Adoption Of Innovative Solutions Research Articles

The uneven effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on National Statistical Offices

This paper presents an analysis of how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the operations of National Statistical Offices (NSOs), how NSOs responded and adjusted to the disruptions, and how they are transitioning to a post-pandemic equilibrium. The paper uses four rounds of the Global COVID-19 survey of NSOs conducted by The World Bank and the United Nations Statistical Division (UNSD), in coordination with the UN Regional Commissions. The paper highlights the heterogeneity of the COVID-19 disruptions among NSOs and provides evidence that statistical operations have been hardest hit in low- and lower middle-income countries. We find that NSOs with weaker Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure, and those more impacted by declines in funding tended to be more affected and lag in their recovery trajectory. These NSOs tend to be concentrated in low- and lower-middle income countries. The paper concludes that without targeted action the effects of the pandemic will exacerbate and widen pre-existing data production inequalities, despite the best efforts of NSOs that have in most cases responded to the pandemic with the adoption of innovative solutions and have ingeniously used this crisis as an opportunity to accelerate the modernization of the national statistical systems.

Innovations in environmental performance: the importance of financial performance and management quality

Empirical analyses exploring the relationship between environmental and financial performances hypothesise that good corporate environmental performance and the associated re-evaluation of production processes and adoption of innovative solutions increase the resource productivity and/or competitive advantage, thereby creating opportunity for improved financial performance. Although recent studies provide evidence supporting this hypothesis, they do not establish that good environmental performance causes good financial performance, nor do they control for underlying firm characteristics, such as management quality, that may enhance both environmental and financial performances, thus overstating the relationship between the two. The primary objective of this study is to explore the relationship between environmental performance, risk and expected cash flows/earnings, and the resulting impact on stock returns so that managers and investors can make more informed decisions. In addition, this study examines potential factors driving corporate environmental performance. The empirical analysis suggests that to the extent that investors consider environmental performance, they perceive environmental improvements and management as costly, unless made to avoid non-compliance penalties. Furthermore, the empirical analysis indicates that corporate financial performance does not influence environmental performance. Instead, the level of corporate sophistication and trust and transparency are the driving factors behind environmental performance improvements.