Short Description: A Peer-Reviewed, Hybrid Open-Access, Google Scholar-indexed, Cabells WHITE-LISTED journal, publishing scholarly articles in finance, marketing, human resources, and Information Technology, along with manuscripts documenting Economics research data and analysis.
E-ISSN: 2469-4339
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Publisher: Synergy Global
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City: Puducherry
State: Puducherry
Country: India
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Email: [email protected]
10.18639/MERJ.2026.9900119
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Mar 11, 2026
Innovation is unevenly distributed across regions, shaping long-term development trajectories. This article analyzes the evolution of innovation dynamics in Paraná from 2006 to 2021, with the objective of identifying persistence and mobility among municipalities. Using a first-order Markov chain applied to employment in knowledge-intensive activities and intellectual property registrations, the study reveals strong innovation persistence and limited upward mobility. High- and low-innovation groups remain largely stable, reinforcing technological disparities. The findings offer empirical evidence to support policies aimed at reducing territorial inequalities and strengthening local innovation capacity.
10.18639/MERJ.2026.9900118
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Feb 28, 2026
Innovation efficiency is crucial for regional development, yet remains uneven across territories. This study evaluates the innovative efficiency of Paraná’s 399 municipalities in 2021, examining their ability to transform energy use and knowledge-intensive activity capacity into GDP and intellectual property outcomes. An output-oriented DEA model and a log-linear OLS regression were applied. Results show substantial disparities, with most municipalities operating below the efficiency frontier. Energy use and KIA density increase efficiency, while GDP and PI display negative elasticities. The study offers insights for place-based policies aimed at strengthening local innovation ecosystems.
10.18639/MERJ.2025.9900117
Open Access
Dec 30, 2025
This study examines the impact of public debt, governance quality, and debt servicing on human development in West Africa, within the framework of the Dual Gap Theory. Using balanced panel data for 17 West African countries covering the period 2010–2024, the HDI is employed as a comprehensive measure of development outcomes. To account for endogeneity, heterogeneity, and distributional effects, the study applied a combination of QvM regression and system GMM. The empirical results reveal that government debt and debt service payments exerted a consistently negative and statistically significant effect on human development across the entire development distribution, with the strongest adverse impacts observed at median development levels. In contrast, governance quality emerges as the most influential positive determinant of human development, significantly enhancing the effectiveness of public resources and mitigating the adverse effects of debt. Gross fixed capital formation and trade openness also contribute positively to human development, underscoring the roles of investment and external sector integration in alleviating savings–investment and foreign exchange constraints. Diagnostic tests confirm the validity and robustness of the GMM estimates. Overall, the evidence suggests that public debt can undermine human development in West Africa when not supported by strong institutions and productive investment. The study has highlighted the central importance of governance reforms, prudent debt management, and strategic investment and trade policies in advancing sustainable human development across the region.
