Journal of Economics, Innovative Management and Entrepreneurship

Non-Performing Loans in Cambodia’s Microfinance Sector: Challenges and Implication for Sustainable Economic Growth

Chantha Kong, Sem Seng, Phon Ratha, Kol Sovanvatthana — Thu, 05 Dec 2024 00:00:00 -0600

This study investigates the impact of Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) on Cambodia’s economic growth, utilizing panel data analysis with annual data from 62 microfinance institutions over the period 2017-2023. Data sourced from the National Statistics Institution of Cambodia, National Bank of Cambodia, and World Bank. The results show that NPLs have a significant negative effect on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth. In contrast, inflation is found to have a positive relationship with GDP growth, suggesting that moderate inflation may stimulate economic activity. Furthermore, government regulations are shown to have a positive influence on GDP growth, highlighting the importance of a well-structured regulatory environment. These findings emphasize the need to strengthen financial sector stability, carefully manage inflation, enhance regulatory frameworks, and encourage sectoral diversification to ensure sustainable economic growth in Cambodia. The study also underscores the importance of further research to better understand the mechanisms underlying the relationship between these variables and economic performance.

The Best Econometrics Model for Forecasting Equity Market Returns in Developing Countries

David Umoru, Beauty Igbinovia, Lawrence Egbaju — Thu, 07 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0600

The emerging market economies are fast improving in terms of the real sector and financial sector growth. This is due to the role played by equity market that facilitates re-allocation of funds. This paper aims to find the best GARCH model for forecasting stock returns of emerging markets, and besides to use maximum likelihood estimation method based on the Marquardt algorithm to estimate how returns respond to market news. It was observed the best model for predicting return in equity markets of Tunisia, Kenya, and Sudan is exponential GARCH with general error distribution (GED). For Egypt, Mauritius, South Africa, Namibia, and Nigeria, the gjrGARCH (1,1) with Student’s-t distributions performs best. These market returns react differently to market news relating to them. Whereas, sGARCH with Gaussian normal distribution is mostly suitable for analysing symmetric responses of return to market news, implying returns in these markets does not react differently to market news. These findings have policy implications for investors in these respective economies. Amongst others, the study advises investors, particularly those in the equity market where volatility decays slowly and the market where volatility responds asymmetrically to be watchful as these could pose significant threat to their market portfolios. Investors in these markets, particularly those in the equity market where volatility decays slowly and the market where volatility responds asymmetrically, be watchful, as these could pose a significant threat to their market portfolio.

Factors Contributing to Rotary International’s Stagnant Membership Growth

Konstantinos T. Kotsis — Sun, 10 Nov 2024 00:00:00 -0600

This paper explores the multifaceted reasons behind Rotary International’s stagnant membership growth over the last decades. A significant factor identified is the lack of outreach and marketing efforts, which has prevented the organization from effectively engaging with diverse communities and adapting to modern promotional strategies. This has resulted in a membership base that does not reflect the changing societal dynamics and fails to attract younger generations who prioritize different causes, such as environmental sustainability and social justice. Additionally, the challenges faced by smaller organizations, such as limited resources and niche appeal, are relevant to Rotary’s struggle to attract new members. External societal trends, including urban development and globalization, have altered community structures and priorities, further influencing membership dynamics. The paper highlights the importance of adapting to these changes by improving outreach efforts, addressing competition from other service organizations, and fostering strong leadership within Rotary International. The discussion emphasizes the potential strategies Rotary International can adopt to enhance membership growth, such as leveraging social networks, fostering organizational identification, and addressing diversity challenges. By integrating these strategies, Rotary can work towards increasing its membership and continuing its mission of positively impacting society.