Commission Website Research Articles

Board reforms and managerial risk-taking incentives: evidence from Chinese central state-owned enterprises

PurposeThis paper examines the effect of board reforms on managerial risk-taking incentive provision in state-owned enterprises (SOEs) whose managers are undue risk-averse.Design/methodology/approachWe use the staggered implementation of board reforms in Chinese central government-controlled state-owned enterprises (CSOEs) as an exogenous shock to board governance. We collect data on board reforms for a set of pilot CSOEs during the period 2005 to 2020 from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) website by hand. We use a generalized difference-in-difference (DID) design to test the effect of staggered board reform adoption on managerial risk-taking incentive provision.FindingsWe find a positive relationship between board reforms and risk-taking inventive provision, i.e. pay-performance sensitivity, promotion-performance sensitivity and performance target difficulty. The documented relationship is stronger when the value of risk-taking is higher. We also find that board reforms lead to greater risky but value-enhancing investments and that managerial risk-taking incentive provision acts as an important channel through which board reforms improve value-enhancing risk-taking.Originality/valueOur findings suggest that board reforms that improve board governance are effective in addressing risk-related agency conflicts in emerging markets. The findings also highlight the importance of managerial risk-taking incentive provision in inducing risky but value-enhancing investments.

Mapping the existing evidence of the effects of school food policies on health, acceptance and affordability of secondary school children in Europe: a scoping review protocol

IntroductionUnhealthy diets pose a significant public health risk among European children, contributing to the increasing prevalence of overweight and non-communicable diseases. Children spend a substantial amount of time at school...

The effect of the athletes' origin and type of impairment on participation and the likelihood of winning a medal in the Paralympic Games.

This study investigated whether the origin (acquired or congenital) and type of impairment affect the participation and likelihood of winning a medal in different sports at the Paralympic Games. We analyzed competition data and athlete biographies web scraped from the International Paralympic Committee's website (www.Paralympic.org). In some sports, athletes with one origin or type of impairment were overrepresented. E.g., 76% of Para-snowboarders had an acquired impairment. Further, mixed-effects logistic regression analyses showed that the origin of impairment had no effect on the likelihood of winning a medal in most sports. However, athletes with a congenital impairment had a significantly higher likelihood of winning a medal compared to those with an acquired impairment in Para-athletics, Para-alpine skiing, and Para-biathlon (OR: 1.71, p < 0.01, OR: 3.69, p = 0.002, and OR: 3.70, p = 0.016, respectively). Athletes with a given origin-type of impairment combination also may have an advantage or disadvantage in some sports. E.g., athletes with an acquired spinal cord injury win proportionally fewer medals in Para-powerlifting. Understanding potential effects of the origin and type of impairment on participation and medaling chances in Paralympic sports can help shape the development of Para-sports, and support talent identification.

Industries, citizens, and non-governmental organizations’ positioning and arguments used in European Union initiatives for alcohol taxation and cross-border regulation

BackgroundThe European region has the highest daily alcohol consumption per capita and a high alcohol-related burden of disease. Policymaking at the European Union level is open to participation by interest groups, from public health organizations to alcohol industry representatives. This study aimed to map the interest groups present in the alcohol taxation and cross-border regulation initiatives and identify which arguments were used to support positions in favor or against them. MethodsWe used qualitative content analysis on the comments submitted on the official European Commission website during the 2017, 2018, 2020, and 2022 participation periods. Interest groups were characterized considering their positioning, and arguments were identified and compared by position and type of initiative. ResultsOpponents of changes to the structures of alcohol excise duties and cross-border regulations were mostly representatives of the alcohol and agricultural industries, and the proponents were mostly health-related nongovernmental organizations. Opponents of these initiatives used a wide variety of arguments, from economic and trade to health arguments, while proponents focused mainly on health arguments, such as the effectiveness of alcohol taxation in preventing alcohol-related morbidity and mortality. ConclusionThis study highlights the wide range of arguments used by opponents around alcohol control policies, contrasting with the health-centered arguments of proponents. It further shows that there is a lobbying network at the European Union level, combining national and international representatives of industry and non-governmental organizations. These findings provide an opportunity for better preparation for upcoming discussions on alcohol control at national and regional levels.

Water as a social determinant of health: bringing policies into action

Water is one of the social determinants of health and a key factor towards improving health outcomes and inequalities. Access to safe and adequate water has been identified as an essential component for protecting, maintaining and promoting public health and reducing the total burden of diseases. Though India has made substantial progress in increasing access to safe drinking water in rural areas through household tap connections, there is a lack of contemporary evidence reflecting the progress achieved so far. A desk review of India’s schemes, programmes, and policies on access to drinking water was undertaken for review. Programme and policy documents from various central government websites such as the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Jal Jeevan Mission, and Central Water Commission websites were reviewed. The paper focuses on the recently launched Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in addressing the identified gaps of the former initiatives in rural areas. The broad vision of JJM also aims to reduce the incidence of acute diarrhoeal diseases. It was found that with the launch of JJM in 2019, tap water connections in rural households have increased from 16.69% (2019) to 62.79% (2023). The Government of India (GoI)’s commitment and citizen-centric approach to decentralised governance in providing safe drinking water to all is reflected in the financial allocations made under the JJM to states and fifteen finance commission (FC-XV) grants. The review highlights the need for intersectoral coordination across the levels to realise better results and health outcomes.

The role of total value added to be distributed to reduce the negative effects of the pandemic on the share price

This research analyzes the relationship between the total value added to be distributed and the share price in the before, during, and post-pandemic periods. The data were collected on the Securities and Exchange Commission (CVM) website and Refinitiv Eikon®, resulting in 1,910 observations of Brazilian companies from 2010 to 2022 from all sectors, except Government Activity (due to lack of data). The data were treated using descriptive statistics and the Generalized Least Squares (GLS) regression model. The results revealed that i) the disclosure of the TVAD is relevant to explain the share price; ii) there is a negative relationship between the pandemic period and the share price; and iii) the interaction between the TVAD and the pandemic has a positive relationship with the share price. The results contribute to investors, suggesting that the Value Added Statement (VAS) information can increase the share price in periods of more significant uncertainty. With managers, it shows that the generation of more wealth can increase the price of shares, which can help them obtain better returns since part of the remuneration is usually linked to the performance of the shares. With Brazilian regulators, the results may indicate that the mandatory disclosure of VAS during the pandemic is relevant to assisting shareholders in decision-making. The gap explored in this research is the lack of analysis of the relationship between TVAD and the pandemic. The study's relevance is to highlight to the shareholders what information from the VAS contributes to an increase in the share price in periods of greater instability. Therefore, the impact of the study is that users can use the VAS information for share pricing, especially in periods of greater economic instability.

Corporate Governance and Financial Performance of Listed Firms in Nigeria

The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of corporate governance practices on the financial performance of listed companies in Nigeria. The study encompassed three industries: manufacturing, finance, and oil and gas, spanning the years 2010 to 2020. Employing a content analysis approach, data were collected from corporate websites and the Securities and Exchange Commission website. A total of 33 businesses were selected for the study. The study's analysis revealed that a majority of the corporations disclosed the majority of their corporate governance policies. Notably, the banking industry exhibited the highest level of corporate governance disclosure compared to other sectors. This implies that a company's decision to publish its corporate governance information online in Nigeria might be influenced by the regulatory environment of the sector. However, intriguingly, the research did not establish a correlation between a company's corporate governance score and its financial performance. Nevertheless, there was notable variation in the extent of corporate governance reporting across different sectors. In light of these findings, the report recommends that the Securities and Exchange Commission's code of best practices should be made obligatory for all industries in Nigeria. Furthermore, the establishment of a compliance team is advised to ensure that businesses across all sectors in Nigeria adhere to the regulatory mandates outlined in the code of corporate governance.

COVID-19 IMPACT ON BOARD EXAMS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING AT DON HONORIO VENTURA STATE UNIVERSITY

The COVID-19 pandemic altered the education landscape, leading to a temporary shift to remote learning for many programs. This study seeks to address a specific question: How did the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to virtual learning impact the ECE Licensure Examination Passing Rate at Don Honorio Ventura State University's ECE Department? Data spanning from April 2019 to April 2023, obtained from the Professional Regulation Commission's website, was analyzed. A chi-square test was employed to ascertain if a significant difference exists between the licensure examination results before and after the pandemic. The findings, indicating a rejection of the null hypothesis (φ^2=0.5877 and p-value=0.433), lead to the acceptance of the alternative hypothesis. It is concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic and the shift to online learning directly influenced the performance of ECE students in the ECE Licensure Examination.

Effects of medical consortium policy on health services: an interrupted time-series analysis in Sanming, China.

China has implemented reforms to enhance the operational efficiency of three-level medical services through medical consortiums (MCs). This study evaluated the impact of MCs reform on health services in Sanming, China. An interrupted time-series analysis (ITSA) was conducted to assess the impact of MCs on changes in health service levels and trends across the overall situation of MCs and different institutional types within MCs, including county hospitals and grassroots medical institutions. The evaluation focused on various indicators such as outpatient and emergency visits, inpatients, average length of stay, occupancy rate of hospital beds, and hospital bed turnover times. Monthly data were collected from April 2015 to June 2019 through reports on the Sanming Municipal Health Commission website and the Sanming public hospital management monitoring platform. After the intervention of MCs reform, a significant increase was observed in the total number of inpatients (β3 = 174.28, p < 0.05). However, no statistically significant change was observed in the total number of outpatient and emergency visits (β3 = 155.82, p = 0.91). Additionally, the implementation of MCs reform led to an amplification in service volumes provided by county hospitals, with significant increases in the number of outpatient and emergency visits (β3 = 1376.54, p < 0.05) and an upward trend in the number of inpatients (β3 = 98.87, p < 0.01). However, no significant changes were observed under the MCs policy for grassroots medical institutions regarding the number of outpatient and emergency visits (β3 = -1220.72, p = 0.22) and number of inpatients (β3 = 75.42, p = 0.09). The Sanming MCs reform has achieved some progress in augmenting service volumes. Nevertheless, it has not led to an increase in service volumes at the grassroots medical institutions. There persists an insufficiency in the efficiency of services and a need for further improvement in primary healthcare. To address these concerns, it is imperative for county hospitals to offer targeted assistance that can enhance motivation among grassroots medical institutions. Besides the MCs should explore initiatives, including improved management of medical equipment, allocation of funding, and personnel resources.

The Extent of the Effect of Disclosing Research and Development Activities on Earnings Management

The research aims to identify voluntary disclosure of research and development (R&amp;D) activities and the extent of its effect on earnings management. To achieve this goal, quantitative methods were used. In collecting data, the researchers depend on the financial statements published on the Iraqi Securities Commission website for a sample of companies, amounting to (4) samples, for the period (2013-2022). Voluntary disclosure of research and development activities was measured by research and development costs divided by sales. Earnings management is measured by Miller's model. The most important results reached are that there is a very low level of disclosure of research and development activities in companies (research sample). It is also noted that there is a large discrepancy in the levels of disclosure between companies and across the years (research sample), meaning that there are high levels in some observations, while there are low levels in other observations within a wide gap between the two levels. Also, it is noted that there are very high levels of earnings management according to Miller's model in companies (the research sample), and this level of earnings management varies from one company to another and from one observation to another, with great variation between those observations. It was also found that there is a positive relationship between the disclosure of research and development activities and earnings management, meaning that an increase in the level of disclosure of research and development activities will be accompanied by an increase in the level of earnings management practices in companies (research sample).

PEMBANGUNAN LAMAN SESAWANG BAGI PENGURUSAN JAWATANKUASA OBE POLITEKNIK KUCHING SARAWAK DENGAN KERANGKA DJANGO

OBE Committee Management (Outcome Based Learning) must be organized and easily accessible by certain parties such as management and committee members themselves. Among the information that can be obtained is the committee organization chart, committee information, activities carried out as well as data management for the committee. The difficulty of managing activity data is the main reason this website was created. The process of developing this particular website uses the Django web development framework. Website display requires basic knowledge of HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style Sheet). The result of the development of the OBE Committee website gives the management the opportunity to access the database of activities carried out by the department's OBE coordinator.

Healthcare lobbying and oncology.

5 Background: The healthcare industry spends more on lobbying than any other industry, with over $700 million spent in 2022. However, healthcare lobbying related specifically to cancer has not been characterized. In the current study, we analyze both overall health sector lobbying spending and oncology-related lobbying spending across both provider and patient organizations. Methods: We obtained lobbying data from OpenSecrets.org and the Federal Election Commission website. We categorized overall health sector lobbying spending as (1) Pharmaceuticals/Health Products, (2) Health Services/HMOs, (3) Hospitals/Nursing Homes, or (4) Health Professionals. We identified and categorized oncology-related lobbying organizations: (1) Oncology Physician Professional Organizations (OPOs, e.g., ASCO); (2) PPS-Exempt Cancer Hospitals; (3) Patient Advocacy Organizations; and (4) Provider Networks (e.g., US Oncology Network). We analyzed temporal trends in lobbying spending, in both overall dollar value (inflation-adjusted 2023 dollars) and in per-physician spending (using AAMC data for number of hematologists/oncologists). Significance was analyzed using a Mann-Kendall Trend Test. Results: Of overall health sector lobbying, Pharmaceuticals/Health Products had the greatest increase in lobbying spending from 2014 to 2022, with an increase from $294 million to $376 million (28%, p = 0.0006). In contrast, lobbying spending by health professionals did not change over this period, remaining at $96 million (p = 0.35). Regarding oncology-related lobbying, per-physician spending by OPOs and PPS-exempt cancer hospitals increased (Table). Overall, OPO lobbying has increased as a percentage of overall physician lobbying from 1.16% in 2014 to 3.76% in 2022 (not shown). Conclusions: While overall health sector lobbying spending by physicians/health professional lobbying has been relatively stable in recent years, lobbying spending by OPOs has increased. Continued efforts to understand the utility and value of lobbying in healthcare and across oncology are needed as the costs of care continue to rise. [Table: see text]

Innovation and its effects on compliance with Sustainable Development Goals and competitiveness in European Union countries

Innovation in a country should have an impact on different indicators of a country. Thus, it can be expected to have an impact on the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and, finally, on the country's competitiveness. This study analyzes the effect that innovation, in its human and financial resources components, has on the fulfillment of the SDGs and, likewise, how this fulfillment has an effect on the competitiveness of the countries of the European Union. The information used for innovation was reported on the European Commission's website; in the case of the SDGs, information from the SDG Index 2022 report was used. Finally, information on competitiveness was obtained from the World Competitiveness Ranking. The information from the 25 countries that had results in the sources was analyzed. The data collected were analyzed using the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique. It was evidenced that innovation based on human resources and finance have a positive and significant effect on SDG compliance; furthermore, it is shown that SDG compliance has a positive and significant effect on the competitiveness of European Union countries. These results show the great importance of monitoring global indicators to generate better positioning and alternatives for development and welfare for countries.

The European Pesticides Harmonised Risk Indicator HRI_1: A Clarification About Its Displayed Rendering

AbstractSince the EU Directive (EC) No 128/2009 (SUD) was approved by the European Parliament, the establishment of a general framework aimed at securing the sustainable use of pesticides was laid down, and European Union (EU) Member States adopted National Action Plans in accordance with this Directive. Specifically, for EU Member States, pesticides, objectives and quantitative targets were created. Therefore, the EU Commission provided a methodology for risk assessment as the derivation of two harmonised risk indicators: HRI_1 and HRI_2. The present study focuses on HRI_1, as this can be implemented at the country level. Each EU Member State delivers annual harmonised risk indicators values to the Commission based on calculations using their own data and results. However, only the EU Commission can derive this HRI_1 (concatenated) indicator at the EU level. Therefore, the present study is an attempt to shed some light on the modus operandi used by the EU Commission to compile this HRI_1, and it also aims to clarify these calculations. Data originating from twenty-seven EU Member States were analysed. These data were compared to data published on the EU Commission website over time. Possible virtual developments including the modification and evolution of active substance statuses are envisaged.

Modeling the Effect of Population Density and Some Related Factors on Covid-19 Pandemic in Nigeria: An Application of Count Data Regression

Aim: Nigeria's population density and other factors like confirmed, admitted, and discharged cases have adversely impacted health behaviors and the management of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to investigate how population, population density, confirmed, admitted, and discharged cases affect the prevalence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the 36 states of Nigeria, including the FCT. Method: The number of COVID-19-related deaths, confirmed, admitted, and discharged individuals, from June 20, 2021, to December 31, 2022, were extracted from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) online database, while data set on the Nigeria population and density were collected from Nigeria’s National Population Commission (NPC) website. Three count data regression techniques; Poisson, Negative Binomial, and Generalized Poisson Regression models were employed to analyze these count data. Result: It was found that the number of admitted patients has a significant negative impact on COVID-19, whereas the number of confirmed laboratory COVID-19 cases has a significant positive effect on the number of deaths related to COVID-19. Additionally, the result showed that Nigeria's COVID-19 death rate is negatively impacted by discharged cases, population, and population density. Conclusion: It is inferred that the Generalized Poisson Regression model is the most suitable count data regression model for over-dispersion and is the best model for predicting the number of COVID-19-related deaths in Nigeria between June 20, 2021, and December 31, 2022.

Interrupted time series analysis using the ARIMA model of the impact of COVID-19 on the incidence rate of notifiable communicable diseases in China

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in China is ongoing. Some studies have shown that the incidence of respiratory and intestinal infectious diseases in 2020 decreased significantly compared with previous years. Interrupted time series (ITS) is a time series analysis method that evaluates the impact of intervention measures on outcomes and can control the original regression trend of outcomes before and after the intervention. This study aimed to analyse the impact of COVID-19 on the incidence rate of notifiable communicable diseases using ITS in China.MethodsNational data on the incidence rate of communicable diseases in 2009–2021 were obtained from the National Health Commission website. Interrupted time series analysis using autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models was used to analyse the changes in the incidence rate of infectious diseases before and after the COVID-19 epidemic.ResultsThere was a significant short-term decline in the incidence rates of respiratory infectious diseases and enteric infectious diseases (step values of -29.828 and − 8.237, respectively), which remained at a low level for a long time after the decline. There was a short-term decline in the incidence rates of blood-borne and sexually transmitted infectious diseases (step = -3.638), which tended to recover to previous levels in the long term (ramp = 0.172). There was no significant change in the incidence rate of natural focus diseases or arboviral diseases before and after the epidemic.ConclusionThe COVID-19 epidemic had strong short-term and long-term effects on respiratory and intestinal infectious diseases and short-term control effects on blood-borne and sexually transmitted infectious diseases. Our methods for the prevention and control of COVID-19 can be used for the prevention and control of other notifiable communicable diseases, especially respiratory and intestinal infectious diseases.

Current distribution of medical colleges in India and its potential predictors: A public domain data audit.

A teaching hospital or medical college may help provide better health care delivery to the people of the vicinity. Hence, building new medical colleges and upgrading existing hospitals to teaching hospitals are being implemented in India. This study aimed to observe the current distribution of medical colleges in Indian states and find correlation with area, population, and net state domestic product (NSDP). We collected data from public domain websites provided by government agencies. The State-wise number of government and private medical colleges and their annual intake were obtained from the National Medical Commission website. The state-wise number of medical colleges, geographical area, and population were calculated as the percentage of total Indian colleges, area, and population, respectively. Spearman's correlation was calculated to find any correlation of colleges and annual intake versus parameters such as area, population, and NSDP. India has a total of 612 [321 (52.45%) government-run and 291 (47.55%) private] medical colleges. Tamil Nadu (70), Uttar Pradesh (67), Karnataka (63), Maharashtra (62), and Telangana (34) are the top five states with 296 (48.37%) medical colleges. States and union territories such as Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana have higher medical colleges, and states such as Assam, Bihar, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh have lower medical colleges when compared with their population percentages. There was significant positive correlation of number of medical colleges with area (rs = 0.769, P < 0.0001), population (rs = 0.91, P < 0.0001), and NSDP (rs = 0.91, P < 0.0001). The current distribution of medical colleges in India is clustered over some states. Although geographical area and population are major predictors of medical colleges in Indian states, a more population-based balanced distribution of medical colleges would help distribute quality health care to the majority of the population.

Aggregate economic policy uncertainty and corporate political contribution disclosure

PurposeUnlike other types of corporate disclosure, corporate political disclosure (CPD), which is the disclosure of corporate political contributions and the related governing policies and oversight mechanisms, does not provide completely new information to stakeholders. Some of the information disclosed in CPD is available from other public records (e.g. the Federal Election Committee website or OpenSecrets website). Given this unique feature of CPD, it is interesting to investigate the cost and benefit tradeoff for firms of altering their CPD practice in response to policy and political uncertainty.Design/methodology/approachThis study employs recently developed indexes of aggregate economic policy uncertainty (EPU) and a novel dataset of CPD transparency to examine the impact of EPU on CPD transparency and how the proprietary cost of corporate political activities moderates this association. The sample consists of S&P 500 companies from the 2012 to 2019 period.FindingsThe authors document that firms mitigate the heightened information asymmetry associated with higher aggregate EPU by increasing CPD transparency. The positive association between EPU and CPD is less pronounced for firms that are more sensitive to EPU, for firms that more actively manage EPU through corporate political contributions or lobbying activities and for firms that are followed by more analysts. The authors also find that more transparent CPD helps to mitigate the information asymmetry caused by heightened EPU. This study’s results hold when the authors control for other types of voluntary corporate disclosure.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the emerging literature on the determinants of CPD transparency by identifying EPU's positive impact on CPD transparency. This study also provides empirical evidence that the proprietary costs arising from the controversial nature of corporate political activities dampen firms' incentives to provide transparent CPD in response to heightened EPU, and that information on corporate political activities gathered and processed by financial analysts seems to lower the marginal benefit to companies of publicizing CPD on their own website.

Introducing Australia's clinical care standard for low back pain.

Introducing Australia's clinical care standard for low back pain.

Managing the EU energy crisis and greenhouse gas emissions: Seasonal ARIMA forecast

Changes in the logistics of energy resources and their potential shortage are causing a review of the EU energy policy. The energy sector significantly affects the progress toward achieving climate policy goals due to significt greenhouse gas emissions. The REPowerEU plan, implemented in the EU27 to overcome the energy crisis, requires new forecasts of greenhouse gas emissions due to a change in European energy policy. This paper aims to examine the consequences of the management of the energy crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on EU climate policy. This study focuses on forecasting greenhouse gas emissions in the EU until 2030 and uses the Seasonal ARIMA model based on quarterly time series in the EU27. Depending on energy management and changes in energy policy to overcome the energy crisis, a positive or negative scenario for greenhouse gas emissions may occur. An important parameter that should be considered when determining the scenario of the EU energy development according to climate policy was defined by correlation analysis.According to the negative scenario and under the influence of the effects of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the value of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU at the beginning of 2030 will be 0.752911 tons per capita. The positive scenario shows greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced to 0.235225 tons per capita.The study results proved two extreme scenarios of greenhouse gas emissions, depending on how to overcome the energy crisis. AcknowledgmentThe authors appreciate the copyright holder: © European Union, 1995–2022, as well as the source of the extracted data, which is the European Commission website, Eurostat http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat (accessed on 16 October 2022). This study was funded by the European Union (the project No. 101048079 – EU4SmartED – ERASMUS-JMO-2021-HEI-TCH-RSCH); by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (projects No. 0122U000788, 0122U000769, 0121U109553, 0120U102001, 0122U000777).This research was funded by Faculty of Organization and Management of the Silesian University of Technology (grant number: 13/990/BK_23/0178).