ABSTRACT Sustainable development in the developing nations, such as the African nations, is a topical issue that needs to be addressed by employing a multi‐faceted approach, including advancement in digital technology, green financial management, and the adoption and implementation of correct policies. Nonetheless, corruption emerges as the main drawback to the successful implementation of sustainable development projects in such economies. This research adopts the Hickel sustainable development index in investigating the critical issues of environmental sustainability and human development in the West African countries. Quantitative data analysis techniques, the “Methods of Moment Quantile Regression” and the “Driscoll–Kraay” estimators, are employed in analyzing the data of the 12 economies of this region for the period 2004 to 2022. The main findings indicate that digitalization and financial development are associated with increases in sustainable development by a magnitude of 0.015–0.051 and 0.83–1.23, respectively; a decrease in ecological footprint by a magnitude of 0.036–0.079 and 1.23–2.27, respectively; and an enhancement in human development by a magnitude of 0.016–0.024 and 0.422–0.4821, respectively. Similarly, renewable energy enhances sustainability insignificantly (0.002–0.003), decreases ecological stress (−0.005 to −0.014), and slightly decreases human development in higher quantiles (−0.0003 to −0.0006). The influence of green finance on sustainable development is superficial, considering the high corruption level in this region. Policy reforms for sustainable futures and human development, including policies on investment in clean technologies and clean energy sources, are crucial for meeting the sustainable development goals.
Abubakar et al. (Sun,) studied this question.