Jonathan Emenike Ogbuabor

Increasing health issues and rising poverty rates in Nigeria have adversely impacted child health care utilization. This study X‐rays the wealth access and regional variations nexus in child healthcare utilization. The generalized linear model (GLM) approach and the concentration index were adopted, employing data elicited from the Nigeria demographic and health survey (NDHS) conducted in 2008 and 2018. The study identified a substantial variation in child healthcare utilization among households with varying wealth access levels, implying that as households' access to wealth increases, inequality in healthcare utilization reduces among children. Regional analysis shows that the northeast and northwest geopolitical zones exhibited a higher prevalence in child healthcare utilization inequality, due to distinct socioeconomic status, cultural, and religious practices. The study therefore recommends that to support and maintain the initiatives for health system reform, a communication plan and an efficient regionally based health management information system must be created. Again, to increase child healthcare accessibility and utilization, such programmes should include a thorough health promotion strategy that raises awareness and provides relevant education to low‐income households.

This study investigates whether climate finance reduces energy poverty in the Global South and, more importantly, whether its effectiveness depends on institutional quality. Using a balanced panel of 45 countries across Africa, South Asia, and Latin America, the study applies Dynamic Common Correlated Effects (DCCE) estimators, instrumental-variable techniques, and panel threshold regression models that account for cross-sectional dependence, heterogeneity, and endogeneity. The baseline results show that climate finance does not exert a statistically significant average effect on energy poverty across the full sample, while institutional quality consistently reduces energy deprivation. However, threshold analysis reveals a significant non-linear relationship. An institutional quality threshold of 0.370 is identified, above which climate finance produces statistically significant reductions in energy poverty, whereas no meaningful effect is observed below the threshold. The results indicate that climate finance is not universally effective; rather, its impact depends on the institutional environment within recipient countries. Robustness checks using alternative measures of energy poverty, instrumental-variable estimation, and alternative estimators confirm the stability of the findings. The study concludes that strengthening institutional quality is a prerequisite for translating climate-finance inflows into improved energy access outcomes. Policies aimed at achieving a just energy transition should therefore combine increased climate-finance mobilization with reforms that enhance governance capacity, accountability, and implementation effectiveness.

This study assesses the connection between environmental degradation, agro-climate financing, and economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) using yearly time series data from 2000 to 2022. The system generalized method of moments (GMM) was employed to tackle endogeneity issues, with robustness checks performed using DOLS and FMOLS to address cross-sectional dependence through robust standard errors. This method revealed important insights into the dynamics of economic growth. The findings show a significant positive connection between the economy’s past success and its current growth. CO₂ emissions negatively impact economic growth, demonstrating the detrimental effects of environmental degradation. Agricultural finance has a positive influence on economic growth by boosting productivity and fostering economic growth. However, climate financing has a short-term negative impact on growth owing to high initial costs and inefficiencies, but it promotes long-term growth when combined with agricultural finance. The interaction between CO₂ emissions and agricultural finance shows that increasing emissions reduces the benefits of agricultural investments, underscoring the vulnerability of agriculture-dependent economies. Conversely, the interaction of agricultural finance with climate finance enhances economic growth, demonstrating the relevance of combining climate and agricultural investments. Additionally, the study finds that exchange rate stability positively affects growth, while inflation has a negative impact. Robustness checks validate these findings and underscore the need for varied analytical methods to capture economic interactions comprehensively. The study recommends comprehensive policy measures to tackle environmental, agricultural, and climate challenges, promote sustainable growth, and leverage integrated financial solutions for long-term development in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This study examines how military expenditure moderates the negative effect of terrorism on economic complexity in Europe. Terrorism is proxied by terrorism‐related incidences, fatalities, injuries, and hostages. The study utilizes a panel dataset comprising 33 European economies spanning the period 2011–2022. The primary empirical strategy employed is the Bias‐Corrected Method of Moments (BCMM), which effectively addresses potential estimation biases, including cross‐sectional dependence, endogeneity, and heterogeneity. The findings reveal a consistently negative impact of terrorism on economic complexity in Europe. Furthermore, a 2.000 threshold level of military expenditure (% GDP) and 4.000 threshold level of military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) will mitigate the negative effects of terrorism fatalities on economic complexity. On the basis of the study's findings, it is recommended to reassess the efficiency of military expenditures in Europe, with surplus funds redirected toward innovation‐driven sectors. In addition, policymakers and leaders in Europe should join forces through the Council of Europe (CoE) and the European Union (EU) to tackle the detrimental effects of terrorism on the continent. Related Articles: Cinalli, M., and M. Giugni. 2016. “Collective Responses to the Economic Crisis in the Public Domain: Myth or Reality?” Politics & Policy 44, no. 3: 427–446. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12156 . Lahusen, C., M. Kousis, J. Kiess, and M. Paschou. 2016. “Political Claims and Discourse Formations: A Comparative Account on Germany and Greece in the Eurozone Crisis.” Politics & Policy 44, no. 3: 525–552. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12162/abstract . Zamponi, L., and L. Bosi. 2016. “Which Crisis? European Crisis and National Contexts in Public Discourse.” Politics & Policy 44, no. 3: 400–426. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12156 .

The nexus between the agricultural sector, manufacturing sector, and FDI has been a topic of debate over the years. While the fundamental role of FDI in the growth of the overall economy has been widely recognized, findings of existing literature have remained unclear and inconclusive on how the impact of FDI varies across these distinct sectors, especially within the context of developing countries like Nigeria. This study aims to provide a comprehensive comparative analysis of the impact of FDI and other capital inflows on Nigeria’s agricultural and manufacturing sectors between 1980 and 2021. Using annual time-series data from the World Bank’s World Development Indicators (WDI) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the study employs the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) modelling approach. Four sector-specific ARDL models were specified, each subjected to extensive diagnostic and robustness checks to ensure the reliability of the estimates. The findings reveal a contrasting effect: while FDI exerts no statistically significant influence on manufacturing output, it has a strong and transformative impact on agricultural performance. In addition, other capital inflows, including official development assistance, development finance, and remittances, were found to significantly influence both sectors. The study concludes that FDI is not a universal driver of growth, and its effectiveness depends on sectoral characteristics, investment type, and policy environment. It contributes to the literature by offering one of the first sector-specific comparative analyses of capital flows in Nigeria, providing evidence to guide policies aimed at shifting the economy from consumption-driven patterns toward sustainable, production-oriented growth.

Following the dearth of empirical evidence on eco‐innovation as a driver of economic complexity and productive capacity, we studied a panel of 22 European countries from 2013 to 2022 using the system GMM estimator and other alternative panel estimators (including the dynamic bias‐corrected LSDV, the Prais‐Winsten, the Fixed‐effects with Driscoll‐Kraay Standard Errors, and the robust Pooled OLS estimators). Intriguingly, we find that eco‐innovation significantly enhances economic complexity in Europe, but hampers productive capacity in the region. We also find that other potent drivers of economic complexity and productive capacity are research and development, foreign direct investment, and per capita income, while institutional quality failed to significantly moderate and enhance the effect of eco‐innovation. We made important policy recommendations, which among others, encouraged governments in the region to harmonize and strengthen the synergy between their energy transition policies and eco‐innovation practices as a pathway to sustainable development.

It is evident that the role of trade and governance institutions in enhancing economic complexity in Africa is still under serious debate regarding whether it is detrimental or beneficial to economic growth. The purpose of this study is to investigate how trade and governance institutions influence economic complexity in Africa using a system Generalized Method of Moments (system GMM) and 31 African economies for the period 2011-2020. Beyond these key variables of interest, our study includes some macroeconomic variables in the model, such as international tourism arrivals, infrastructural development, and human capital development, to ensure robustness of the results. The results of the system GMM reveal that trade promotes economic complexity in Africa, while institutional quality indicators such as control of corruption, rule of law, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, political stability, and absence of violence/terrorism, including voice and accountability, are predominantly negative in improving economic complexity on the continent. Further results of system GMM also reveal that infrastructural and human capital developments are relevant drivers of economic complexity, while international tourism arrivals played a detrimental role. This study proposes that African leaders and policymakers across the continent should come together to advance free trade and advocate reform for strong institutions through the instrumentality of the African Union.

This study examines the conditional effect of trade liberalization on economic growth in West Africa, with a particular focus on the moderating influence of institutional quality. A panel dataset covering 16 West African countries over the period 2017–2022 is employed to estimate a dynamic growth model using the System Generalized Method of Moments (System-GMM), which effectively addresses endogeneity and growth persistence. Robustness checks are conducted using Pooled Ordinary Least Squares (POLS) and Fixed Effects (FE) estimators. The results reveal three key findings. First, trade liberalization has a positive and statistically significant effect on economic growth in the region. Second, although institutional quality exhibits a negative direct effect, likely due to short-run adjustment and compliance costs, the interaction between institutional quality and trade liberalization is positive and strongly significant, demonstrating that governance effectiveness is critical for harnessing the growth benefits of openness. Third, the negative coefficient estimates for financial development and industrialization indicate structural inefficiencies, including credit misallocation and a continued dependence on low-value, resource-based production. Overall, the findings suggest that while West Africa possesses substantial potential for trade-driven development, meaningful gains remain constrained by weak institutional capacity and limited structural transformation. The study recommends targeted governance reforms, improved regulatory enforcement, strategic reallocation of financial resources toward high-value export sectors, and accelerated industrial diversification to ensure that trade liberalization translates into sustained, inclusive economic growth.