The Effect of Employee Engagement on Employee Performance in Ghana's MSMEs Sector During Covid-19

Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the globe have been the major victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has plunged the business world into a serious crisis. However, Employee Engagement (EE) has been labeled as an essential nutrient that organizations need in order to survive in these turbulent times. This study was to examine the effect of EE on Employee Performance during the COVID-19 pandemic and how this relationship is moderated by job demands. The study used a sample size of 395 respondents who were chosen from a variety of MSMEs via a convenience sampling method. The study used a survey questionnaire approach as the main method for collecting primary data. The result of the correlation analysis showed that there was a significant relationship between EE and employee performance. It was revealed that job resources moderated the relationship between EE and employee performance. Finally, the result showed that job resources had a significant effect on EE. Thus, it can be concluded that, in the face of COVID-19, EE is a significant predictor of the performance of employees in the MSMEs sector. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Social Science (2720-9938) is the property of Ridwan Institute and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Digitalization of the supply chain: transformation factors

PurposeThere is an increasing interest in the supply chain's digitalization, yet the topic is still in the preliminary stages of academic research. The academic literature has no consensus and is still limited to research assessing the supply chain's digitalization of organizations. This study aims to explore the supply chain digitalization drivers to understand the emerging phenomena. More specifically, the authors devised from the literature the most common factors in assessing the readiness in scaling supply chain digitalization.Design/methodology/approachThis study followed a five-phased systematic literature review (SLR) methodology in this research: designing, analyzing, conducting, writing and assessing the quality of the review. The SLR is beneficial for justifying future research regardless of the complex process that requires dealing with high-level databases, information filtering and relevancies of the content. Through analysis of 347 titles and s and 40 full papers, the authors showed and discussed the supply chain digitalization: transformation factors.FindingsThe results generated three main themes: technology, people and processes. The study also generated ten subthemes/primary drivers for assessing the readiness for supply chain digitalization in organizations: IT infrastructure, cybersecurity systems, digitalization reskilling and upskilling, digitalization culture, top management support, digitalization and innovation strategy, integrated supply chain, digital innovation management, big data management and data analytics and government regulations. The importance of each factor was discussed, and future research agenda was presented.Research limitations/implicationsWhile the key drivers of the supply chain digitalization were identified, there is still a need to study the statistical correlation to confirm the interrelationships among factors. This study is also limited by the articles available in the databases and content extraction.Practical implicationsThis study supports decision-makers in understanding the critical drivers in digitalizing the supply chain. Once these factors are studied and comprehended, managers and decision-makers could better anticipate and allocate the proper resources to embark on the digitalization journey and make informed decisions.Originality/valueThe digitalization of the supply chain is more critical nowadays due to the global disruptions caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the surge of organizations moving toward the digital economy. There is a gap between the digital transformation pilot studies and implementation. The themes and factors unearthed in this study will serve as a foundation and guidelines for further theoretical research and practical implications.

Reduced Air Pollution during the Prevailing of COVID-19 Pandemic: Five Years Observation and Path Analysis in the Fenwei Plain, Northwest China

Heavy pollution in North China has attracted extensive attention in recent decades, and numerous studies have been conducted in developed regions, while studies on the heavily polluted Fenwei Plain in Northwest China are still scarce. In this study, we analyzed the continuous air pollution records of Weinan city on the Fenwei Plain from 2016 to 2020 to provide specific prevention and control strategies for the region. From 2016 to 2020, pollutant concentrations showed an overall decreasing trend, with a slight increase in O3 concentration. The study found that during the COVID-19 lockdown period, O3 was also significantly affected by the lockdown policy. During the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, anthropogenic emissions were reduced due to restraints on commercial and social activities. NO2 responds sensitively during COVID-19, and PM2.5 has a delayed response. We applied pathway analysis to investigate the contribution of different pollutants and meteorology to PM2.5. The results show that CO and NO2 have the largest positive comprehensive effect, while wind speed and temperature have the largest negative comprehensive effect. Spearman's correlation analysis shows that NO2 contributes significantly to O3 production in different AQI ranges. We advocate that the NOx should be given more attention and become the new focus of air control. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Advances in Meteorology is the property of Hindawi Limited and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Clinical-Epidemiological Characteristics of Children Hospitalized with COVID - 19 in the Republic of Moldova

Despite the spread of SARS-CoV-2 infection, knowledge of the symptomatology, modalities of transmission, severity and prognosis is limited. Based on the complex analysis of the 701 pediatric cases, from 5 public medical-health institutions in the Republic of Moldova, positively diagnosed with SARS - CoV-2 infection by the RT-PCR molecular method, 73% of the children were in close contact with a COVID-19 positive person in the last 14 days until the illness. Most of the hospitalized children develop moderate clinical forms of COVID-19 (84.17% cases). The mean age of children with severe form is lower compared to those with moderate or mild form. The sex of patients does not influence the course of the disease. Children's age influences paternal manifestations: children of preschool age (<7 years) more often show high fever, changes in consciousness, drowsiness, rash, diarrhea and dyspnea, while children > 10 years: headache, pharyngitis, hypo/anosmia, ageusia, myalgia, arthralgia and vertigo. No statistical correlations were found between the form of the disease and the presence of comorbidities. The evolution of pediatric COVID-19 infection is favorable, considering that 97.57% of children do not show clinical manifestations at discharge. Knowledge of various clinical pictures of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus would allow the doctor to make an early diagnosis, administer adequate treatment and establish preventive measures. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

Long-term statistical assessment of meteorological indicators and COVID-19 outbreak in hot and arid climate, Bahrain.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the global lifestyle, and the spreading of the virus is unprecedented. This study is aimed at assessing the association between the meteorological indicators such as air temperature (°C), relative humidity (%), wind speed (w/s), solar radiation, and PM2.5 with the COVID-19 infected cases in the hot, arid climate of Bahrain. Kendall and Spearman rank correlation coefficients and quantile on quantile regression were used as main econometric analysis to determine the degree of the relationship between related variables. The dataset analysis was performed from 05 April 2020, to 10 January 2021. The empirical findings indicate that the air temperature, humidity, solar radiation, wind speed indicators, and PM2.5 have a significant association with the COVID-19 newly infected cases. The current study findings allow us to suggest that Bahrain's relatively successful response to neighboring GULF economies can be attributed to the successful environmental reforms and significant upgrades to the health care facilities. We further report that a long-term empirical analysis between meteorological factors and respiratory illness threats will provide useful policy measures against future outbreaks.