Development of Islamic microfinance: a sustainable poverty reduction approach

Purpose – Though microfinance has been working for many years as a tool to eradicate poverty from its root, most of the least developed and developing countries are yet to significantly alleviate it from the society. The purpose of this paper is to focus on Shariah-based microfinance products in the context of sustainable poverty alleviation approach and provide them financial benefits to enhance their livelihoods. Design/methodology/approach – Here, this qualitative study critically analyzes the basics of the sustainable Islamic microfinance to exterminate the level of poverty. Findings – Islamic microfinance is a more ethical practice than the traditional motives of profit maximization, and it encourages extending the time of repayment if the debtors are in hardship. In some case, it suggests to give charity if the creditor has capability. Research limitations/implications – Most importantly, research scholars and experts have already criticized the concept of conventional microfinance on the basis of various points, especially for its high rate of interest. Social implications – Islamic microfinance is provided with a view to fulfill two tools simultaneously, i.e., social and financial inclusion. In this case, credits and Zakah can be given to the extreme poor people for satisfying basic needs. In terms of social responsibility, Islam encourages the people to be soft in case of collecting the lending money. Originality/value – The study discoursed that sustainable Islamic Microfinance (IM) may be a promising future option to draw the attention of the religiously sensitive people toward the Shariah-based microfinance which can, in turn, mitigate the poverty level

Community responses to flood risk management – An empirical Investigation of the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in Malaysia

The vulnerability of the Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) to flood disasters affects not only the underlying eco-centric and anthropocentric values therein, but also the coastal communities that are adjacent to the MPAs. The consequences can lead to economic, social and environmental degradation. As such, the perception of the coastal communities about flood risk occurrences and their effects on the MPAs are crucial for Flood Risk Management (FRM) exercises. Having an insight into the perceptions of the coastal communities about the build-up of flood risk analysis adds robustness to the FRM cycle as it can increase levels of preparedness, responses and recoveries. This paper examines the relationship between the communities’ perceived vulnerability, perceived severity of flood risks, perceived benefits of flood risk management, perceived barriers of flood management and their previous experience of flood risk management. The paper seeks to understand how this intersection influences the human intention to participate in the preventive and precautionary measures related to flood risks in MPAs. To achieve the objectives, a survey questionnaire was conducted on a sample of 320 households from MPAs in Malaysia. Data were analysed using the structural equation modelling (SEM). This study revealed that perceived susceptibility, perceived severity, perceived benefits, and previous flood risk experience have a positive and significant influence on the intention to participate in prevention activities. This study offers valuable insights that may be useful for policymakers in promoting greater public engagement in managing climatic disasters including potential flood risks in MPAs

Growth and Collaboration in Massive Open Online Courses: A Bibliometric Analysis

Massive open online courses (MOOCs) are an important approach for achieving UNESCO’s aim of open and accessible education. However, there are concerns regarding fragmentation or bias of MOOCs toward certain disciplines or countries. This study sought to: (a) examine how MOOCs research has evolved and is distributed, (b) determine what key areas are discussed in MOOCs research, and (c) identify the major players in MOOCs research and their collaborations. This study conducted a bibliometric analysis of 3,118 scholarly works related to MOOCs as recorded in the Scopus database in July, 2019. Specifically, we analyzed the evolution of MOOCs research by examining (a) published studies, (b) source titles, (c) types of sources and documents, as well as (d) the languages in which the documents were written in. We further analyzed the key areas of MOOCs research by looking into common subject areas, keywords used most often, and title analysis. Finally, we sought to increase our understanding of the major players in MOOCs research and their collaborations by examining (a) which countries contributed most to MOOCs research, (b) the main institutions involved, as well as (c) authorship and citation analysis. Findings indicated that in their early development starting in 2009, MOOCs caught the attention of scholars from both the East and the West, and the number of publications grew consistently over the 10 years after that. MOOCs research has been well distributed but has yet to adequately encourage inclusiveness. There has been healthy cross-country collaboration, but there is a gap in MOOCs research originating from certain countries as compared to the rest of the world. Our findings provide important input towards improving the inclusivity and global reach of MOOCs

Evaluating Productivity of Chinese Microfinance Institutions: A Malmquist Approach

While the prime objective of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) is to alleviate poverty, their sustainability is largely dependent on their productivity. Using the Malmquist approach and a panel dataset of 21 MFIs, this paper analyzes changes in the productivity of China’s MFIs between 2010 and 2012. Our findings reveal that the productivity of the MFIs in China stagnated due to the lack of technological change, despite progress in technical efficiency. Technical efficiency has been bolstered by improved management practices and size effect. The findings help improve our understanding of the Chinese microfinance sector in general, and MFIs’ productivity in particular. One policy implication that can be drawn from the evidence is to encourage MFIs participation in innovation activities, so that the stimulation of technological change can improve the overall productivity of Chinese MFIs

MICRO ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION

International migration is one of the key components of local economic development in a labour sending country. The returns of migration and remittances play a significant role in the economic development and growth of the source country. The remittance causes a positive Balance of Payment as well as poverty reduction in Bangladesh. These international migrations also have impacts on micro economic issues like local and household economy, which have received very little attention in existing studies. Therefore, to check the issue, this study collected primary data based on a questionnaire survey from 306 Bangladesh workers who are engaged in wage-earning employment in Malaysia during the period of Nov-Dec 2010. This study analysed the data based on the Path Measurement Model. This empirical study found that international migration significantly improves the micro economy of Bangladesh such as house ownership, improvement of economic conditions, donation towards local institutes and infrastructure, new work experience, new skills, and poverty reduction. Some initiatives such as communication skills, maintaining and improving economic diplomacy and discouraging the Hundi System (Illegal remittance transfer system) are suggested to improve these rising consequences of international migration in Bangladesh

Enhancing sustainability amongst oil palm smallholders in Malaysia

Oil palm research is performed to develop new and upgraded products to face global challenges and thus, the industry is emerging as a dependable source of empowerment for the country.However, it also poses a serious threat due to unawareness of sustainability issues by the smallholders.Thus, this study assesses the actions of oil palm smallholders in a sustainable manner from the environment, economic, and social perspectives. The primary data is collected through a questionnaire survey with 50 supported smallholders in the Terengganu state under the FELDA scheme in Malaysia.The result demonstrates that dependent smallholders with primary level education are responsible for most of the pollution in the environment due to wrong agricultural practices.The study suggests that there is room for improvement in the social, environmental, and economic aspects of sustainability through intensive and quality training, depending on the role played by the authorities and the dependent smallholder cooperatives

Climate change adaptation: a corrective policy framework in the Malaysian agricultural sector

A corrective policy framework is essential for sustainable agricultural management. In order to put in place a corrective policy framework, it is necessary to know the socio-economic context of local farmers and their perception of climate change. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to explore their socio-economic status and general perception of climate change and to examine its impact on adaptation practices. To achieve the research objectives, data were collected using survey questionnaires and analysed using statistical tools. The results show that most of the respondents are between the age of 31-45 years in the sample size, 45% has secondary education and 34% of the respondents' monthly income is between RM2,000-RM4,000. It has been found that approximately 76% of farmers had heard about climate change. The results also revealed that socio-economic characteristics such as education, income, type of farmer, attitudes and awareness were positive and highly significant. It is hoped that the findings of this study would be useful for policymakers in designing an appropriate policy framework to raise awareness of how to reduce the impact of climate change in the agricultural sector. Copyright © 2019 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd