial logistic regression model, the study focuses on the effects of multiple aspects of these businesses. Data is collected and analyzed using the open-source tool R. The survey results reveal that engagement in a service-providing activity, the availability of business premises, and hiring more than four workers positively affect the propensity to formalize Moroccan informal microenterprises. Similarly, the use of simplified accounting systems, a longer period of existence and recourse to subcontracting are factors that encourage these ventures to opt for formalization. These findings are of key theoretical importance, exploiting the singularity of the Moroccan context and challenging the adoption of the neoliberal approach to explaining informality in Morocco. The conclusions are accompanied by recommendations designed to stimulate the transition to a formal sector. Implications of these findings for policy-makers, practitioners and entrepreneurs are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to assess and analyse the shadowing of the national economy, as well as to determine the impact of its shadowing on the reduction of tax revenues to the state budget. The research employed general scientific, economic, and mathematical assessment methods, such as regression analysis, correlation analysis, interval forecasts, as well as econometric models of Lacko's household electricity approach, as well as modelling of the shadowing level using the multiple indicators-multiple-causes (MIMIC) model. The calculations and analysis gave grounds to determine the level of the shadow economy of Ukraine based on the state statistics of shadowing trends. There is currently an upward trend estimated to be 37.1% of GDP in 2022 compared with international data, which indicates a rapid growth of the shadow economy from 27% in 2019 to 44% in 2022. An alternative method of assessing the shadowing level was proposed in order to level the peculiarities of calculating the level of shadowing of the economy. According to the calculations, it was 43% in 2022. It was determined that the rapid growth of the shadow economy is an indicator of a reduction in tax revenues, especially in 2022 — by almost 8%. The correlation analysis proved that the increased shadowing level is an indicator of the reduction of tax revenues to the budget of Ukraine. The conducted analysis has certain limitations, therefore it is advisable to further test the hypothesis regarding the indicator of tax revenue reduction on a larger range of data and to apply an alternative method of assessing the shadowing level for developed economies, such as the countries of the European Union (EU). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]