The asymmetric effect of internet access on economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

This article investigates the asymmetric effect of internet access (index of the internet) on economic growth in 42 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries over the period 2008-2018.The estimation procedure is obtained following a dynamic panel threshold regression technique via 1000 bootstrap replications and the 400 grids search developed by Hansen (1996Hansen ( , 1999Hansen ( , 2000. The investigation first explores the presence of inflection points in the relationship between internet access and economic growth through the application of Hansen's threshold models. The finding from the nonlinearity threshold model revealed a significant internet threshold-effect of 3.55 percent for growth. The article also examines the linear short-run effect of internet access on economic growth while controlling for the effects of private sector credit, trade openness, government regulation, and tariff regimes. The marginal effect of internet access is evaluated at the minimum, and the maximum levels of government regulation and tariffs regime are positive. On the other hand, the minimum and maximum levels of private sector credit and trade openness are negative via the interaction terms. The article advances the literature by its nonlinear transformation of the relevance of internet access on economic growth by exploring interactive mechanisms of internet access versus financial resource, internet access versus trade, internet access versus government regulation, and internet access versus the tariff regimes from end-user subscriptions. In policy terms, the statistical significance of the joint impact of government regulations and tariff regimes is relevant in the operation of the telecommunication industry in SSA countries.

Microfinance Institutions and Female Entrepreneurship in Sub-Saharan Africa: Avoidable Female Unemployment Thresholds

“…Moreover, the importance of financial access in the achievement of most of the 17 SDGs has also been documented in both the policy and scholarly literature on the subject (Tchamyou et al, 2019a;UNCDF, 2022;Abdulqadir & Asongu, 2022). Given this insight, it is not surprising that MFIs are considered as the main channel for the mitigation of female business constraints, a channel that is also considered within the remit of the present exposition owing to an apparent gap in the gender inclusion literature.…”

Less Inclusive Growth in Indonesia? The Unintended Consequences of Internet Penetration

“…This paper contributes to the literature by providing a more comprehensive analysis than previous studies that were relatively more partial in examining the impact of internet penetration on inclusive growth. The most recent study on the link of the internet to indicators of inclusive growth can be separated into three categories: i) the internet and changes in per capita income (Maurseth, 2018;Hussain, Batool, Akbar & Nazir, 2021;Abdulqadir & Asongu, 2022); ii) internet and income inequality (Bauer, 2018;Canh, Schinckus, Thanh & Hui Ling, 2020;Du, Zhou, Cao, Zhang, Chen & King, 2021); and iii) internet and poverty (Yang, Lu, Wang & Li, 2021;Lechman & Popowska, 2022). The next part of this paper will reconcile the theoretical framework scattered in previous studies to serve as the basis for formulating recommendations for inclusive economic growth during the digitalization era.…”

The impact of ICT on shadow economy in West Africa

“…It has reduced communication barriers among the residents and further exposes training and business resources available in the formal sectors, thereby creating economic opportunities not available in the shadow economy (Garcia‐Murillo and Velez‐Ospina 2014; ITU 2018; Bhattacharya 2019; Agyapong et al. 2022; Nchofoung, and Asongu 2022; Abdulqadir and Asongu 2022). This study investigates this issue by following the studies of Remeikienė et al.…”

“…It maximizes the welfare of West African residents by providing job opportunities in the formal economy and creates a disincentive to operating in the shadow economy. It has reduced communication barriers among the residents and further exposes training and business resources available in the formal sectors, thereby creating economic opportunities not available in the shadow economy (Garcia-Murillo and Velez-Ospina 2014;ITU 2018;Bhattacharya 2019;Agyapong et al 2022;Nchofoung, and Asongu 2022;Abdulqadir and Asongu 2022). This study investigates this issue by following the studies of Remeikienė et al (2021) and Garcia-Murillo and Velez-Ospina (2017) that propose that fixed-line telephony as an important component of ICT infrastructures contributes and serves as a good instrument for downsizing the activities in the shadow economy.…”