Rajah Rasiah

University of Malaya | UM · Asia- Europe Institute

This study seeks to examine the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and sustainable competitive advantage (SCA) with social networks (SNs) as a mediator and the business environment (BE) as a moderator among Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating in Cambodia. Using a snowballing sampling methodology, the study gat...

Waste output have risen sharply in Malaysia due to economic growth, population growth, and urbanization, which threatens to exhaust existing landfills in the country. This study seeks to examine the factors that encourage millennial households’ green disposal conduct using the extended Theory of Planned Behaviour model by incorporating institutiona...

This paper adopts the two-way fixed effect model to analyze the listed enterprises on the New Third Board (NEEQ) from 2014 to 2021. In the process of analysis, to ensure the rationality of the regression results, the missing core data and related data of financial enterprises are excluded. Through empirical analysis, this paper draws the following...

Sustainable management is essential for business success; it helps companies achieve profitability while maintaining a balance between resource consumption and production. This study was carried out from a larger study consisting of several Chinese telecommunication multinationals in Malaysia. It examines their impact and contribution to local indu...

Purpose This paper identifies the motivations for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) when they undertake greenfield foreign direct investment (FDI) into an emerging market. It elucidates the factors that influence SMEs to choose a fully equity-based investment despite the significant risks and commitments involved with greenfield FDI. Desi...

Following decades of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation industry, most car companies will stop producing petrol cars and promote the development of new energy vehicles in the near future, even in China. This study is based on energy vehicle exports using China’s 31 provinces’ panel data from 2010 to 2020. Considering that China...

Purpose This study examines the factors of sustainable technology adoption (STA) in the Bangladeshi’s apparel industry and its impact on the environmental performance and other firm performances. Mainly, this study adopts stakeholder theory and hypothesizes necessary conditions to examine different stakeholders’ roles to facilitate STA and ameliora...

Using largely foresight analysis by taking stock of Malaysia’s existing key development pillars, the chapter attempts to orientate how these pillars should be planned over the period from now until 2050 taking account of sustainability. The critical building blocks problematized in the chapter are population and demography, the financing of develop...

Post-independence Malaysia has achieved significant economic growth: faster than that of most of the developing countries of Africa and Latin America, slower than the tiger economies of Northeast Asia, and similar to the growth rates of several Southeast Asian neighbouring countries. Manufacturing quickly replaced rubber and tin as the dominant gro...

This chapter seeks to identify the lead industries expected to perform as the engine of growth and development until 2050. Unlike the growth path taken by the Western economies when they industrialized, the new latecomers will have to ensure that they are environmentally sustainable. It starts of with reviewing the critical theoretical issues relev...

This chapter seeks to evaluate the impact of poverty alleviation programmes in Malaysia against the main policies introduced by the Malaysian government. Although the strategies adopted to address absolute and relative poverty inevitably required engagement in several social and economic programmes, this chapter focuses largely on the main directio...

Malaysian palm oil mills have lagged behind in the adoption of advanced milling technologies, both to support productivity growth as well as meet sustainable development goals. Using primary data from a simple random sample of 54 mills, this study sought to examine the factors explaining the adoption of advanced milling technologies. The results fr...

This paper uses systematic panel data methods to scrutinize the impact of China’s foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth in eight Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries from 2004 to 2018. The findings indicate a statistically significant causal association between these countries’ economic growth and Chinese investment...

This study examined the impact of movement control order (MCO) due to the COVID-19 pandemic on Household Electrical Appliance Consumption Levels [HEACL] across Malaysia before, during and after the MCO, and the likelihood of the pandemic quickening household conduct towards use of energy saving appliances based on a self-reported household survey....

Purpose This paper aims to evaluate the impact of automation on job displacement and reshoring in the apparel industry. It also compares with predictions on the same subject matter by the existing literature and, thus, provides future research agenda for further studies. Design/methodology/approach Primary data were collected through 27 semi-struc...

Indeed, China's ascent is significantly changing the landscape in aid-donor and aid-recipient relationship for African countries, despite the changes, empirical studies on the determinant and motive is lacking. Therefore, this paper examines the determinants of China's financial aid to oil/ minerals exporting African countries. By using China's loa...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the institutional structures and other predictors that determine bilateral trade between Africa and China from 1995 to 2017. Design/methodology/approach In line with the gravity model of trade, institutional, geographical and socio-economic determinants of China’s bilateral trade with 18...

Purpose-This paper aims to identify key theoretical cornerstones and research trends in the apparel industry. It also compares theoretical bases with those of the general research domain in technology adoption literature and, thus, provides future policy guidelines for practitioners and research gaps for further studies. Design/methodology/approach...

This chapter describes the research methods and data used in this thesis. The generic method used for this book is the quantitative method with statistical analysis, which is applied because of the key focus of the study is on quantitative variables, such as corporate financial performance, financial risk, and cost and benefit. The analytical proce...

Ownership structure, board structure and CEO characteristics are important internal corporate governance mechanisms. However, the empirical evidence over the relationship between them has produced mixed results with significant variation across different countries and institutional environments. Yet, analysing the effectiveness of corporate governa...

The corporate board is the key decision-making organ in an enterprise. In China, the extent to which it shoulders risk during economic transition is critical for firms’ long-term development. This chapter analyses the effect of corporate board structure and other governance mechanisms on firm risk-taking.

The corporate board is at the centre of corporate governance. Especially during economic transition, the corporate board has played an important role in enforcing government regulations. The China Securities Regulatory Commission issued in 2001, “Guidelines of Introducing Independent Directors”, which stipulated that by the end of June 2003, China’...

In reviewing the related literature, this chapter seeks to identify first corporate governance theories that are potentially applicable to China, viz. agency theory, resource dependency theory, institutional theory, stewardship theory, stakeholder theory and power circulation theory. Second, we review empirical works on corporate governance.

This chapter demonstrates the readymade garments (RMG) industry workers' plight during COVID-19. The authors collected data through interviews with garment workers in Bangladesh. Online publications and research reports of relevant cases, web pages, and newspapers were examined. It reveals that RMG workers' living standards and earnings have fallen...

The full text is freely available from UNESCO: https://www.unesco.org/reports/science/2021/en/download-the-report and directly via UNESDOC: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377433 | It is striking how development priorities have aligned over the past five years. Countries of all income levels are prioritizing their transition to digit...

This paper seeks to assess industrial upgrading in the semiconductor industry in East Asia. Research into 25 firms, and subsequently the entire value chain specialization of these firms, as well as the filing of patents in the United States at the aggregate country level show that special focus on technological upgrading is critical to attract or s...

Business sustainability within the economic system has been a great interest of policymakers. There are several dimensions to measure the economic performance of a nation. It is not easy to understand the growth process of countries without knowing new factors that emerged within the financial system. In today’s dynamic environment, there is a need...

Research on the web of technological linkages that stimulate firm performance is still evolving, especially when they differ with industry, timing and location. Generally, firms in emerging nations need technologies to build technological capabilities; however in some cases firms are limited in their capacity to acquire the technology because of th...

Existing accounts of societal history are constructs from what have been documented through both oral, as well as scientific investigations. Consequently, there will always be gaps for the inquisitive scholar to either contest some accounts and/or to add new material to that history. This chapter problematizes some of the critical issues to examine...

Past works on colonial industrialization are dominated by accounts of both the stunting of the process, as well as the mercantilist orientation of the process owing to the application of laisse-faire trade practices. This chapter contests both accounts by arguing that modern industrialization emerged during colonialism and that strong elements of t...

Efforts to lower energy intensity increased initially as a result of rising fuel prices following the first and second oil shocks, which subsequently became serious owing to mounting evidence that fossil fuels are a major cause of climate change and global warming. Energy source is a key problem associated with climate change as oil and gas, and co...

“Through celebrating the work of Shahril Talib Robert, the authors in this volume remind us of a deeper economic and political heritage that is often lost in the rubble of confusing national politics. All who care for Malaysia will find the studies here an uplifting affirmation of the value of open-minded and dedicated scholarship. I congratulate t...

This book examines the nature of the marketization of corporate boards following the introduction of the split share reform, corporate board and shareholder relations, corporate performance, and risk-taking conduct in China. The chapters cover topics such as determinants of corporate board size and independence, corporate risk-taking conduct under...

This paper investigated the determinants of China's FDI flow towards Africa's oil/minerals exporting countries from 2003 to 2017 using the UN-Comtrade Harmonized System (HS) nomenclature trade data and UNCTAD China's FDI data to examine the extent to which sector trade, institution and other variables determine China's FDI. The econometric approach...

HIV/AIDS is a major health issue faced by the world, generally, but particularly sub-Saharan Africa. Nigeria ranked third in the world by number of people living with HIV/AIDS in 2019. Despite prominent HIV counselling and testing (HCT) intervention programmes, Nigeria faces serious challenges, such as inadequate funding and low utilisation rates....

Human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) counselling and testing (HCT) plays a major role in the continuum of HIV programmes in Nigeria. However, HIV-related stigma (STGM) poses a serious threat to its success. Consequently, a cross-sectional study was carried out to examine whether STGM mediates the relationships between the explanatory variables (HIV...

Purpose: The gap between the demand and the supply of human organs for transplantation is on the rise in Malaysia, despite the efforts of governments to promote donor registration. Factors affecting willingness to donate are contextual and vary from country to country. This research mainly focuses on the selection of most suitable organ donation s...

Productivity gains are not only important for competitiveness but also for other welfare gains. And, importantly, industry structure matters in driving the productive gains. This study examines the labor productivity of food manufacturing firms in Malaysia and the effect of capability and human capital on productivity. The findings show productivit...

Industrialization, supported by industrial hubs, has been widely associated with structural transformation and catch-up in developing, emerging, and advanced economies. There are about 6,000 industrial hubs spread across 147 countries, with a high concentration in emerging and developing economies, particularly in Asia. While the direct economic be...

WecomparePakistan's energy consumption structures toselected East Asian economies with a view towards ensuringan adequate supply ofpowerforeconomic catch-up and,at the same time,meeting the greening goalsenvisioned by the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change. The evidence shows that Pakistan relies significantly lesson non-renewab...

Background Organ supply–demand in developing countries worldwide has continued to widen. Hence, using a large survey (n ¼ 10,412), this study seeks to investigate whether human psychology could be used to inculcate philanthropy to raise deceased organ donation rates. Methods Three models were constructed to examine multidimensional relationships a...

The article reviews the concept of vulnerability and develops a framework for vulnerability to education inequality (VEI). It further reviews the concept of education inequality and develops a framework for the cumulative measuring instruments of inequality of education. The schooling vulnerability processes are developed to understand the migratio...

This paper is interested to study the technical and theoretical evolution of American Economic Review (AER) from 1911 to 2011. Basically, the main objective of this paper is to analyze the trend of the economic research evolution in the last hundred years through the application of The Economic Historical Analysis Approach (EHA-Approach) and The Le...

This study aims to conceptualise and document the historical evolution of microfinance in Bangladesh using the life cycle theory (LCT). Based on the LCT nomenclature, the microfinance sector in Bangladesh shows characteristics broadly consistent with the saturation phase (2006-2015)-which potentially has adverse impacts on both microfinance clients...

To the extent that taxation impacts firms’ bottom line, the textbook argument that tax imposes a burden on firms has been subject to extensive research. However, compared with research on developed markets, especially the US, studies of tax management on the emerging markets, including China, are limited.

Although it is extremely difficult to define its scope as its boundaries are fuzzy, and to measure corruption since only those convicted are figured in statistics, which may or may not be reflected in perceptions that are themselves subjective, the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) constructed by Transparency International ranked China as the 79th...

This chapter reviews past works on corporate tax management management. Within the broad framework of corporate tax management, the extant theoretical literature addresses three issues that this book examines. Past empirical studies on corporate tax management in modern corporations is dealt with next, with a focus on three specific features of Chi...

Taxation is a significant cost borne by firms, which affects firms’ decision-making behavior regarding the available choices on the magnitude and structure of output, disposal of net profit, direction of capital investment, among many other things. Thus, reducing the corporate tax burden has become a powerful motivational force in corporate conduct...

Latecomer development accounts have not only focused too much on the successful progression of Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan to developed status, they tend to represent only the tip of the iceberg of economic development experiences. While there exists accounts of the high performing economies of East and Southeast Asia much of the analysis is...

This study critically evaluates two COP proposals on Malaysia that have been under consideration to reduce climate damage. A top-down disaggregation framework deploying an “Empirical Regional Downscaling Dynamic Integrated Model of Climate and the Economy” is used to evaluate the local government climate roadmap and Malaysia’s emissions reduction a...

Open innovation has become a popular approach, especially since 2003, as people began purposively managing, evolving and harnessing knowledge flows across organizational boundaries but through increasing connections with systemic knowledge nodes relevant to the innovation process. The creation and appropriation of such knowledge has evolved rapidly...

In light of the overwhelming consumption of resources by the manufacturing sector, this paper examined three key subsystems that are critical in greening the sector. Whereas the extant literature has focused on technological development to reduce environmental damage, it has not analyzed profoundly how manufacturing processes can be greened effecti...

This paper examines the impact of wealth inequality on education inequality in the sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries, including by decomposing inequality across gender. Specifically, it analyzes the impact of wealth concentration on the distribution of educational attainment using a sample of cross-sectional data from the USAID Demographic Health...

The unprecedented rise in China’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) stocks to resource-endowed countries in Africa from the beginning of the new millennium has generated considerable debate on the motive. Most of the existing studies on the determinants of China’s bilateral foreign investment in Africa are qualitative. While the quantitative analyses...

Indonesia ratified the agreement on the establishment of the World Trade Organization, including its annex agreement, the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) in 1995. The alignment of Indonesian Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) with that of the WTO’s TRIPS has been made easy owing to shared universal human principles th...

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 M...

Vernon's product cycle thesis has increasingly been questioned as industries experienced differentiation and dispersal of production stages, while the need for proximity for interactions to take place between scientists and engineers, and consumers ended following the introduction of computerised inventory and production, and planning systems. This...

This excellent study of how alternative tax strategies work in China is an important contribution both to our understanding of corporate tax management in China and in other countries at a similar level of development. —Professor Dwight H. Perkins, Harvard University, USA This book presents a rigorous and in-depth study on the important topic of co...

Mainstream economic arguments posit that liberalization is the route latecomer economies should pursue to achieve income convergence between countries. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) offers a useful platform to test if trade liberalization has been accompanied by income convergence since the grouping have been among the most agg...

This study examined the association between health condition and conversion factors (i.e. environmental, individual and social) among workers in the ready-made garment (RMG) industry in Bangladesh. It used data gathered from a cross-sectional survey of 775 RMG workers in the Dhaka and Narayanganj districts. Using multiple logistic regression, the s...

This study focuses on the determinants of board size and board independence during an economic transition in China. It contributes to the body of Chinese corporate governance studies by applying the most comprehensive analytical framework to the periods before and after the split-share structure reform. Both static and dynamic estimation methods ha...

Global warming has emerged as one of the most serious threats to the existence of humankind. There is also increasing acknowledgement that old arguments that focused on the exhaustion of economic resources and changing dynamics of utility are no longer necessary and useful in confronting climate change. This article reviews the main arguments that...

This article analyses climate mitigation impact once the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) introduce their respective Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) using dynamic non-linear computable general equilibrium modelling and 2010 input-output tables. The results indicate that atmospheric concentration of carbon and temper...

While there is considerable expansion of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the developing countries, there is a paucity of literature that examines the determinants of their Financial Performance (FP) among the Least Developed Countries (LDCs). This article seeks to investigate the determinants of FP of MFIs in Bangladesh over the period 2007–201...

This paper attempts to evaluate potential reductions in climate damage following the introduction of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in Malaysia over the period 2015–2030. The simulation produced interesting results. While gross climate damage under the BAU scenario increased to RM7.1 billion in 2030, the commensurate damage under the slow, moderate an...