Panel data analysis reveals tourism drives economic growth alongside carbon emissions in developing Asian nations, highlighting the moderating role of governance.
Key Points
To examine the relationship between tourism expansion, economic growth, and environmental sustainability, while evaluating the moderating role of environmental, social, and governance indicators.
Analyzed panel data across 10 developing Asian countries over the period 2013–2023.
Conducted econometric evaluations using panel unit root testing, cointegration analysis, and Dumitrescu–Hurlin panel Granger causality tests.
Tourism development demonstrated a significant positive association with economic expansion, supporting the tourism-led growth hypothesis.
Identified a unidirectional Granger causal relationship running from tourism expansion to increased carbon dioxide emissions.
Environmental, social, and governance performance significantly moderated environmental impacts, though governance initiatives did not entirely eliminate tourism-driven emissions.