Decomposing the Persistent and Transitory Effect of Information and Communication Technology on Environmental Impacts Assessment in Africa: Evidence from Mundlak Specification

Abstract

This study examines the persistent and transitory effects of information and communication technology (ICT) on the environmental impact assessment in Africa. The applied advanced econometrics is based on both the Mundlak and Hausman–Taylor methodology for correcting endogeneity and the feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) method to identify any potential cross-panel correlation. The empirical evidence suggests that an increase in ICT (Internet penetration) has a positive transitory effect on the environment. On the contrary, an increase in ICT has a negative persistent effect on the environment. This implies that a temporary change in ICT usage increases carbon emissions, whereas ICT use can reduce carbon emissions in the long run. In addition, this study identified mediums through which ICT can affect the environment, such as energy consumption. Therefore, this study recommends continuous investment in ICT infrastructure and education on the importance of practicing environmentally sustainable practices. Similarly, energy conservation is critical because use of the Internet appears to indirectly increase energy usage by increasing the overall productivity of the economy, which may subsequently degrade the environment.

Can the digital economy development curb carbon emissions? Evidence from China

“…Large amounts of electricity will be consumed by devices of information and computer technology (ICT) and technological industrialization (Salahuddin and Alam, 2015). Secondly, the growth of the internet and e-commerce industry could have a crowdingout effect, resulting in the elimination of energy-intensive industries (Shobande, 2021). Digital technologies can contribute to green development by disrupting the geographic boundaries, influencing energy consumption, and optimizing resource integration and environmental decision-making (Dubey et al, 2019;Ren et al, 2021).…”

Impact of the Digital Economy on the Carbon Emissions of China’s Logistics Industry

“…The digital economy is an important part of the national economy, and innovation is its essential feature. Digital technology drives knowledge accumulation, information integration, and resource sharing; reduces the cost of knowledge search, storage, processing, and transmission; accumulates innovative resources; and lays the foundation for technological carbon reduction [22]. The use of digital platforms and digital technologies optimizes the allocation of innovation resources [23], reduces the irrational behavior of technology research and development, predicts innovation risks, reduces innovation costs, improves innovation speed and research and development success rates, promotes technological progress through the calculation and analysis of massive information, and drives carbon emissions reduction in the logistics industry through technological linkages and technological spillovers.…”

The Effects of Broadband Infrastructure on Carbon Emission Efficiency of Resource-Based Cities in China: A Quasi-Natural Experiment from the “Broadband China” Pilot Policy

“…Other scholars believe that the development of information and communication technology will improve environmental quality by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. For example, some studies have shown that the use of the Internet and the increase in Internet penetration will significantly reduce carbon emissions in the long run [ 45 , 46 ]. Increasing investment in information and communication technology infrastructure also has a significant effect on reducing carbon emissions [ 47 ], and the carbon trading platform based on digital information technology can also reduce the cost of carbon trading [ 48 ], and accelerate the reduction of carbon emissions and carbon emission intensity.…”

“…For example, intelligent manufacturing workshop can realize carbon emission prediction and low-carbon control based on digital data fusion drive [ 56 ]. On the other hand, “Broadband China” has accelerated the development of China’s telecommunications infrastructure, brought new vitality to economic development under the influence of the epidemic, and may play a role in the green development of all industries [ 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 ]. At the same time, the network infrastructure brought by “broadband China” plays an important role in accelerating the flow of innovation elements, reducing the spatial barriers of information transmission [ 58 ], promoting the application of innovative technologies [ 59 ], and promoting the realization of regional technological innovation development.…”