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This study is a comparative analysis of the magnitude of economic growth as a key determinant of long-term foreign currency sovereign credit ratings in 30 countries in Africa, Europe, Asia and Latin America from 2010 to 2018.

The analysis applies the fixed effects (FE) and random effects (RE) panel least squares (PLS) models.

The authors find that the magnitude economic coefficients are marginally small for African countries compared to other developing countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America. Results of the probit and logit binary estimation models show positive coefficients for economic growth sub-factors for non-African countries (developing and developed) compared to negative coefficients for African countries.

These findings mean that, an increase in economic growth in Africa does not significantly increase the likelihood that sovereign credit ratings will be upgraded. This implies that there is lack of uniformity in the application of the economic growth determinant despite the claims of a consistent framework by rating agencies. Thus, macroeconomic factors are relatively less important in determining country's risk profile in Africa than in other developing and developed countries.

First, studies that investigate the accuracy of sovereign credit rating indicators and risk factors in Africa are rare. This study is a key literature at the time when the majority of African countries are exploring the window of sovereign bonds as an alternative funding model to the traditional concessionary borrowings from multilateral institutions. On the other hand, the persistent poor rating is driving the cost of sovereign bonds to unreasonably high levels, invariably threatening their hopes of diversifying funding options. Second, there is criticism that the rating assessments of the credit rating agencies are biased in favour of developed countries and there is a gap in literature on studies that explore the whether the credit rating agencies are biased against African countries. This paper thus explores the rationale behind the African Union Decision Assembly/AU/Dec.631 (XXVIII) adopted by the 28th Ordinary Session of the African Union held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in January 2017 (African Union, 2017), directing its specialized governance agency, the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), to provide support to its Member States in the field of international credit rating agencies. The Assembly of African Heads of State and Government highlight that African countries are facing the challenges of credit downgrades despite an average positive economic growth. Lastly, the paper makes contribution to the argument that the majority of African countries are unfairly rated by international credit rating agencies, raising a discussion of the possibility of establishing a Pan-African credit rating institution.

Addresses the issue of reservations felt by many in local government about the increasing role of TECs, predominantly at the expense of local authorities with respect to both education and undetermined links, now extending into the wider field of economic regeneration. Explores the issue of why the Government should have embarked on such a course and what has been lost in terms of accountability and local knowledge. In order to compensate for this deficiency, proposes that the TECs will need a partnership with both local colleges and local authorities in training and regeneration in order to fulfil their remit. Such collaboration is a prerequisite for TECs to succeed, but if the longer term aim is to act as a caddy for a “skills revolution” then this partnership must embrace industry. Thus the destiny of colleges, TECs and the long‐term future of industry are inextricably entwined.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the impact of the DeBoer fellowship, a citizen leadership development program in Myanmar. The challenge in Myanmar of catalyzing transformative change facing government and civil society cannot be overstated. Autocratic, centralized, and a traits-based approach to leadership has been, until recently, the primary way to assess leaders in Myanmar. In this dynamic civic context, new ways of leading and learning are needed.

Interviews of DeBoer fellowship alumni were analyzed using a single case study method. The project focuses on individual participants of the program as the primary unit of analysis. In addition, direct observation and contributions from DeBoer fellowship administration and faculty were used to describe this case study.

The DeBoer fellows understood their challenge as one of energize others, a concept of adaptive leadership. Moreover, individuals experienced deep degrees of transformational development. Civic agency was the least noticable concept that was studied.

Future research could more explicitly measure and examine the degree to which civic agency is being nurtured in leadership development programs.

Civic leadership curriculum designers should be more conscious of adult development theory when choosing programming objectives and activities.

Leadership development initatives in more authoritative systems can be effective developmental experiences for participants who are motivated to improve their organizations and communities.

To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first effort to analyze a citizen leadership program in Myanmar.

Argues that a lack of stability in assessing and implementing training needs has led to the UK lacking a flexible and long‐term policy to address the problems of skills needs, demographic shifts and changes in the character of employment. Examines the developments of the past 40 years, showing how changes in government policy and ideology have led to the lack of a cohesive and coherent approach. Describes the various approaches adopted; from apprenticeships, to training boards, retraining, the setting up of the Manpower Services Commission, and concerns about training becoming subordinate to those about unemployment. Commends the new Labour Government’s commitment to training but questions whether it will lead to substantial improvements. Argues that industry must shoulder more of the responsibility for training.

Compares the “Payment by Results” system in nineteenth century British education with recent trends. Indicates that the partnership between the state and local authorities, which was created formerly, has been disbanded in the Government′s desire to cut costs and centralize control. Suggests that the expressed notion that internal markets can be compared with free markets is a self‐deception when Government regulates price and other variables, and concludes that Britain has a training system which is under‐funded and significantly below the standards of its competitors.

Two speakers at Online 95 spoke on the contentious subjects of censorship and other ethical matters on the Internet. Charles Oppenheim, then of the University of Strathclyde, talked about three problem areas on the Internet that are difficult to police — pornography; copyright and moral rights infringement; and libel and slander. He also cited some examples of each. Michael Dahan of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and of the Israel Democracy Institute, then talked about the censorship imposed on the Internet by the secret service in Israel — a country that is understandably more security conscious than many in the West.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors influencing the scale and nature of intercountry adoption (ICA) between the People’s Republic of China and the USA, and to describe the significance and contribution of each to ICA processes.

A documentary data analysis approach based upon the quantitative grounded theory: first, interpreting available data, and second, conducting a thematic analysis of the literature to generate a theory of key factors.

The results showed that changes in policies, ethical narratives and ideological shifts (principally the rise of nationalism) were highly influential in determining the scale and type of ICAs in successive years.

This paper concluded that China: US ICA is likely to continue only in small numbers with older and special needs children. However, China: US adoptions provide some examples of “best practice”. Understanding the interplay of factors explored theoretically in this study may guide future ICA arrangements between other country pairs.

Although a range of data has been collected on China: US ICA over a number of years, no systematic attempt has been made to link changes in those data to changes in the legal, social or cultural climate in which such adoptions take place. As well as providing new insights into the dynamics of ICA, the paper develops an original method which could be applied to parallel arrangements between other countries.

The purpose of this paper is to test the feasibility of using a biodata inventory to measure service‐orientation – one's disposition to be helpful, thoughtful, considerate, and cooperative – across cultures in a sample of 1,324 owners of businesses.

Subjects in Austria, The Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Slovakia, and Slovenia are given the inventory in order to predict their on‐the‐job service‐oriented performance.

Within the samples, the service‐orientation ratings are highly correlated with extroversion and openness to experience in all six countries, and agreeableness in five countries and conscientiousness in four countries. The correlations of these scales with service‐orientation are as high as or higher than those generally obtained with measures of service‐orientation with customer service representatives.

The analysis lends credence to the notion that service‐orientation may be effectively measured by biodata within small organizations across multiple cultures.

This paper examines the utility of a personality‐oriented biodata inventory for explaining levels of customer service‐oriented performance across six countries. Little cross‐country research has been done on the owners of business thus this paper helps to fill in gaps in the literature dealing with business owners and the importance of personality attributes to explain service‐oriented performance.

The main goal of the paper is to explore the origins and developments of the first community cellular network in Mexico.

Data were gathered in 2015 and 2016 through in-depth interviews, participant observation, workshops, photos, official documents, and informal interviews in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Data was also drawn from the work of two activists, P. Bloom and E. Huerta, working with the community assemblies of a number of Indígena communities: Villa Talea de Castro, Santa María Yaviche, San Juan Yaee, San Ildefonso Villa Alta, San Bernardo Mixetepec, Santa Ana Tlahuitoltepec, San Jerónimo Progreso, Santiago Ayuquililla, San Miguel Huautla, Santa Inés de Zaragoza, Santo Domingo Xagacia, San Pablo Yaganiza, San Pedro Cajonos, San Francisco Cajonos, San Miguel Cajonos, San Mateo Cajonos, Santa María Alotepec, and San Juan Tabaá. To analyze the data, using codes created in Atlas.TI and relying on an inductive approach, we analyzed the history of this network within a theoretical framework informed by Actor-Network Theory.

Participants in the enactment of this cellular network followed two programs of actions, one technical and one legal. Together, the community assemblies and activists took advantage of available devices, free software and ordinary computers, on the one hand, and communal rules, national laws, constitutional reforms and tacit knowledge, on the other hand. They brought about a new, non-profit, communitarian, and self-organized network that allows for inexpensive communication between members of small, marginalized Indígena communities in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico.

The arrangement of actants that the case illustrates is replicable in other parts of the country and outside of Mexico. The new community cellular network reduces the economic costs of communication, facilitates some jobs and family bonds, expands the range of community-owned projects, encourages self-organization and ways of situated conflict resolution, and empowers communities in relation to external powerful telecommunication corporations.

This is a novel account of a highly unusual set of community-led institutional innovations based on firsthand information drawn from the main actants of the new network.