Economic Reforms Research Articles

Foreign Policy of India as the Reflection of Change in its Ruling Elite

The article examines the changes in the formulation, prioritisation and implementation of India’s foreign policy objectives as a result of a significant renewal of its political elite, triggered by the economic reforms that began in the 1990s. It is argued that India’s ruling elite is now largely identical to its political elite, whose mindset, although considerably younger and better educated, is more than ever defined by its self-identification with traditional values, which are religious and, for the vast Hindu majority, caste-based. At the same time, the composition of India’s elite has broadened during the reform years, mainly through the inclusion of middle and even lower castes in the traditional hierarchy. Many of its representatives tend to associate the strengthening of the country with a return to the “correct” cultural and civilisational basis which, in the centuries before foreign conquest, gave India what the y saw as its natural primacy in the world. The main change is the emergence of a sense of self-confidence among the elite, on which the so-called “new nationalism” of the “man of the people”, the current Prime Minister N. Modi, is based. Drawing on his statements, speeches by Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, and articles by Indian and Russian scholars, the author shows the innovations introduced by the Prime Minister in promoting India’s core national interests in a changing world. The article examines the creation of India’s own sphere of influence within the framework of the new Indo-Pacific strategy, the combination of cooperation and competition in relations with China, the reasons for the dynamic expansion of interaction with the United States and the “red lines” involved, the motives for developing a particularly privileged strategic partnership with Russia and for using multilateral formats, and the return to India’s agenda of the task of gaining the status of the main voice of the Global South. It is concluded that approaches to the imperative of building a multipolar world order “in which India would be a strong pole”, based on the priority goal of establishing for it the status of a great power and a global actor in world politics, create historic opportunities for increasing Russian-Indian interaction.

Developing ukrainian enterprises using neural networks

The article explores the features of using neural networks for the development of Ukrainian enterprises. It examines the theoretical foundations of neural networks, their history, types, and examples of application in various industries. Special attention is given to analyzing the factors influencing enterprise development, such as technological innovations, economic conditions, organizational changes, competition level, and market conditions. It is shown that technological progress is a key factor in the development of enterprises in the modern world. The current state of development of Ukrainian enterprises is investigated in the context of adapting to new economic conditions, particularly during the war. The war in Ukraine significantly affects the economy, including the business sector. Internal challenges include political instability, economic reforms, workforce shortages due to mobilization, power outages, and the need for modernization of production facilities. External factors include global competition, the influence of international markets, and economic sanctions. Despite the challenging conditions, Ukrainian enterprises have growth opportunities through the implementation of the latest technologies, such as neural networks. The main challenges and opportunities for Ukrainian business are analyzed, and the directions for using neural networks for enterprise development are proposed for each development factor, considering the specifics of business operations in Ukraine. Specific examples of successful implementation of neural networks in the banking sector (PrivatBank), IT companies (SoftServe), and the agro-industrial complex (MHP) are provided. The article analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of using neural networks, such as increased efficiency, forecasting accuracy, service personalization, risk reduction, and challenges related to high costs, integration complexity, lack of qualified personnel, and data quality dependency. The prospects for enterprise development using neural networks are considered: productivity improvement, product and service quality enhancement, efficient resource management, risk reduction, innovative development, market adaptation, and resilience support. It is proven that the use of neural networks has significant potential for transforming enterprises, making them more efficient, flexible, and innovative.

Shaping Modern Egypt: A Captivating Tale Of History and Political Transformation

Purpose: This article examines Egypt's transformation from an Ottoman province to a modern state, starting with Napoleon Bonaparte's 1798 incursion and the modernization efforts of Mehmet Ali Pasha. It covers key historical periods, including the monarchy, the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936, and the Cold War and post-Cold War era. Method: Using a historical-analytical approach, the study explores the eras of Gamal Abdel Nasser, Anwar Sadat, and Hosni Mubarak. It highlights Nasser's socialist policies and ties with the Soviet Union, Sadat's economic liberalization and the Camp David Accords, and Mubarak's economic reforms and political repression leading to the 2011 Arab Spring. Conclusion: The article critically analyzes Egypt's struggle for independence, democratic governance, and socio-economic development. It emphasizes the need for strengthening democratic institutions, diversifying the economy, enhancing education and healthcare, and promoting political inclusivity. Implication of the Research: The research offers recommendations to help Egypt build on its historical legacy and ensure a prosperous, democratic, and stable future, addressing key socio-political challenges. Originality of the Research: This article provides a nuanced historical account and analysis of Egypt's political evolution, integrating modernization and dependency theories, and offers valuable insights for scholars, policymakers, and practitioners interested in Middle Eastern politics and development.

NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO) AND ITS ROLE FOR SECURITY IN THE WESTERN BALKANS

Background: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is the world’s largest and most powerful collective security organisation in modern times. Membership in this organisation is the objective and effort of many countries, including most of the countries of the Western Balkans. Membership ensures collective protection, security and political stability. Since its inception, NATO has emerged as a global force for security and the spread of peace almost across the globe. Not everyone deems it as such, considering the Russian Federation sees it as its main enemy. Its military operations have been centred around protecting human rights and maintaining peace. The best example of this commitment is NATO’s humanitarian intervention in Kosovo, one of the countries of the Western Balkans. Even after June 1999, NATO was present in this country and took care of the peace and security of the entire Western Balkans. The presence of this organisation in this part of the globe remained essential, as did knowing the geopolitical history of this region. The Balkans still suffers from nationalist policies and interethnic divisions, which in either case remain a very important factor for security in this region. One fundamental issue of Western Balkan countries is the acceleration of economic reforms, the rule of law and the fight against corruption to achieve membership in the European Union. Instead of these important issues in the Western Balkans, clashes have continued over border changes and nationalist rhetoric, which could undermine peace and security in this region. The current problems of the Western Balkans are inherited from the dissolution of the Socialist Federation of Yugoslavia. The wars in the former Yugoslavia, despite being the cause for the establishment of new independent states, did not fulfil the ethnic expectations of these countries. Given that the Republic of Serbia, in the preamble of the 2006 Constitution, foresees the Republic of Kosovo as its own territory,1 legal action that expresses territorial claims against a sovereign state poses a risk for new conflicts in the Balkans. A situation with conflicting tendencies is also present in the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the official policy of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia has openly shown the tendencies for secession from the Federation and union with Serbia.2 This paper deals with the role that NATO has played and continues to play with its presence in the Balkans in maintaining peace and regional security, the challenges of security and building a stable peace in this region of Europe, where nationalist tendencies dominate as well as interethnic problems, lack of political culture and deficits of democracy. Methods: Combined scientific methods were used in this paper, starting with the qualitative method and literature review. The qualitative method was used to interpret the scientific theories related to security. Reviewing the literature, we managed to combine the results of other studies related to our study topic. This paper also used the analysis method, which helped us separate the elements from the totality of the study problem. The historical method has served to show the axis of the security problem in the Balkans and to explain the development of NATO. Results and conclusions: As a security organisation, during the Cold War, it served as a mechanism for collective defence against the nuclear threats of the Warsaw Pact and the spread of democratic values of the Western world. After the fall of the Iron Curtain, it has served as an organisation that promotes global peace and security, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. The existence of open political issues in the Western Balkans, in particular the territorial claims of Serbia against Kosovo, the nationalist tendencies of the Serbs from Bosnia and Herzegovina for separation from the Federation, the attempts of Russia to influence this region, using history, culture and intelligence services and some other issues such as the lack of political culture in Albania and Montenegro and the issues of North Macedonia with Bulgaria have posed risks to the regional security. In this geopolitical environment called the Western Balkans, the integration of all countries in NATO and its presence in this region is essential for the future and security. In this context, the membership of Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina in NATO will have to be a priority for Western countries. The membership of these two states would serve regional peace and security.

The place of the climate agenda in modern global communications

The subject of our research is the climate agenda as part of the environmental policies of states. The author's attention to this issue is due to the instability of the international system, which is influenced by current crises and conflict relations between countries. It was important for us to consider how strongly the processes of instability affect the fulfillment of their obligations by global players. We also identified key factors influencing the adoption of current strategic documents. We analyzed the main documents approved at the UN on climate change, adopted in 2021-2023. Scientific novelty manifests itself in several key aspects. First of all, decisions are considered from the point of view of making political decisions and building communication processes. The second aspect is related to the identification of factors influencing the implementation of environmental policy. And finally, we looked at how global crises affected the climate agenda and whether it was transformed on a global scale. The result of the study is the conclusion that the problem of climate change remains key. Moreover, attempts are being made to strengthen the “natural resources – climate change – responsibility” link, which is reflected in plans to introduce a complete phase-out of fossil fuels. Serious steps are being taken to involve developing countries in this process through the provision of financial and other support. Young people have been identified as the main driver of the fight against climate change, which indicates the long-term nature of key decisions. Moreover, international agreements involve further transformation of the existing system through adjustments to national goals, diversification of the energy sector, economic reforms and changes to existing financial systems aimed at achieving climate goals.

Wolfgang Streeck on the Origins of Capitalist Crisis

Abstract Shortly after the financial crisis of 2008, Wolfgang Streeck emerged as a highly influential and ambitious critical theorist of capitalism and crisis. Streeck's crisis theory of capitalism is built around an account of neoliberal policy reform as a family of responses to economic upheavals that first emerged during the 1970s. Based on an analysis of four major shocks all occurring in that decade, I argue that Streeck's crisis theory is excessively economistic in its understanding of the crisis tendencies that first propelled neoliberal reform and insufficiently attentive to the global context of their emergence. Theorising the significance of this pivotal historical moment requires more attention to the conflictual entanglements between societies of the Global South and North in the context of decolonisation, war and revolution, and a more nuanced appreciation of the political context of economic reform.

Mapping Fiscal Research Trajectories through Bibliometric Analysis: Echoes of Global Crises in Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract World economies have faced numerous crises throughout history. Fiscal issues have accordingly become a crucial aspect of economic policy discussions, particularly in Eastern Europe, a region shown to be especially vulnerable to the recent economic shocks. The paper therefore aims to provide a bibliometric examination of trends in fiscal research via the lenses of major economic and financial crises. The bibliometric analysis is based on 6,640 documents published between 1970 and 2022 and indexed in the Scopus database. The results reveal that fiscal research associated with crises has grown sharply over time, with significant bursts one year following each major economic and financial crisis. The most cited journal articles in fiscal research highlighted the following issues in all countries, including Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries: economic reform policies (1970-1997), economic development and financial conditions (1998-2008), crises in Europe and post-crisis recovery (2009-2019) and post-crisis recovery and effects (of the COVID-19 pandemic) on the public and business sectors (2020-2022). As well as identifying key countries and journals, although diverging in approach and scope the findings show shared interests in macroeconomic policy, fiscal stability, and the impact of crises on economic performance and public finance. Developed countries have addressed complex global economic issues and advanced development, whereas Central and Eastern European nations have focused on the transition from planned to market economies. This observation reflects their distinct economic paths and fiscal research interests, as revealed in detailed content analysis by subperiods. The findings maybe of benefit for both the scientific community and evidence-based policymaking.

Turning the State-Owned Enterprises from a Burden into an Opportunity for Economic Development

The sector of state-owned enterprises (SOEs)1 in the Republic of Moldova is plagued by the problem of weak governance, both at the state level (regulations and policies) and at the company level. As a result, the financial and operational performance of SOEs over the last years has been in continuous decline. However, state-owned enterprises can be transformed from a burden for Moldova’s economic development into a source of opportunities and tools that could generate a number of important economic reforms. The results of the given research demonstrate that state-owned enterprises have the potential to serve as important channels for attracting private investment, boost capital market development, develop and promote new financial instruments, strengthen state security and fortify strategic infrastructure.

Perkembangan Bank Sentral : Status, Kedudukan, dan Tugas dari Bank Sentral

The role and function of Bank Indonesia as the central bank is crucial to revitalize the goal of maintaining and preserving the value of the rupiah, which is an important part of sustainable economic growth that will improve people's welfare. This goal is part of the economic recovery and reform policy that will help Indonesia get out of the middle economic crisis. The purpose of this study is to determine the development of the status, position, and duties of the central bank. This research uses the literature method. In 1968, Bank Indonesia's functions and responsibilities as the central bank began to diminish. In 1999, it was again responsible for safeguarding and maintaining the value of the rupiah. Its central bank work consists of three main pillars: setting and implementing monetary policy, maintaining a smooth payment system, and maintaining the stability of the national financial system. To improve people's quality of life, Bank Indonesia is also responsible for acting as a development agent.

Resilience of Saudi Arabia’s Economy to Oil Shocks: Effects of Economic Reforms

We assess the extent to which the implementation of Vision 2030 policies enhances the Saudi economy’s resilience to oil shocks. Using a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model that captures the country’s economic diversification policies, we build a resilience index based on impulse responses to shocks. The policies considered have two opposite effects: reforming domestic energy prices, deploying renewables and introducing a value-added tax increase the volatility of macroeconomic aggregates, whereas economic diversification policies stabilize the economy. Overall, with Vision 2030 the economy’s resilience to oil price shocks increases by 10 to 60 percent, depending on how labor market rigidities and the recycling of fiscal revenues are accounted for. Oil prices remain the main driver of macroeconomic fluctuations. Our analysis shows that an oil-exporting country should design policy packages that balance structural reforms with economic diversification, in order to shield its economy against oil shocks while generating long-term welfare gains. JEL Classification: D58, E13, E32, E37, E65, H30, H50, Q43

How has the COVID-19 pandemic shaped behavior in crowdsourcing? The role of online labor market training

AbstractThe outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated lockdown measures have been a shock to market systems worldwide, affecting both the supply and demand of labor. Intensified by this pandemic-driven recession, online labor markets are in many ways at the core of the economic and policy debates about their technological innovation, which could be used as a way of economic reform and recovery. In this work, we focus on crowdsourcing, which is a specific type of online labor. We apply a unique dataset of labor data to investigate the effects of online training, a policy that was provided to requesters by the platform during the COVID-19 period. Our findings suggest that workers indirectly finance on-the-job online training by accepting lower wages during the pandemic. By utilizing a difference-in-difference research design, we also provide causal evidence that online training results in lower job completion time and the probability of being discontinued. Our findings show that both employers and employees in our online labor context reacted to the pandemic by participating in online labor procedures with different risk strategies and labor approaches. Our findings provide key insights for several groups of crowdsourcing stakeholders, including policy-makers, platform owners, hiring managers, and workers. Managerial and practical implications in relation to how online labor markets react to external shocks are discussed.

Kritik efter postkolonialiteten

How can we best forge a theoretical practice that directly addresses the struggles of once-colonized countries, many of which face the collapse of both state and society in today’s era of economic reform? David Scott argues that recent cultural theories aimed at “deconstructing” Western representations of the non-West have been successful to a point, but that changing realities in these countries require a new approach. In Refashioning Futures, he proposes a strategic practice of criticism that brings the political more clearly into view in areas of the world where the very coherence of a secular-modern project can no longer be taken for granted.

Between Freedom and Order: Evolution logic of urban-rural population mobility Policy from the perspective of historical institutionalism

Urban-rural population flow is the key element and important driving force for urban-rural integration development and rural revitalization. The pattern of urban-rural population flow in China is restricted and guided by policies. From the perspective of historical institutionalism, this paper analyzes the evolution context, structural logic and dynamic mechanism of the change of urban and rural population mobility policy. The urban and rural population mobility policy has gone through five historical stages: the order reconstruction period at the beginning of the founding of New China, the political call period after the Great Leap Forward Movement, the free flow period after the reform and opening up, the period of making the best use of the situation under the economic system reform and the accelerated integration period under the background of the new era. The institutional choice under different paths, the institutional evolution under the key nodes and the institutional continuation under the path dependence constitute the structural logic of the policy change of urban-rural population mobility. The situation coupling under the action of exogenous variables, the value coupling promoted by the change of ideas, and the subject coupling under the interaction of actors’ game constitute the dynamic mechanism of policy change, which promotes the historical change and realistic development of policy.

Examining the impact of the stock market development on Economic growth- KSA Tadawul.

The relationship between stock market development and economic growth has been a subject of debate, with arguments centered on the impact of a well-functioning stock market on economic growth. This study argues that economic growth is influenced by stock market development and economic reform indicators, while controlling for other determinants of growth. The research employs a comprehensive theoretical framework linking stock market development to economic growth, and it specifically focuses on the Tadawul stock market in Saudi Arabia. The empirical analysis, using sophisticated panel data econometric techniques, reveals a significant positive correlation between Tadawul stock market and economic growth, particularly in the oil sector. This suggests that the Tadawul stock market plays a crucial role in influencing and contributing to economic growth, especially within the context of the oil industry.

Analysis of Huawei's Financial Risk Management from the Perspective of Financial Indicators

With the continuous development of China's socio-economy, overall enterprise growth faces certain limitations; deeper economic reforms and market opening create a more challenging external environment for businesses. This implies that companies will encounter more challenges. To ensure that enterprises can operate normally and successfully achieve their business objectives, it is necessary to correctly understand financial risks and adopt rational risk management methods to avoid or reduce potential losses. This paper takes Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Huawei") as an example and analyzes its financial indicators. Through financial data, it identifies the issues and causes of the company's financial risk management, and discusses how to prevent financial risks in enterprises, aiming to assist companies in achieving sustainable development in a fiercely competitive environment.

Economic Institution, Religion, and Economic Development: Confucianism and Economy in Vietnam after The Implementation of the Doi Moi Policy

Among the three borderline Mainland Southeast Asian countries, located in the Indochinese Peninsula, Vietnam has the best economic performance, compared to Laos and Cambodia. The GDP per capita of Vietnam reached US$4,163 in 2022, which was two times higher than Laos and Cambodia. While economic reform policies, political and economic institutions, and colonial history, are similar in all three countries, why does Vietnam have better economic development? Researchers pointed out the economic factors, specifically the positive effects of economic reforms on economic performance. Nonetheless, it is not convincing, while the economic reform in all three countries emphasized property rights, and encouraged decentralization, privatization, and marketization. This study suggested the religious factor of Confucianism in Vietnam that reinforce the effects of economic institutions on economic development, which leads to greater economic performance. The Confucian characteristics of emphasis on saving, education, and following the government's instruction and policies, support the government’s economic reform, which is conducive to economic development.

Omar Torrijos Regime in Panama 1968–1981 and the Economic Integration of Latin America

Studies of military regimes in Latin America usually examine the history of local political systems and regional economic integration separately, occasionally pointing to the negative impact of military protectionism on integration processes. The novelty of the article lies in the study of Panama’s place in the process of regional economic integration, and due to the lack of works on this topic in the Russian historiography, its aim is to analyse the impact of the political institutions created by the military regime of Omar Torrijos on the economic integration of the Latin American region. In order to do so, it is necessary to examine the integration associations that existed in the region from the point of view of the results they achieved and to determine the extent to which these processes were directly or indirectly influenced by the economic reforms implemented in Panama during this period, as well as by its foreign policy. The topic’s relevance is due to the great importance of the region in the world economy, as well as the interest of many researchers in gained experience in the economic integration of developing countries and the transition from authoritarianism to democracy regarding the results achieved and whether it is applicable to other regions. The work uses content analysis, statistical analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, discourse analysis, historical genetic and historical comparative methods based on UN statistics, international indices, regulations and international treaties. According to the author Omar Torrijos regime actions in Panama influenced the integration processes rather positively, which is not a typical consequence of military rule noted in researches on local military regimes.

Hazardous alcohol consumption in slow- and fast-privatized Russian industrial towns

Hazardous drinking, defined as the consumption of homemade, unofficially made alcohol and non-beverages, is prevalent and accounts for a high proportion of alcohol-related deaths in Russia. Individual-level characteristics are important explanations of hazardous drinking, but they are unlikely to explain spatial variation in this type of alcohol consumption. Areas that attracted insufficient attention in the research of hazardous drinking are the legacy of industrialization and the speed of economic reforms, mainly through the privatization policy of major enterprises in the 1990s. Applying mixed-effects logistic regressions to a unique dataset from 30 industrial towns in the European part of Russia, we find that in addition to individual-level characteristics such as gender, age, marital status, education, social isolation, labor market status, and material deprivation, the types of towns where informants’ relatives resided such as industrial structure and speed of privatization also accounted for the variance in hazardous alcohol consumption among both male and female populations of the analyzed towns.

Alms for the Rich: Impoverished Spanish Women in Pursuit of Making a Living in Late Colonial Lima

Abstract This article establishes the role white women played in shaping the urban labor force and the economy in late colonial times in Lima, roughly from 1790 to 1822. It focuses on the impoverished elite women who, by the end of the colonial period, had to ask for alms to avoid working with their own hands. An important part of the Limeño elites could not respond to the twofold challenge: the negative consequences of the economic and administrative reforms of the Bourbons, and the relative flexibilization of the social order in Lima by the end of the eighteenth century. Instead of adapting to new conditions, the Spanish elites generated a social discourse that reaffirmed status and ethnicity as a means to distinguish themselves from the “vicious” plebeian sectors. More than one thousand applications to Church relief programs serve as the main foundation of this article; they are made up of at least one fifth of the white female population of the city in 1806. The article enters into dialogue with studies on socio-labor practices and the history of gender and ethnicity by engaging with concrete experiences of poor elite women in a city considered to be the opulent center of the Spanish colonial power.

Assessing Economic Development and Quality of Life: A Management Perspective on Romania and the Republic of Moldova

This article presents a comparative analysis focusing on the economic dimensions of quality of life and explores the factors influencing economic growth and well-being between two countries located in Eastern Europe: Romania—an EU member state since 2007, and Moldova—an EU candidate status since June 2022. By examining statistical data, we assess the relationship between economic growth and development, aiming to discern patterns and dynamics within these countries’ economies. Through this comparative approach, we aim to elucidate how economic factors contribute to societal welfare and living standards. The study underscores the significance of economic management policies and structural reforms in fostering growth and enhancing the quality of life for citizens. By focusing on the economic landscapes of Romania and Moldova, we aim to offer insights into the challenges and opportunities faced by transitioning economies in Eastern Europe, shedding light on strategies for sustainable development and improved well-being.