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Does ICT Moderate the Effect of the Shadow Economy on Environmental Sustainability?

Author

Listed:
  • James Temitope Dada
  • Folorunsho M. Ajide
  • Mosab I. Tabash
  • Samrat Ray
  • Mamdouh Abdulaziz Saleh Al‐Faryan

Abstract

Moved by the growing size of the shadow economy and ecological degradation in developing nations, this study scrutinizes the moderating effect of information and communication technology (ICT) on the shadow economy‐environmental sustainability relationship in 31 African countries between 2000 and 2020. Fully modified ordinary least squares and dynamic ordinary least squares are applied to achieve this objective. The robust estimation of the long‐run dynamic effect is confirmed using the augmented mean group technique. The findings suggest that the shadow economy harms the ecosystem. However, the interactive regression results indicate that ICT tools moderate the negative influence of the shadow economy on the environment, thereby mitigating environmental degradation. The study establishes the threshold values at which ICT will effectively moderate the negative impact of the shadow economy, specifically for fixed telephone lines (2 per 100 persons), internet penetration (19% of the total population), and mobile cellular subscriptions (23 per 100 persons). Finally, the study offers some policy implications for enhancing a sustainable environment. 鉴于发展中国家影子经济规模的不断扩大和生态环境的恶化, 本研究考察了 2000 年至 2020 年间 ICT 对 31 个非洲国家影子经济与环境可持续性关系的调节作用。为了实现这一目标, 我们运用完全改进的普通最小二乘法和动态普通最小二乘法。并利用增强均值组技术验证了长期动态效应的稳健估计。研究结果表明, 影子经济会损害生态系统。然而, 交互式回归结果表明, ICT 工具可以缓和影子经济对环境的负面影响, 从而减轻环境恶化。本研究确定了 ICT 有效缓和影子经济负面影响的阈值, 具体针对固定电话线路 (每 100 人 2 条) 、互联网普及率 (占总人口的 19%) 和移动电话用户 (每 100 人 23 个) 。最后, 本研究为改善可持续环境提供了一些政策建议。 Considerando el creciente tamaño de la economía sumergida y la degradación ecológica en los países en desarrollo, este estudio analiza el efecto moderador de las TIC en la relación entre la economía sumergida y la sostenibilidad ambiental en 31 países africanos entre 2000 y 2020. Para lograr este objetivo, se aplican mínimos cuadrados ordinarios completamente modificados y mínimos cuadrados ordinarios dinámicos. La estimación robusta del efecto dinámico a largo plazo se confirma mediante la técnica de grupo de media aumentada. Los hallazgos sugieren que la economía sumergida perjudica el ecosistema. Sin embargo, los resultados de la regresión interactiva indican que las herramientas TIC moderan la influencia negativa de la economía sumergida en el medio ambiente, mitigando así la degradación ambiental. El estudio establece los valores umbral a partir de los cuales las TIC moderarán eficazmente el impacto negativo de la economía sumergida, específicamente para las líneas telefónicas fijas (2 por cada 100 personas), la penetración de internet (19% de la población total) y las suscripciones a telefonía móvil (23 por cada 100 personas). Finalmente, el estudio ofrece algunas implicaciones políticas para la mejora de un medio ambiente sostenible.

Suggested Citation

  • James Temitope Dada & Folorunsho M. Ajide & Mosab I. Tabash & Samrat Ray & Mamdouh Abdulaziz Saleh Al‐Faryan, 2025. "Does ICT Moderate the Effect of the Shadow Economy on Environmental Sustainability?," World Affairs, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 188(3), July.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:woraff:v:188:y:2025:i:3:n:waf270024
    DOI: 10.1002/waf2.70024
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    References listed on IDEAS

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