Exploring the impacts of institutional quality, globalization, and urbanization on environmental pollution in Somalia: a disaggregate analysis of globalization

Abstract

Abstract Environmental pollution and its implications are widespread issues that require a comprehensive understanding of effective strategies that mitigate emissions. Given the unique challenges faced by Somalia, including social, political, and environmental challenges, it is crucial to assess the effects of social and political globalization, urbanization, and institutional quality on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Hence, the study aims to examine the relationship between these variables and the environmental deterioration in Somalia. The study utilizes the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) bound test, fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) method, and causality tests. The empirical results of the bound test indicate that institutional quality and social globalization have a significant negative impact on environmental pollution in Somalia in the long run. On the contrary, economic growth impedes environmental quality in Somalia in the long run. However, the remaining explanatory variables are inconsequential in the long run. To find robust results, we perform the fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) as a robust analysis. The findings revealed that social globalization and institutional quality improve environmental quality by reducing GHG emissions whereas urbanization significantly hampers it. Based on the empirical evidence, the study offers several policy implications.