Long-run equilibrium relationship between energy consumption and CO2 emissions: a dynamic heterogeneous analysis on North Africa.

Environmental protection and sustainable development are inextricably linked. This linkage is particularly crucial for North Africa, where the use of carbon-intensive energies has created environmental and economic challenges. Amazingly, limited studies on the connection between energy consumption and environmental quality has been conducted to help with policy options to minimize the above menace in the region. Inspired by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, this study contributed to filling this gap by examining the energy consumption-CO2 emission nexus in North Africa for the period 1990 to 2018. In order to account for cross-sectional dependence, endogeneity, and slope heterogeneity that are mostly ignored by some conventional econometric techniques, this exploration adopted second generation econometric methods that are robust to the aforestated issues in its analysis. From the results, the studied panel was heterogeneous and cross-sectionally correlated. Also, the investigated series were first differenced stationary and cointegrated in the long-run. The cross-sectional augmented autoregressive distributed lag (CS-ARDL) and the dynamic common correlated effects mean group (DCCEMG) estimators were adopted to explore the elasticities of the explanatory variables and from the results, energy consumption worsened environmental quality in the region due to its positive influence on CO2 emissions. Also, urbanization and economic growth increased the rate of CO2 emissions in the countries. On the causal connections amid the series, bidirectional causalities between energy consumption and CO2 emissions, between urbanization and CO2 emission, between economic growth and CO2 emissions, and between urbanization and energy consumption were unraveled. Finally, unidirectional causalities from economic growth to energy consumption, and from economic growth to urbanization were confirmed. It is recommended that countries in North Africa should shift to the consumption of clean energies to help them attain low-carbon economy. Unavailability of data for some periods was the major limitation of the study. Therefore, in future when such data become available, similar explorations could be conducted to confirm the robustness of the study's results.

Trade openness and CO2 emanations: a heterogeneous analysis on the developing eight (D8) countries.

The focus of this exploration was to examine the linkage between trade openness and CO2 effusions in the developing eight (D8) countries. An unbalanced panel dataset spanning the period 1990 to 2016 was employed for the study's analysis. From the results, the studied panel was heterogeneous and cross-sectionally correlated. Also, all the series gained stationarity after first difference and were materially cointegrated in the long run. The elastic effects of the input variables on the output variable were explored through the DCCEMG estimator, with the support of the AMG and the CCEMG estimators. From the results, trade openness increased CO2 emanations in the D8. Also, economic growth, energy consumption, and financial development promoted CO2 secretions in the nations; however, foreign direct investments mitigated the excretion of CO2 in the countries. On the causal connections amid the series, there was a bidirectional causality between trade openness and CO2 emanations. Also, a one-way causal movement from energy consumption, foreign direct investments, and financial development to CO2 effluents was discovered. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others that effective trade policies that could enhance the transfer of cleaner technologies to the countries should be formulated.

The link between carbon emissions, renewable energy consumption, and economic growth: a heterogeneous panel evidence from West Africa.

This study examined the nexus between carbon emissions, renewable energy consumption, and the economic growth of West African countries for the period 1990 to 2018. To be able to uncover reliable and valid findings, more robust panel estimation methods were employed for the study. From the heterogeneity and cross-sectional dependence tests, the study's panels were heterogeneous and cross-sectionally dependent. Also, all the series were non-stationary at levels, but gained stationarity after first difference. Further, the Fisher test and the Westerlund and Edgerton bootstrap test found the variables to be cointegrated in the long run. The CCEMG and the DCCEMG estimators were used to explore the long-run equilibrium relationship amid the series, and from the results of the whole sample, CO2 emissions and renewable energy consumption (REC) had no vital influence on economic growth (GDP) in both estimators. However, the results were a bit different in the sub-panels. Also from the whole sample, control variables urbanization (URB) and population growth (POP) had no material effect on GDP in both estimators. The results were, however, dissimilar in the sub-panels. Finally, the Dumitrescu-Hurlin test was employed to examine the causalities amid the series, and the results were diverse in the various panels. Policy recommendations are further discussed.