Government Information Research Articles

The cost of inaction: a global tool to inform nutrition policy and investment decisions on global nutrition targets.

At present, the world is off-track to meet the World Health Assembly global nutrition targets for 2025. Reducing the prevalence of stunting and low birthweight (LBW) in children, and anaemia in women, and increasing breastfeeding rates are among the prioritized global nutrition targets for all countries. Governments and development partners need evidence-based data to understand the true costs and consequences of policy decisions and investments. Yet there is an evidence gap on the health, human capital, and economic costs of inaction on preventing undernutrition for most countries. The Cost of Inaction tool and expanded Cost of Not Breastfeeding tool provide country-specific data to help address the gaps. Every year undernutrition leads to 1.3 million cases of preventable child and maternal deaths globally. In children, stunting results in the largest economic burden yearly at US$548 billion (0.7% of global gross national income [GNI]), followed by US$507 billion for suboptimal breastfeeding (0.6% of GNI), US$344 billion (0.3% of GNI) for LBW and US$161 billion (0.2% of GNI) for anaemia in children. Anaemia in women of reproductive age (WRA) costs US$113 billion (0.1% of GNI) globally in current income losses. Accounting for overlap in stunting, suboptimal breastfeeding and LBW, the analysis estimates that preventable undernutrition cumulatively costs the world at least US$761 billion per year, or US$2.1 billion per day. The variation in the regional and country-level estimates reflects the contextual drivers of undernutrition. In the lead-up to the renewed World Health Assembly targets and Sustainable Development Goals for 2030, the data generated from these tools are powerful information for advocates, governments and development partners to inform policy decisions and investments into high-impact low-cost nutrition interventions. The costs of inaction on undernutrition continue to be substantial, and serious coordinated action on the global nutrition targets is needed to yield the significant positive human capital and economic benefits from investing in nutrition.

Is chair-CEO generational difference a substitute governance mechanism to debt financing?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine whether and how chair-chief executive officer (CEO) generational difference is related to debt financing.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopts the pooled ordinary least squares and system generalized method of moments estimation procedures to analyze listed firms in Malaysia from 2013 to 2017.FindingsThe results reveal that chair-CEO generational difference is negatively associated with leverage. The evidence suggests that substantial age gaps between the chair and CEO precipitate cognitive conflicts, which lead to better monitoring and control. This results in better governance and less information asymmetry, causing firms to depend less on debt as a board monitoring mechanism. The findings provide support to the theory posited in this paper on the substitutability of chair-CEO generational difference and debt financing.Originality/valueThis is the first attempt to investigate the substitutability of chair-CEO generational difference and debt financing.

One size does not fit all: Responsible investor motivation and investment performance

AbstractMost research in socially responsible investing is about how it influences financial performance. Hardly any study investigates how it affects responsibility. We investigate how different motives of responsible investors affect portfolio design and financial and nonfinancial performance of investments. We study financial, deontological, consequentialist, and expressive motivated responsible investors. The first seek to achieve financial outperformance by relying on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) information. The second avoid investing in controversial issues. The third seek to influence the most sustainable firms. The fourth try to enhance their own social identity by investing responsibly. We find that the specific motivation for socially responsible investing does not significantly affect financial performance. However, the motivation does have a substantial influence on the responsibility score of the portfolio. In particular, deontological portfolios underperform the universe regarding responsibility performance. This might reflect the origin of responsibility scoring where controversial firms usually invest more in responsibility than less controversial ones. The other portfolios all outperform the market. This has important lessons for responsible investment funds: they will need to find out about the motives of their investors to modify portfolio design when investing responsibly. “One size for all” is no option when targeting responsible investors.

Evaluation of Local Government Digital Governance Ability and Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Hunan Province

Strengthening the governance capacity of local governments in the digital domain is crucial to the modernization of the national governance system and the process of sustainable development. This paper integrates the concept of sustainable development drawing upon the principles of systems theory and adopts the logical analytical framework of “resource input–process transformation–result output” to construct a digital governance capacity indicator system for local governments. The focus is on three dimensions: basic resource input, network public opinion management, and digital service effectiveness. Using statistical data from the digital governance capacity indicators of 14 cities and prefectures in Hunan Province from 2018 to 2022 as a case study, we base our analysis on the index system constructed herein. Employing the entropy-weighted TOPSIS method and the obstacle degree model, we evaluate and analyze the digital governance capacity of the government in Hunan Province. Our findings indicate that the government’s digital governance capacity in Hunan Province has been on a rising trend overall. However, there are noticeable regional disparities in the strength of digital governance capacity across western, northern, central, and southern Hunan, particularly in terms of digital service effectiveness, which presents the most significant barriers to improvement. These results suggest that local governments should tailor their efforts to enhance digital governance capacity around resource allocation based on regional differences, the establishment of an online public opinion monitoring system, the optimization of government information disclosure mechanisms, the performance of government service platforms, and the strengthening of a two-way communication mechanism between the government and the public.

Synthesizing perspectives: Crafting an Interdisciplinary view of social media's impact on young people's mental health.

This study explores the intricate relationship between social media usage and the mental health of young individuals by leveraging the insights of 492 UK school headteachers. It adopts a novel multidisciplinary approach, integrating perspectives from psychology, sociology, education studies, political science, philosophy, media studies, linguistics, social work, anthropology, and health sciences. The application of thematic analysis, powered by ChatGPT-4, identifies a predominantly negative perspective on the impact of social media on young people, focusing on key themes across various disciplines, including mental health, identity formation, social interaction and comparison, bullying, digital literacy, and governance policies. These findings culminated in the development of the five-factor Comprehensive Digital Influence Model, suggesting five key themes (Self-Identity and Perception Formation, Social Interaction Skills and Peer Communication, Mental and Emotional Well-Being, Digital Literacy, Critical Thinking, and Information Perception, and Governance, Policy, and Cultural Influence in Digital Spaces) to focus the impacts of social media on young peoples' mental health across primary and secondary educational stages. This study not only advances academic discourse across multiple disciplines but also provides practical insights for educators, policymakers, and mental health professionals, seeking to navigate the challenges and opportunities presented by social media in the digital era.

Trust in Governmental Health Communication on Covid-19

Trust in governmental communication is critical to the successful containment of public health crises. However, in highly politicised crises, trust varies as a function of partisanship. This research report examines the relationship between political preferences and trust in governmental health communication during the Covid-19 pandemic in Germany. We pay particular attention to the interaction between (a) different dimensions of vulnerability to the virus and (b) distrust rooted in partisan preferences. Using original data from a representative, four-wave online survey conducted in Germany in 2020 and 2021, we found moderate to low levels of trust in information from the government. Whereas belonging to a vulnerable age group (65+) and fear of infection were significantly associated with trust, identification as a member of a risk group was not. Voters of the right-wing populist AfD were less likely to trust government information. Finally, the association between fear of infection and trust was stronger among AfD voters than among voters of established parties. We conclude that public health campaigns should account for the fact that politicised individuals may not trust communicators in prolonged crises. Messages targeting members of risk groups and partisans of populist parties should make health risks relatable to them as individuals.

The Impact of Confucian Culture on Corporate Environmental Governance

Using A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2010 to 2019 and the density of Confucian temples and schools near sample company headquarters, this paper uses regression analysis to estimate the impact of Confucian culture on corporate environmental governance. Enterprise environmental capital investment as a percent of total assets is the dependent variable used as a proxy for environmental governance. The log of the number of the number of Confucian temples and Confucian academies within a 200-kilometer radius of the company's registered location plus one is the independent variable. This study finds that the environmental capital expenditures increase by 0.007% for every unit increase in the independent variable. Similar results are found when the radius is expanded to 300 kilometers. The greater the influence of Confucian culture is, the more inclined enterprises are to participate in corporate environmental governance. Additionally, environmental governance information disclosure can be a key influence path for this correlation. Further analysis finds that the relationship between Confucian culture and environmental governance is stronger with more experienced managers, a more developed institutional environment, and after 2015 following the People's Republic of China’s enactment of the Environmental Protection Law. This study expands the literature on the factors that influence Confucian culture on corporate environmental governance, enriches the empirical evidence of the influence of the informal system of corporate environmental governance on enterprise decision-making, and confirms the modern commercial value of Confucian culture.

Environmental, Social, and Governance Information Rating and Firm Uncertainty Perception, Evidence from China Listed Firms

Measuring firm value from an environmental, social, and governance perspective is a core concept of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance), which contributes to the sustainable growth of firms. This paper aims to investigate the relationship between firms’ ESG performance and perceived economic uncertainty. Using a database of Chinese listed firms from 2011 to 2020, we find that firms with a good ESG performance are better able to resist changes in the external economic environment in the ESG rating system which still holds after a series of robustness tests and a discussion of endogeneity. The reason for this is that the ESG rating system better reduces information uncertainty between firms and the market, which allows firms to better focus on improving their technological and profit levels. In addition, companies with good ESG performance can provide more returns to investors. Our results highlight the necessity of aligning the interests between superior and subordinate governments and the importance of the supervision of superior governments in environmental decentralization. Our findings highlight the role of information communication in the market, especially in developing countries with imperfect information disclosure. It is all the more important to reduce information uncertainty between firms and other market players through mechanism building to achieve the long-term survival of quality firms.

Navigating vaccination choices: The intersecting dynamics of institutional trust, belonging and message perception among Congolese migrants in London, UK (a reflexive thematic analysis).

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacted intersectionally marginalised migrants, revealing systemic disparities in health outcomes and vaccine uptake. Understanding the underlying social and structural factors influencing health behaviours is necessary to develop tailored interventions for migrants, but these factors have been seldom explored. This qualitative study aimed to explore contextual factors shaping COVID-19 vaccination decision-making among Congolese migrants in the UK.A community-based participatory research study was designed and led by a community-academic partnership in London, UK (2021-2022). Peer-led, semi-structured interviews were conducted in Lingala with 32 adult Congolese migrants and explored beliefs, perceptions and lived experiences of migration, healthcare, vaccination and the COVID-19 pandemic. Reflexive thematic analysis generated two themes and a model conceptualising the vaccination decision-making process. Participants and community partners were financially compensated; ethics was granted by the University of London ethics committee (REC: 2021.0128).Participants highlighted the incompatibility of lockdown restrictions with their communal culture, which intensified feelings of exclusion and alienation. Concerns about COVID-19 vaccination were attributed to safety and effectiveness, partly informed by experiences and legacies of racial discrimination and exploitation. Inequality in the pandemic response and COVID-19 outcomes heightened participants' sense that their views and needs were being overlooked, and government sources and information were perceived as coercive. Our model depicts the interplay between institutional trust, belonging, and message perception, which shaped participants' vaccination decisions and led to (non-)engagement with COVID-19 vaccination. This research enhances understanding of how social and contextual factors may influence migrants' engagement with health interventions. It underscores the importance of partnering with migrant communities to understand their needs in context and co-design tailored interventions and inclusive messaging strategies that promote trust and belonging. Implementing systemic changes to address structural inequalities will be crucial to create an environment that supports engagement with health-protective behaviours and enhances health outcomes among migrant communities.

Socio Connect: Bridging Citizens and Government Initiatives with Intelligent Systems

The digital divide in India presents significant barriers for economically disadvantaged and illiterate citizens, obstructing their access to essential government services and information. Despite various efforts to bridge this divide, such as the UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance) app, which consolidates multiple government services into a single platform, these solutions primarily cater to literate users with access to modern technology. The UMANG app, while comprehensive, remains inaccessible to those who are illiterate, semi-literate, or lack advanced devices [1][2]. Research highlights that a large segment of the Indian population continues to rely on basic mobile phones, which limits their ability to access digital services [3][4]. Our proposed solution, SOCIO CONNECT, addresses this gap by utilizing basic mobile technology to deliver government services through voice calls, making it accessible to both literate and illiterate users. By integrating voice-based interaction with government schemes, SOCIO CONNECT aims to enhance inclusivity and empower marginalized citizens who are otherwise excluded from digital solutions [5][6][7].

Analisis Keberhasilan Sistem Informasi Sentuh Tanahku Badan Pertanahan Nasional Menggunakan Metode ISSM

The use and usefulness of information technology is an important issue in today's life. This can be seen as a way of using technology to support human activities in various sectors or fields, including government and user security. Of course, the use and usefulness of information technology in various agencies is very necessary to support the implementation of better government programs. The use and utilization of technology in the government environment can be carried out with the help of a research information system. Research is located at two government information agencies: Lubuk-Linggau City National Land Agency; The information system used by the National Land Agency is called Touch My Land based on Android. The implementation of an information system is said to be successful if it can be proven that the information system produces significant positive impacts or benefits for some of its users. The DeLone and McLean evaluation concept is considered a successful information system model. The research method used in this research is a quantitative method with a sample size as many as 61 people from National Land Agency. This research uses six variables and nine hypotheses. The sixth variable consists of information quality, system quality, service quality, usage intention, user satisfaction and net profit. The research results show that several research hypotheses are accepted because the t-statistic value is greater than 1.96.

A complex network analysis approach to bankruptcy prediction using company relational information-based drivers

Corporate bankruptcy prediction is a long-standing topic of interest for a variety of stakeholders. Various prediction methodologies have been proposed to achieve more accurate predictions. So far, most studies have focused on making predictions using artificial intelligence models fed with accounting information only or a combination of accounting information and other category or categories of information. This study proposes new corporate governance drivers that exploit company relational information using board of directors’ networks of companies and the concept of node embeddings obtained by mapping large directors’ networks to lower-dimensional spaces. The contribution of these new drivers to the overall prediction performance is assessed using data on UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. The proposed two-stage methodology consists of devising new drivers in the first stage followed by risk class prediction in the second stage. We examine different complex network structures that capture the diversity of connectivity patterns observed in directors’ networks. Empirical results suggest that the proposed network-based drivers that use company relational corporate governance information significantly improve the performance of bankruptcy prediction.

How Does Government Information Access Interplay with Resources of Emerging Market Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises for Innovation? Evidence from Vietnam

This study integrates the (extended) resource-based view (ERBV/RBV) and non-market strategy (i.e., corporate political activity) to investigate the role of internal and external resources as drivers of innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets (ESMEs). Using primary data from 192 Vietnam SMEs collected between 2014 and 2016, we adopted a partial least square estimation to examine our hypotheses, supplemented by ordinary least square and unobserved heterogeneity tests for robustness. Our PLS-SEM results reveal that firms with intangible resources, from human capital investment to political connections, are more likely to innovate. While the positive effect of human capital investment on innovation is not moderated by government information access, the impact of political connections as an extended resource is significantly enhanced by access to government information. On the other hand, international export experience is not related to innovation by itself, but it is positively moderated by government information access, suggesting that engaging in international markets alone is insufficient. This study contributes to the emerging market literature by examining the effects of intangible resources and political connections on ESMEs’ innovation and highlighting the role of government information as a non-market strategy access in enhancing these relationships.

How many nuclear weapons does Russia have? The size and characteristics of the Russian nuclear stockpile

Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, backed by frequent nuclear threats, has focused attention on the scope of Russia’s nuclear capabilities. The short assessments the United States Government provides are inadequate. Because of the very limited U.S. government information on the scope of Russia’s nuclear capabilities, the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) estimates are cited globally as if authoritative and definitive; they clearly are not. The numerous FAS numbers are largely undocumented and little documentation apparently exists to support their data. It is possible that the Russian nuclear force may be in the size range that the FAS estimates but it is also possible that it is twice as large or even larger. The Russian nuclear advantage may already be several to one and it is growing. The Russian advantage is particularly notable in non-strategic nuclear weapons. An accurate understanding of Russia’s nuclear capability is a critical element in shaping America’s nuclear deterrence requirements.

The Role of Information Governance in Mitigating Financial Crime Risks in Stablecoin Transactions

This study investigates the role of information governance in mitigating financial crime risks in stablecoin transactions. Using a variety of analytical techniques, including simple linear regression, sentiment analysis with NLP tools, logistic regression, and machine learning models, the research evaluates the impact of information governance on innovation, user trust, financial crimes, and the effectiveness of combined compliance measures. The findings indicate that strict information governance regulations reduce innovation but enhance market stability and user trust. Robust governance correlates strongly with increased user adoption, while higher anonymity features in stablecoins are linked to a higher incidence of financial crimes. Integrating KYC/AML compliance with transaction monitoring significantly improves the detection and prevention of financial crimes compared to standalone approaches. These insights provide valuable guidance for policymakers, regulatory authorities, and financial institutions to develop strategies that balance innovation with enhanced security and compliance in the stablecoin market.

Exercising rights over data: a journey towards First Nations data sovereignty in Canada

ABSTRACT This article examines the journey towards First Nations data sovereignty in Canada, with a focus on the pivotal role of the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC) and its First Nations Data Governance Strategy (FNDGS). Framed within the context of Canada's commitment to reconciliation and recognition of Indigenous rights, the FNDGS represents a significant step towards self-determination through ownership and control of data. The article discusses the historical context of colonization and its impact on data governance capacity among First Nations, highlighting the emergence of the FNDGS as a transformative force. It explores the foundational principles of the FNDGS, emphasizing the importance of data sovereignty as a tool for empowerment and self-governance. The implementation phases of the FNDGS are outlined, showcasing a multi-phased approach that prioritizes data capacity building through community-driven and nation-based principles and approaches. Additionally, the commentary discusses the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and the imperative of Indigenous-led data strategies to mitigate the risks of a future pandemic. It concludes by reflecting on the prospects of the FNDGS and its critical role alongside Canada's continued commitment to Indigenous rights in realizing true data sovereignty for First Nations.

Establishing the Main Mechanisms for the Accounting Information Governance: Delphi study with accounting experts

This study aims to identify the main mechanisms of Accounting Information Governance. The Delphi method was applied in three stages with accounting experts to evaluate a set of mechanisms for managing accounting information. As a result, a ranking of priority mechanisms is presented, which indicates a list of necessary conditions for better data and information management. Such evidence could be useful for both the practice of accounting and for the training of future professionals who need to be able to face the challenges related to the impact of new technologies and the increasing volume of data and information. In terms of Information Governance, this study adds field evidence to the remaining gaps on this subject regarding the identification of the best mechanisms for using data and information and creating value.

Environmental, Social, and Governance Committees and Information Technology Outcomes

ABSTRACT With the recent increase in demand for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting, more companies are creating board-level ESG committees to oversee progress in these areas. Companies are also becoming more aware of the important role that information technology (IT) can play in achieving ESG reporting goals. I argue that an improvement in ESG factors goes hand in hand with an improvement in IT. Specifically, I predict that companies with ESG committees will also benefit through an improvement in IT outcomes. Using a sample of companies from 2004 to 2022 I investigate two direct and two indirect IT outcomes. I find that environmentally and socially focused committees are negatively associated with both IT-related material weaknesses in internal controls and cybersecurity breaches. Further, companies with governance committees report fewer breaches and issue more accurate earnings forecasts. Conversely, I find that firms with environmental and social committees take longer to announce earnings. Data Availability: Data are available from the public sources cited in the text. JEL Classifications: G30; M40; O32.

Perancangan Sistem Informasi Pasien Klinik XYZ Berbasis Web

The development of information technology has become an important need in all fields. This also applies to companies operating in the health sector. Technological developments in the world of health services have had a huge impact, because in the health sector it is now mandatory to use information systems to streamline operational processes. The health information system is an integrated system that is capable of managing public data and information (government, community and private) at all levels of government to support effective health development systematically. The need for accurate data/information is increasing, but it seems that the current information system is still unable to provide accurate, complete and timely data. The research methodology used at this research stage begins with analysis to find the main problems and solutions that will be implemented, the system design will be created using Data Flow Diagram (DFD) and Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD) data. can improve the performance and experience of medical services at Clinic XYZ.

Exploring the Concept of Explainable AI and Developing Information Governance Standards for Enhancing Trust and Transparency in Handling Customer Data

Exploring the Concept of Explainable AI and Developing Information Governance Standards for Enhancing Trust and Transparency in Handling Customer Data