Nostalgic marketing appeals can significantly influence consumer behaviour, but research on this phenomenon in South Africa is limited. Investigations of sensory and affective brand experience as direct antecedents of the relationships between evoked nostalgia and behavioural outcomes are scanty, justifying the research objectives. This study aimed to investigate the relationships between evoked nostalgia, brand loyalty, purchase intention and active consumer engagement respectively and compared the relationships between Generation X and Y consumer groups in South Africa. A theoretical model of empirical relationships was tested amongst South African Generation X and Y consumers using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling and multi-group analysis. The final study sample consisted of 101 Generation X and 163 Generation Y consumers. Data were collected using a self-administered online questionnaire. Sensory and affective experience significantly influenced evoked nostalgic responses whereas nostalgia directly influenced only loyalty amongst Generation Y respondents.

The study focused on the determinants of commercial bank deposits in Zimbabwe’s banking sector during the multiple currency period (2009 to 2017). A total of 13 registered banks were used in this study. Results from the random effects model exhibited that number of branches, deposit interest rate, liquidity and economic growth were positively significant in influencing the commercial banks' deposits. The results infer that both bank-specific (internal) factors and macroeconomic (external) factors affect the deposit mobilisation ability of commercial banks in Zimbabwe under a multi-currency system. The study recommended that commercial banks open more branches to be more accessible to society. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) is encouraged to prudently supervise and regulate commercial banks so that liquidity crunch and related risks can effectively be managed. Commercial banks are recommended to increase the deposit interest rates to attract more deposits, thereby increasing their capacity to finance capital projects.

The pace of embracing integrated reporting varies from one firm to another and also depends on the jurisdiction. This is because, generally, there is no universal legal cohesion for firms to practise integrated reporting. Among various industries, mining activities have the greatest potential of contributing towards negative environmental damage. Against the understanding that integrated reporting contributes towards achieving the United Nations' sustainable development goals, the purpose of this study was to compare the extent of environmental sustainability reporting between mining companies listed at the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) only against those listed on both the ZSE and externally. The objectives were to establish whether the mining companies listed only on the ZSE or those listed on both the ZSE and externally lead in reporting environmental information, and establish if company size influenced the extent of environmental information reporting. Using quantitative content analysis, the study found out that these companies were reporting on environmental sustainability to some extent but with some variations. The results indicated that companies listed both in and outside Zimbabwe took the lead in the extent of environmental sustainability. The findings also proved that company size for those companies listed on the ZSE did not influence the extent of sustainability reporting. The extent of reporting environmental issues was only directly influenced by company size for those companies listed outside Zimbabwe. The study recommended that the Zimbabwean government must encourage more environmental sustainability audits through government agencies like the Environmental Management Agency, and the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to ensure that the true picture of sustainability is revealed.

This study examines the relationship between sustainability policy disclosure and audit report lag among listed Nigerian firms upon IFRS adoption. Sustainability policy is a demand of the 2018 FRCN Corporate Governance Code, and its disclosure is thought to affect Firms' audit report lag, particularly in the post-IFRS adoption period owing to more financial information disclosure demands of IFRS. The study employs an ex-post-facto research design and the technique of Panel Least Square to investigate the relationship between sustainability policy disclosure and audit report lag, pre, and post-IFRS. Findings revealed that IFRS was not statistically significant, implying that IFRS adoption has little or no effect on this relationship. Also, the variables of environmental policy and local community disclosures were statistically significant with ARL in the pre-IFRS period. Therefore, the study recommends, among others, the disclosure of sustainability policy in listed firms' annual reports, as it can attract 'good prospective investors.'

This paper uses an event study methodology to empirically examine the impact of migration announcements on the share prices of the firms that migrate from the Alternative Exchange (AltX) to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) main board. The employed dataset consists of daily closing share prices and dividends of the sample firms over seven years. Significant abnormal returns were observed three weeks before the migration announcement. Moreover, the significant average abnormal returns observed two days after the migration announcement suggest that the market is not information-efficient.

Macroeconomic activities display how the economy is performing, locally and internationally. The macroeconomic indicators do not only indicate economic development but also provide economic information about the asset markets. Such information helps policymakers formulate appropriate policies. It also helps investors to make informed decisions. This study looked at the relationship between the stock market and the macroeconomic activities in Namibia. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) modelling approach on quarterly time-series data for the period 1995 to 2020. The result revealed that industrial production, money supply and real exchange rates had a positive short-run relationship with the stock market. Contrarily, inflation and real interest rate exhibit a negative relation. The error correction model (ECM) showed that there is convergence towards a long-run equilibrium. Thus, there exists a relationship between stock market and macroeconomic activities in Namibia.

Electricity production is an important contributing factor to economic growth. Since 2009, South Africa has been affected by an unstable electricity supply. The primary objective of this study was to assess the relationship between electricity production and economic growth and other applicable macroeconomic variables. A quantitative research methodology was utilised, using quarterly time-series data from 1994 to 2019. An econometric model was selected, using GDP as the dependent variable with electricity production, exports of electricity, domestic consumption and domestic investment as independent variables. The main results indicated cointegration exists among the variables, with positive relationships, except for a negative relationship between exports of electricity and economic growth. The study proved the availability of a stable electricity supply is critical to economic growth. To achieve acceptable levels of electricity supply, a competitive and non-monopolistic market is required, with good governance and public management in all spheres of government.

Following the recent aggressive funding of the agricultural sector on a renewed scale via intervention funding from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), this study objectivised the investigation of the impact of this funding from both the public and banking sectors on the increase in employment and poverty reduction in Nigeria. The study adopted the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) which has the capacity to determine the long run relationships between variables to analyse the available data. Results indicate a consistently high significant levels with capital and bank investments. It is discovered that the sustained capital investment is required from both public and private sectors, but clearly funding from the banking (private) sector had higher positive impact and provided higher positive significant level in the long run than from public sector. With results the intervention in agriculture through the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGSF) as presently constituted is no longer helpful in the long run as results are significantly negative. In addition, capital investment and bank funding can increase per capita income and reduce poverty in the long run. The study recommended that more loans should be made available from and through the banking sector as it provides the greatest outcome on agricultural productivity, while the ACGSF processes and operations should be reviewed if it cannot be scrapped.

Agricultural credit enhances productivity and promotes standard of living by breaking vicious cycle of poverty of small scale farmers, hence, an essential element for agricultural growth in developing countries. The study assessed supply side factors constraining access to agricultural credit among smallholder farmers in the Kingdom of Lesotho. Two hundred (200) respondents from the fifty (50) formal credit service providers were involved through purposive sampling, and a structured questionnaire was used to solicit data for this study. Data were analysed using frequencies and percentages as well as probit regression model. Results show that commercial banks account for only 8% of credit service providers while money lenders make up 92% of formal credit service providers in the country. Availability of Packages for Agriculture (β=2.862), (p=0.041), Capacity to Manage Smallholders (β=1.673), (p=0.024) and Loan Processing Costs (β=1.089), (p=0.033) have restricted commercial banks from granting agricultural loans to smallholder farmers in Lesotho while Money Available for Lending (β=1.679), (p=0.021), Preferred Target Market (β=-1.897), (p=0.030) and Availability of Packages for Agriculture (β=1.987), (p=0.035) have restricted money lenders from providing agricultural credit to Basotho farming communities. Based on these, it is concluded that the supply side factors constrain farmers’ access to agricultural credit in Lesotho. In light of these, it is recommended that special agricultural credit plans outlining agricultural credit targets for achievement during the financial year be developed and adopted by formal credit services providers. Furthermore, credit guarantee scheme for the farming sector be introduced by the Kingdom’s government.

In South Africa, 12 230 191 or 95 per cent of learners are registered in primary and secondary public schools presided over by the nine provinces. The provincial education spending annually constitutes approximately 40 per cent of total provincial expenditure but the general quality of education spending and outcomes remain poor. This points to the existence of inefficiencies in the education sector, warranting a scientific investigation.

In a society plagued by inadequate employment opportunities as evidenced by relatively high unemployment rates, the youths are often the most affected. A commonly touted recourse in such situations is an inclination towards self-employment through business start-ups by university students. This entrepreneurial action is, however, likely to crystallise only if students are imbued with the right attitude, ability and perceptions about entrepreneurial venturing. Consequently, this study set out to determine the extent to which attitude towards entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial self-efficacy of university students are associated with their propensity for business start-ups, duly cognisant of the possible moderating role of their perceptions of the effectiveness of entrepreneurship courses. The study utilised a quantitative methodological approach and relied on data collected through a location intercept survey, from a sample of university students in the Gauteng Province of South Africa. Measures of central tendency and dispersion, confirmatory factor analysis and regression analysis were employed to examine the study’s data. The study found that students’ attitude towards entrepreneurship and their entrepreneurial self-efficacy were statistically related to propensity for business start-ups. However, the moderating role of perceived effectiveness of entrepreneurship courses was only evident for the relationship between attitude towards entrepreneurship and propensity for business start-ups. Crucially, the moderating effect is positive and directly linked to scores on the perceived effectiveness of entrepreneurship courses scale. Therefore, policy makers and other stakeholders must adopt a three-pronged approach that instigates positive shifts in attitudes, abilities and perceptions related to entrepreneurship.

The study explores the effect of strategic management of public debt on economic growth in Nigeria. The study employed an ex-post-facto research design. Data were obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) annual statistical bulletin. These formed the basis of covering twenty (20) years of democracy in Nigeria. Hypotheses formulated were tested using linear regression and correlational analysis to test the significance between the variables. The findings revealed a significant relationship between the variables, which includes debt management strategy (DMS, p = 0.003 < 0.05), debt sustainability strategy (DSS, p = 0.001 < 0.05), cash management strategy (CMS, p = 0.012 < 0.05) had a significant effect on economic growth in Nigeria. In contrast, the debt transparency strategy (DTS, p = 0.971 > 0.05) does not significantly affect economic growth in Nigeria. The study concludes that the Nigerian government is not firm in strategic decisions, particularly in debt. It is therefore recommended that the strategic management of debt should be seen by the government, finance minister, CBN governor and debt management office as part of macroeconomic policies in the country, and the enforcement of the law for misappropriation of funds will assist the government in curtailing the corrupt administration and enhancing the economic growth of Nigeria. The knowledge contribution of this study is to increase the literature in the area of public sector, debt management strategy and corporate finance research in Africa.

Current knowledge on G2P is relatively limited in the context of South Africa – with specific reference to the implementation of this energy programme in line with the Independent Resource Plan (IRP). Through effective implementation of the G2P, the Independent Power Producer Procurement (IPPP) programme is envisaged to address broader energy issues South Africa faces. This article analysed energy policy implementation in South Africa with specific reference to the gas-to-power programme as a case study. It adopted the 7-C protocols for policy implementation as a theoretical framework. This article adopted a case study research design. The approach was qualitative and utilised unobtrusive research techniques to eliminate bias and to promote conceptual and textual analyses. Data collection entailed both primary through semi-structured interviews with key informants as well as secondary techniques such as scholarly articles, books, and credible online institutional websites. The article's findings suggested policy uncertainty and lack of ministerial determination or political will, which negatively affect the effectiveness of the policy content. Additionally, challenges in terms of policy commitment by coalitions and clients were identified. Furthermore, a lack of understanding of what policy content should and should not contain was identified as a practice that affects the implementation of G2P in South Africa. The article also found that there are gaps in terms of the policy context. Specifically, there is a lack of clear determinations in terms of the institutional roles of various stakeholders, and there is improper alignment of the policy content with relevant institutional stakeholders (such as the Independent Power Producer [IPP] Office and the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy [DMRE]). Finally, the article provided proposals to improve the implementation of the G2P IPPP programme in South Africa.