Globalisation's impact on the environment's quality: Does the proliferation of information and communication technologies services matter? An empirical exploration

Abstract

A key mechanism to achieve sustainable development for developing nations is integrating their local economies with the global market. However, evidence has suggested that economic globalisation might worsen the environment's quality, thus making the likelihood of reaching the UN's sustainable development goals doubtful. Recently it has been recognised that the development of information and communication technologies can strengthen (weaken) the potentially constructive (harmful) impacts of economic globalisation on the environment's quality. The current study has examined the moderating role of Information and communication technologies in the economic globalisation-the environment's quality nexus for 44 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa between 2003 and 2020. Findings indicated that globalisation and Information and Communications Technology directly harmed the environment. In addition, the results showed that Information and communication technologies services could weaken the adverse impact of globalisation on the environment. The interaction of Information and communication technologies and economic globalization has a negative net effect on environmental quality, though this is negligible. We suggest that deploying Information and communication technologies beyond a specific level will help take advantage of globalization's opportunities without sacrificing the quality of the environment.